Watch Rachel Mehringer compete in the 60mH at the Dave Fulkerson Classic
The outdoor season is now underway in the Hoosier State!
MileSplit Indiana breaks down 5 girls sprinters to keep an eye on this outdoor season!
Who are you excited to watch compete?
When it comes to hurdles in the state of Indiana, Rachel Mehringer is in a class of her own. Mehringer won the Indiana Sprint and Distance Showcase last year as a Freshman, and did it with the fastest time in Indiana that year. This year, she notched indoor wins at the Dave Fulkerson Classic and the Southeast Showdown with a best time of 8.81. That time was nearly half a second faster than anyone else in Indiana this winter.
This spring we will finally get to see Mehringer compete in an outdoor high school meet. While her outdoor hurdle pace remains a bit of a mystery, her indoor times match up with some of the best hurdlers this state has ever seen.
Ramiah Elliott is one of the few state champions from 2019 that will be back to defend her title this year. Elliott won the 200 meter dash as a freshman in surprising fashion after barely advancing out of her Sectional and finishing third at Regional. Now, the North Central Junior has cemented herself as one of the state's leading sprinters. She went on to run a 23.27 at the USATF U20 Outdoor Championships that summer, faster than anyone in Indiana that year.
The 200 was just one of the state titles Elliott won in 2019. She took a less surprising win in the 400 meter dash, and would go to run a 52.89 in that event later in the summer. North Central won the girls team title, and Elliott was on a pair of North Central relay teams that took top honors. Already with five state championship rings to her name, Elliott could become one of the most decorated athletes in Indiana history by the end of her career.
Lawrence Central Senior Taylor Herbert was the fastest girl in Indiana during the 2021 indoor season. Herbert's times of 7.54 in the 60-meter dash and 25.31 in the 200-meter dash were both number one in the state this winter. In the 2019 State Finals, Herbert earned a sixth place finish in the 100-meter dash and a fourth place in the 400-meter dash as a sophomore. The Louisville commit has had a small taste of outdoor competition in 2021, clocking times of 12.33 in the 100 and 58.02 in the 400 at the Hoosier South Relays.
Ella Scally reached the 2019 State Finals in both the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash in her freshman season, but failed to advance out of the prelims in either event. Now a Junior, Scally is poised to make some noise in the sprints. Her 60-meter dash and 200-meter dash times were both second in the state during the indoor season, just a few ticks behind Herbert in both categories.
Scally has also proved to be an elite long jumper. She qualified for the state finals in that event as well as the sprints in 2019, with her best ever mark of 18-5.75 coming at the Hoosier Crossroads Conference Championships earlier that year.
Regan Wans could have a true breakout season in 2021. With the exception of one cross country race in the fall, the last time we saw Wans compete prior to this track season was at the 2019 State Finals, where she finished tenth in the 400-meter dash with a personal record time of 56.71. Wans did win her first race of 2021 for Hamilton Southeastern, a three-way meet with North Central and Warren Central. This is a runner that got better throughout the 2019 season and really showed up at the big meets, so Wans will be one to watch as the 2021 season progresses.