Unger the Radar

Today, we’ll look at the story of current Belen Jesuit junior Marcelo Mantecon. We’ll talk about lots of different things, beginning with his faith, service, family, upbringing with Belen Jesuit and through his postseason run this year at NXN and Brooks, and we’ll go through his quadruple national title at NIN as well as advice he has for runners to never limit themselves. Enjoy!

Hi, I’m Nate and this is Unger the Radar: where we reveal off-camera observations of authentic athletes. Today, we’ll look at the story of Mountain Vista senior and Arizona State University commit Brenna Jorde. There was lots of bouncing around in this fairly long episode but we talk about her junior year NXN championship run then dive into her trip in Slovakia, interspersed throughout we learn the other ways that God has worked in her running career. If you’ve ever had a long period of burnout or lack of enjoyment in your sport or hobby, this episode is for you! Enjoy!

Today, we’ll look at the story of, current Hamilton senior and Colorado State Commit Zarian Rodriguez. We’ll talk a lot about the camaraderie on his high school team then dive into the experiences he had at two premier XC meets, Arcadia and. Then, we dive into his experience running Brooks and the additional camaraderie he’s had on the national running community. Throughout we’ll dive into both some personal and team sacrifice and growth moments to allow him and his team to be state and national inspirations. Enjoy!

Today we'll look at the story of current Irvine High School senior Summer Wilson. We'll look at her track club upbringing with Equalizers and look at her relationships with younger athletes on the team as a role model. Then, we’ll look at her early career with Junipero Serra before diving into her own career at Irvine with Coach Hurst. We'll talk about that as well. Then we'll just go into her exploits in cross country and track, including setting a few state and even a NATIONAL record and more trips to more national meets. Throughout we’ll stop and keep pondering the question: What makes Summer the way she is and how can we apply that knowledge to the everyday runner?

Today, we’ll look at the story of current Mercer Island junior Sophia Rodriguez. This was a smorgasbord of different topics, family, moving a lot, radio, but really focused on the personal takeaways of her time in the Nike Elite program and trail running in Spain and France. Enjoy!

Hi, I’m Nate and this is Unger the Radar: where we reveal off-camera observations of authentic athletes. Today, we’ll look at the story of HXN champion, Ruah Franzmann-Simmert. We’ll talk a lot about her journey to her championship run, as well as her faith, family, and how they both have supported her frequent travels and exploits to the national stage.

Today, we’ll look at the story of Shakopee senior and St. Thomas commit Kacie Claessens. The main thing is her faith and her people and how she used both to get through the crazy turn of events that happened in Chicago, all starting with a DQ and ending with a trip to Nike Indoor Nationals. We’ll also begin with how she found her place as a 7th grader on varsity at Shakopee and a runner on TopSelf, which is the track club that she trains with. Enjoy!

Today, we’ll look at the story of West Dubuque senior and Oregon commit Quentin Nauman. In this first part of Quentin’s interview, we’ll go over the journey up to his junior year, including where he got started, quadrupling at state, his quest to break 4 minutes in the mile, and his journey to a national NON title. On the second part, we’ll look at his journey with Nike Elite and his general advice for people just starring out, but we’ll save that for next time. Enjoy!

Today, we’ll look at the story of Bloomington South High School and UNC commit Ellie. For the first part of this episode, we’ll talk about Ellie and her soccer beginnings, then follow her journey for the state record in the 4x8. We talk about something I call Confidence without Evidence which is how she was able to run for a national championship title at the 800 at nike outdoor national despite that being her first outdoor national meet. The second part we’ll dive into the Nike Elite program and the connections she’s made there, but we’ll save that for Part II! Enjoy!

Today, we’ll look at the story of my former teammate, current Minnetonka senior and Stanford commit Sean Fries. We’ll talk a lot about Minnetonka as we both ran together. Also, we'll touch on his other sport, swimming. Then, we’ll dive into his high school running career so far, including his postseason run to run 14:22 and his quest for a national title at both NXN and Brooks. Enjoy!

Today, we’ll look at the story of current Wayzata freshman Ali. We’ll look at her cross country career so far, the transition from middle school to high school cross country, and her generational postseason run and her quest to go for a national title at NXN with a team of her and six seniors. This is a two part interview, and we’ll discuss the greater Wayzata community as well as her first high school track season. 

Today, we’ll look at the story of Rochester John Marshall High School junior Abi Tri, and her cross country journey. She goes through her journey running the state meet for the first time as a 7th grader and how her struggles with performance anxiety impacts her running career. We’ll dive into how she uses her sports psychologist Ruth Brennan to help her as well as how both her family and team has supported her running journey so far. Throughout, we discuss what Abi has learned and what both people running can do to help manage race anxiety and how fans of the sport can support runners who struggle with performance anxiety. This episode was super fun to record and I hope it can impact you in a positive way and make you feel seen.I wanted to get this out before state so there’s no intro or outro for now…I’ll add it in later!Just a note - neither Abi and I are mental health professionals and we're exclusively talking about what has helped us personally; not everything works the same for everyone. Please reach out to a licensed therapist or counselor if you need help.Remember to SEEK HELP if you need it. If you are thinking of harming yourself, please call the suicide hotline 988 now.More tips to help others with anxiety: 12 Do’s and Don’ts of Helping Someone With Anxiety(0:00) Abbreviated intro(0:28) Trying the Fourth of July 5K (3:18) Dealing with Expectations (13:13) Advice from a Sports Psych (15:43) John Marshall and How It Helps Her (21:24) Keeping the Mind Grounded (23:15) How to Breathe (25:11) Two Sports at the Same Time?! (30:40) Moments of Doubt Are Normal! (33:39) Performing Despite Being Sick (34:53) TerraLoco Ambassador (38:08) What Would Abi Tell 7th Grade Her? (40:06) Rebuking Bad Thoughts (42:00) How Abi Helps Her Friends Who Are Nervous (46:48) How Can Fans of the Sport Support Runners Who Struggle With Anxiety (50:54) Performance-Based Questions… Good or Bad? (54:21) What Do You Say to Someone Who Had a Bad Race? (57:03) What Do You Say to Someone Who Had a Good Race? (1:01:39) What Should Running Media Do? (1:04:48) How to Cultivate Good Community? (1:07:07) Nora Hanson Shoutout (1:11:13) Strava Humor (1:12:16) If You’re Struggling and Too Scared to Reach Out… What Do You Do? (1:18:31) Abi’s 1st Half Marathon (1:20:56) Finding Enjoyment in Running (1:28:56) Being Grateful — Even Saying Just One Good Thing (1:29:12) John Marshall in 3 Words (1:30:29) What Would Abi Tell Runners Just Starting Out?

Today, we’ll look at the story of current University of Minnesota freshman Laura McClary, and Case Western University freshman Halina Tompkins. However, the focus is on their experience on St. Paul Central’s high school cross country team; and how they supported each other. We’ll look into Laura’s and Halina’s leadership on the team, to how the team supported Laura when she was injured and vice-versa. Then, we’ll dive into Central’s attempt to make state for the first time since 1999. Laura and Halina were amazing to have on the podcast as they were both incredibly passionate about their sport, but more importantly their team. Their presence on Central will be missed and is surely a great example of leadership for future leaders on the team to follow.(0:00) Intro(1:34) They Almost Played Volleyball (3:02) Someone who Inspired them (6:58) First Day of Cross Country (8:27) Laura’s Leadership (9:51) Practice At Central High School (14:29) Inclusion on the Team (18:00) Injury (20:34) Rebound (22:42) Do Runners have Hobbies? (23:31) Harry McClary (24:00) How Halina Supported Laura during her Injury (27:07) Rebounding & Sections Drama (29:29) A Tiebreaker (30:43) Grappling with the Emotions (36:07) Did they Make it to State?(36:38) Future Hopes for Central(39:09) A Little Bit of Track (40:30) Who would Laura Give her Athena Award to? (41:34) Off to College! (44:24) The 3 Questions (45:58) Takeaways

Today we’ll look at the story of Sophia Bablitch, an incoming sophomore at the University of Minnesota. From a town of 478 people, we’ll look at her humble beginnings in a big family and small team; she had more cousins than XC teammates! Then, we go from small town to the big city and even bigger career goals in the journalism field. Sophia was awesome to have on the pod as we had a lot of common goals in our careers and she was really candid about the struggles she’s faced as a runner. Let’s see what we can learn from Sophia, and what her life is truly like Unger the Radar.Table of Contents:(00:00) Intro(01:50) “I wrote this in my notes, I bolded it; so I wouldn’t mess this up” messes it up(01:56) 38 people in your GRADUATING class?(02:18) Life at Rosholt High School(03:29) Sophia’s Early Running Career(09:18) Excelling at High School Track(16:45) A relay with…with your cousins?(18:59) Competing at Nike Outdoor Nationals(23:41) Why Minnesota?(25:11) Culture shock?(30:15) First College Races(34:31) Photographer POV(35:16) How Sophia Deals with Adversity(37:26) “Whether you make it to state or not, it doesn’t take away from you as a person”(39:39) Sophia’s Trip to Indianapolis to Shadow the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament(44:31) Dream Job(48:19) Female Leadership and Camaraderie in Sports Journalism(49:39) The Same 3 Questions(53:04) Takeaways

Today we’ll look at the story of Maddie Gullickson, an incoming senior at the Wayzata High School. We dive into what drives her crazy finishing kicks in going for the state title or the 4x8 state record. We’ll look at how she has been able to be such an incredible leader of a team who has won 3 state cross country titles in a row, whether she was running or not. And then, we’ll look at what it was like when she put on a pair of nordic skis for the first time last year. Maddie was incredible to have on the pod as you can just tell the passion she has about her sports, and the love for her team shine through her voice. She was really open about the life lessons she’s picked up from her time, and I was really inspired. Let’s see what we can learn from the authentic, athletic life of Maddie Gullickson, and what her life is truly like Unger the Radar:Table of Contents:(0:00) Intro(1:47) “I feel like a coach right now”(1:53) Who inspired Maddie to Run?(7:07) Success Right out of the Gun(10:44) Watching the 4x800 State Record get broken(12:28) Sitting and Kicking(15:17) How does she do it?(17:57) A Momentary Setback(23:08) More Wayzata Leaders(26:11) Using Nerves to Fuel her(27:50) Passing the Torch(32:17) Back on the Grass(33:30) “I’d be in my fuzz with Grace…or I’d be in my pack with Grace and Aly”(33:37) Back on the Grass again(44:15) Going for the 4x800 state record(47:19) How does Maddie handle pre-race nerves and expectations?(48:54) shoot - Maddie…on skis?!(53:04) What’s the Minnesota endurance community like?(59:09) Team Bonding(1:00:02) How Maddie keeps it fun(1:04:20) How does she grow from setbacks?(1:05:55) Writing down Success(1:07:18) Leading her legacy(1:09:16) Tons of people look up to her, but who does she look up to?(1:11:55) 3 Questions: Mental Health, 3 words, and some advice(1:15:03) Outro and Takeaways

In this episode of the MOMENTUM Podcast, we’re joined by Minnesota Gophers women’s soccer player and Hopkins High School alum Avery Petty.As a freshman navigating her first collegiate season, we reflect on her lifelong journey through playing soccer in Minnesota; from playing for Hopkins High School as a captain to stepping onto the field for her first game as a Gopher at the University of Minnesota. We dive into what it’s like adjusting to college life, building connections with teammates, and leaning on support systems when things get tough.With both of us being freshmen in college from rival schools, we talked about our old high school rivalry and shared some laughs and funny memories from high school. We even had to bring ChatGPT into the discussion when I asked a question that stumped both of us…This was a really fun one to make, so sit back, relax, and open your mind. And as always, don’t forget to share this with your friends so we can shed as much light to these overlooked sports as we can. I’m Nate Unger, and this is Avery Petty on the MOMENTUM Podcast.

We’re kicking off the MOMENTUM Podcast with Minnesota state cross country champion and UNC Chapel Hill commit Robert Mechura.The first episode dives into Robert’s journey from setting school records in elementary school to becoming one of Minnesota’s top distance runners. We talk about the early days, summer camp stories, and the tight bond he shares with his Roseville teammates. Robert opens up about his approach to goal setting, reflects on defining races in his high school career, and shares why he chose the University of North Carolina.We end with a discussion on Robert’s YouTube content creation and lessons that he’s both learned and seeks to impart to his audience.This episode was so much fun to record and a very strong kickoff to the series, so sit back, relax, and open your mind. And as always, don’t forget to share this with your friends so we can shed as much light to these overlooked sports as we can. I’m Nate Unger, and this is Robert Mechura on the MOMENTUM Podcast.