By John RittenhouseFive members of the Luverne High School girls’ track program will compete at the state meet after turning in solid performances during the Section 3A Track and Field Championships staged in Luverne Thursday.Eighth-grader Lexi Heitkamp qualified for the event individually in the 1,600-meter run. Heitkamp also is a member of Luverne’s 3,200-meter relay team that will advance to state. Senior Tera Boomgaarden and sophomores Kelsey Dooyema and Victoria Arends are the remaining members of the 3,200-meter relay.Individuals qualify for the state meet by placing first or second at the section level in their respective events, and the winning relay teams also earn an automatic in the state field. There also are qualifying standards in place during the section meet that, if met, can send an individual or a relay to the state meet.Heitkamp earned her trip to the state meet by placing second. The 3,200-meter relay team met the qualifying standard.Heitkamp ran a 5:20.02 during her second-place performance in the 1,600-meter run.She ran the anchor leg of the 3,200-meter relay, which finished second with a time of 9:49.21. The qualifying standard for the race was 9:52.18."We were really happy with the way our kids in the relay ran," said Cardinal coach Craig Nelson. "When you meet the standard, you usually have a good chance to place in that event at state. We thought Lexi had a good chance to qualify in the 1,600, but the relay was a pleasant surprise."The Luverne foursome will compete Saturday at the Minnesota State Class A Track and Field Championships at the National Sports Center in Blaine.The 3,200-meter relay is an all finals event that takes place at 9:45 a.m. Heitkamp will run in the 1,600, another all finals event, at 12:18 p.m.Luverne placed eighth in the team competition at the section meet with 45 points. Cedar Mountain won the team title with 79.5 points.Along with the performances that led to berths in the state meet, Luverne received four more medal-earning efforts that go to athletes who place in the top six in their respective events.Marissa Stewart and Maggie Kuhlman made strong bids to advance to state as individuals.Stewart, who placed seventh in the shot put with a toss of 33-4, finished third in the discus with a distance of 111-1.Kuhlman, who cleared 4-8 to place 13th in the high jump, finished third in the 300-meter hurdles in 49.06.Senior Jenni Christensen picked up two medals. She placed fifth in the 200-meter dash in 27.12, and ran a leg with the sixth-place finishing 1,600-meter relay team that turned in a time of 4:14.74. Arends, Amanda Dooyema and Heitkamp round out the 1,600-meter relay.Arends secured a medal in the 300-meter hurdles by placing sixth in 50.47.Luverne placed seventh in two events, which helped pad the team tally.Amanda Saum ran 3,200-meters in 12:25.84 to finish seventh, and the 400-meter relay team consisting of Callen Bosshart, Amanda Dooyema, Cassie Pap and Nicole Willers placed seventh in 53.49.Kayla Raddle capped the team scoring by placing eighth in the 3,200-meter run in 12:30.38.Other LHS athletes competing at the section meet as individuals included Bosshart (ninth in the 100-meter dash in 13.5), Boomgaarden (15th in the 800-meter run in 2:37.95), Kesley Dooyema (12th in the 1,600 in 5:54.8), Pap (ninth in the triple jump with a distance of 32-3) and Katie Schneiderman (14th in the pole vault by clearing 7-0).Luverne was disqualified in the 800-meter relay.