All that separated Alex Schwantes from a trip to the Class 3A State Cross Country Championship last season was 0.01 seconds.

Word even got back to her teachers.

“One of my teachers, he’s really funny,” the DeKalb junior said. “When I came back he was like how did you do at sectionals. I told him I missed by a hundredth of a second. And then he gave me a grade on my next assignment at 99.99.”

Schwantes was determined not to let history repeat itself this year. She dipped below 18 minutes for the first time, finishing in 17:47.5 to qualify for state by more than 8 seconds. She was named the 2025 Daily Chronicle Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year.

Last season as a sophomore, she officially ran an 18:18 at the sectional in Lake Park to take 29th, while Lake Park sophomore Ruth Dellaria grabbed the final spot with an 18:17.9. But the times on the course indicated an even closer finish with 0.01 between the two runners.

This year, with the sectional back at Lake Park, Schwantes took 20th, besting Dellaria by more than 4 seconds.

Schwantes said she was focused on making sure she earned the trip to state this time around.

“When my teachers heard about it, they were like making fun of me,” Schwantes said. “My coach was like you can’t miss by a hundredth of a second again.”

This year, there were no jokes, as she finished the state meet in 18:03.5, her second-fastest time, which put her in 108th place and in the top half of the 3A field.

She said she was a little nervous heading into the sectional, mostly because of a cold she had. But it didn’t stop her from not only breaking 18 minutes for the first time but smashing her previous PR by 30 seconds.

“I was like as long as I get a PR I’ll be fine,” Schwantes said. “If I get a sub-18, maybe a 30-second PR, that would be really nice. Then I did get the 30-second PR, and I ended up going to state, and I was like whoa.”

DeKalb coach Mike Wolf said Schwantes is a very even runner who has put together a solid high school career so far. As a freshman, she made the sectional round but missed qualifying by about 1:20.

He also said Schwantes has managed to stay healthy throughout her career, something that bodes well heading into her senior year.

“She’s always been a very level-headed runner,” Wolf said. “She doesn’t get real high or too low. Last year, she was happy with the way she ran and optimistic. This year she knew she had to do something different.”

Schwantes said her two main goals for next year are to break 18 minutes consistently and to get more teammates to join her at the track so the Barbs can improve as a team — she was the only DeKalb runner to qualify for state.

This year, Schwantes’ first six races were all over 18:58. She hit 18:18.8 at the regional before the PR at the sectional.

“At first I didn’t think I was doing as well, but everyone was like ‘Oh, you’re running so good,” Schwantes said. “At the end of the year, I started to see it myself.”