FARMINGTON, Minn. -- Farmington boys track is improving times and distances across a variety of events as they approach the biggest meets of the season. They hosted the South Suburban Conference meet at Tiger Stadium on May 19 and 20 taking third place behind Rosemount and Lakeville South.
Junior Aaron Geiken is Farmington's top hurdler, "I've hit my goals already. I've had some great meets and great races so far."
He won the 110 and 300 hurdles at the conference meet and was fifth in the 200 and high jump.
Geiken ran both hurdle events at state in 2025 and says it was a learning experience, "It didn't go as well as I wanted but I still made it to state finals (in both) which was great. But I'm hoping to go back this year and have a great few races.
"I put a little pressure on myself and I kind of got in my head which didn't help in my favor. So, I think this year I need to come back with a different mentality and just have more fun. Don't put as much pressure on myself."
Coach Adam Lippold boasts, "Aaron Geiken is the best hurdler in the state. So, he's always going to be at the top of the list (of Farmington's top performers)."
He says Rocco Fulk has shown big improvement in throwing, "He's a very disciplined, hard worker. Very motivated. He's an amazing football player…A great team guy. He helped with our youth track day. One of the best guys that were out there with the kids."
Fulk, a junior, dedicated himself during the offseason, "I think it's been a great improvement from last year. I put like 50 feet on my discus, and like eight feet on my shot put. I had a really nice offseason.
"Gaining 90 pounds and putting a lot of weight on my lifts…I've been eating a lot and working out really hard to try and be as big and strong as possible."
He's thrown the state standard for discus and is a few feet away for shot put, "My goals coming into the year was 50 in shot put and 150 in discus. I already beat my discus goal which I'm definitely happy with. Shot put, I'm not there yet, but there's still more season to go and I have a lot of room to grow."
Lippold points out the great balance the Tigers have, "Our top-end talent is definitely in distance and hurdles, and our throws are really solid. We are improving in throws every time we compete."
At the conference meet Carter Lippold took third place in the 1600 and 3200. Christopher Rehak was seventh in shot put. The Tigers had third place finishes in the 4-by-400 and 4-by-800 relays.
Senior Adam Johnson runs mid distance and reached his goal of running at the Hamline Elite Meet, "It lets me know that I am capable of running with those guys who are top of the state. It keeps me motivated to keep pushing so I can get back there with them at state."
He runs the 4-by-400 relay, 800 and mile, which involve different mindsets, "There's no time to think during a 400. It's just get the baton and let her rip. Give it everything you have. It's the last event of the meet so you can really let it fly.
"The mile is more strategic. I like to sit behind some people and try to out kick them at the end. It's more strategy involved and more endurance."
Johnson went to state in the 800 last season and reached the state cross country meet the last two years. He came in fifth in the 800 at the SSC meet.
He wants to make the athletic experience a good one for all, "One of my biggest goals as a leader is to boost relationships. I like to bond with the younger guys and make sure they're having a good time and that this is something that they want to do again."
Johnson will run cross country and track at Augustana University in Sioux Falls.
Senior Logan Lindstrom transitioned from the long jump a couple of years ago to the triple jump this season, getting a crash course, "Mr. Buss and Mr. Woody are great coaches. They've been helping me out a lot with my form.
"Being good at long jump really helped…I'm trying to get better every meet. Working on my form. I can do better. A lot of improvement to be had."
He enjoys running his relay, "The 4-by-400 is probably my favorite event. It's so much fun. And I get to run it with all my friends…We're all so close. We all want to do really well for each other."
Lindstrom wants to have a fun senior year, "I'm really trying to just enjoy it."
Lippold was pleased about the second-place finish at True Team on May 5 in Owatonna, "I'm very excited. We had a lot of kids outperform the way they've been with a cold, miserable windy day." The Tigers had near perfect scores in the mile and two-mile.
He believes the conference will be well represented at state, "We encompass three different sections. So, we get a lot of kids to the state meet. When you look at the podium this
year at the state meet, every single event will have a South Suburban Conference member on it."
Lippold hopes some Tigers are among them, "It'll be interesting. We got to stay healthy." FHS finished third at state in 2021 with just a handful of athletes racking up the points.
The Section 1AAA meet is on Thursday, May 28 and Saturday, May 30 at Lakeville South High School. State is Thursday, June 4 and Saturday, June 6 at St. Michael-Albertville High School.
