By Rich Winter

605 Sports

PIERRE — Fans at big cross-country meets are used to seeing Emery Larson near the front and sporting the red and white colors of the Chester Flyers. 

At the recent Augustana Twilight Meet in Sioux Falls, Larson finished fifth (17:51) now sporting the green and white colors for the Pierre Governors.

“It was a great race and I knew it was going to be high level and intense,” Larson said. “The gun went off and everyone just took off. There are some very tight corners on that course and no one wanted to be in the back of the back or boxed in. I was probably in ninth or 10th place for a good portion of the race and then started picking people off down the stretch.” 

The Larson family has been a pillar in the Chester community both academically and athletically for years. Opportunity came knocking this summer and the Larson’s found themselves with a difficult decision. 

“Late this summer my husband Heath, who had been the superintendent at Chester, got a job as the executive director of the Associated School Boards of South Dakota,” Misty Larson, Emily Larson’s mother, said. 

With two older children living in Sioux Falls, Heath, Misty and Emery sat down and talked about their options before making the decision to move to Pierre. 

“It was definitely a semi-difficult decision,” Emery Larson said. “At the end of the day me and my parents all wanted to be together. I was kind of ready for a change. There are certain things that I will miss at Chester like my friends, coaches and teachers but I was excited for the move.”

Once the decision to move was made everything else lined up. 

“I got a teaching job at Pierre where I taught and was the head track coach for five years,” Misty Larson said. “We spent eight years there and it has been nice to connect with some old friends and nice to meet some new people since we moved.”

Larson is coming off back-to-back Class B state cross-country championships. In addition to her running exploits, Larson was also a key cog on Chester’s 2023 Class B state championship volleyball team. 

There will be no volleyball for Larson this fall. 

“I didn’t do volleyball this year because of the crazy travel schedule,” Emery Larson said. “At Chester we would only have to travel an hour max for volleyball matches. In Pierre we have to go to Rapid City and Aberdeen and Sioux Falls and the travel was just too much. I was disappointed to not be able to play volleyball but ultimately I think that will help my running.”

The actual move happened late in the summer so Larson said her training and mileage were on par for what she had done in previous years. Upon arriving in Pierre, Larson was introduced to a type of topography very different from what she experienced in Chester. 

“Chester is pretty flat and I do a lot of my running on the track,” Emery Larson said. “Pierre is very hilly and I both love and hate that. The river is awesome and I have been able to do some running along the trails of the river.” 

While no longer a dual-sport athlete, Larson has been busy with the move, getting used to her new surroundings and getting to know the other runners from Pierre. 

“Everyone is super nice and we are just starting to get comfortable around each other,” Emery Larson said. “We have some good runners and I think we can have a really good team by the end of the season.”

While Larson has been dominant at the Class B level for the past two seasons, Class AA brings tougher competition. Something Larson said she is ready for. 

“I’ve run against these girls quite a bit,” Larson said. “I don’t want to take anything away from Class A or Class B because it is competitive at every level. I don’t fear anyone and I’m excited for the challenges that are to come.”