University of Wisconsin junior Molly Hanson, a former Dodgeville athlete, advanced to the finals of the 1,500 meters by finishing second in her qualifying heat at the NCAA West preliminary round meet on Thursday in Austin, Texas.
Hanson crossed the line in 4 minutes, 23.20 seconds after a final-lap surge. She broke with the leaders with 800 meters to go and ran at the back of a pack of seven until the bell lap, when she moved to the outside and eventually passed all but heat winner Raquel Lambdin of UC Davis.
Hanson has the eighth-best qualifying time of the 24 runners entering Saturday's final.