Anna Harden

Class:
Sophomore
Hometown:
Arlington Heights, Ill.
Squadron:
29 Black Panthers
High School:
John Hersey

SOPHOMORE YEAR | 2024: Competed in five meets…recorded a season-best 6K time of 21:36.7 to finish 25th at the Mountain West Championships…was the only underclassmen in the Falcons’ scoring lineup at that meet…posted a 21:42.5 finish at the NCAA Mountain Regional (83rd)…added a time of 21:56.5 to finish 84th out of 213 runners at Pre-Nationals…finished within the top half of the 330-runner field at the Gans Creek Classic (21:48.0, 124th)…opened the season with a fourth-place, three-mile time of 17:51.0 at the Air Force Classic…academic all-conference…MW Scholar-Athlete.

FRESHMAN YEAR | 2023: Earned the team’s Newcomer of the Year award…competed in five meets, including the conference and regional championships…Falcons’ No. 3 runner at the NCAA Mountain Regional…clocked a career-best 6K time of 20:57.2 to finish 55th out of 133 runners at that meet…also ran that distance at the Mountain West Championships (21:21.4, 35th) and Nuttycombe Invitational (22:31,3, 232nd)…scored for Air Force at the Virginia Invitational, clocking a 5K time of 17:53.8 to finish 124th in the 211-runner field…made collegiate debut at the Air Force Classic…clocked a three-mile time of 18:15 to finish seventh at that meet…academic all-conference.

MAJOR TRACK AND FIELD HIGHLIGHTS: Anchored the 4x1600-meter relay that posted the third-fastest time in Academy history (19:45.96) at the 2024 Drake Relays…named Academic All-District by the College Sports Communicators as a sophomore.

HIGH SCHOOL: John Hersey High School…Illinois 3A state champion in the 1600-meter run during both the indoor (4:52.83) and outdoor (4:53.14) seasons as a senior…captured six conference titles (three in cross country, three in the 3200-meter run)…set the MSL conference record at 3200 meters (10:27.28)…finished fourth in that event at the state meet…two-time sectional champion (1600-meter run, 3200-meter run)…earned all-state honors in cross country every year…finished fourth at the state championship meet as a senior…four-time all-section honoree in cross country…two-time regional champion in cross country…holds school records in the 1600-meter and 3200-meter distances…member of the National Honor Society…named IHSA Academic All-American honorable mention…graduated with a 4.59 GPA.

PERSONAL: Full name is Anna Marie Harden…daughter of Gregory and Mishelle Harden…has two older brothers and one older sister…all three siblings ran for Taylor University…majoring in electrical and computer engineering, while earning a minor in nuclear weapons and strategy…future plans include becoming a developmental engineer…named to the Dean’s List and Athletic Director’s List…currently serving as the NCOIC for A4/6 Staff…earned Jump Wings in the summer of 2024…has a golden doodle named Miles…took part in the Academy’s Cadet Summer Research Program (CSRP) over the summer, studying radio wave propagation at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico…also traveled to Bolling AFB, Washington, D.C., for Operation Air Force…member of Cadet Squadron 29.