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Iron Mountain senior Annslee Runsat, 22, is focused on putting down a free throw attempt during the 2022 girls’ college basketball season. The mountaineer excelled not only in basketball, but also in volleyball and softball, receiving recognition for her efforts in all three sports. (Photo by Dennis Mansfield/Daily News)
IRON MOUNTAIN – From the outside, Annslee Runsat, the recent Iron Mountain grad student and athlete standout, is a tough read.
The three-sport star was a volleyball midfielder who loved the back row. In basketball, she preferred indoor play, but proved quite comfortable as the team’s pressbreaker. She said it was her “a big girl, but I’m not really a big girl.”
And personality wise, the 18-year-old is shy at times but with an engaging personality and an endearing, almost shy laugh. At the same time, Runsat is also a tough competitor, said Iron Mountain volleyball coach Jeanne Newberry “see” when she got frustrated or angry.
What is clear, however, is the impact Runsat has had on Iron Mountain girls’ sport over the past four years. In volleyball, she was a three-time first-team All-Conference selection and was named Mid Peninsula Conference Player of the Year for the 2021 season. In addition, she helped lead the Mountaineers to a 2021 district championship.
In basketball, Runsat was a two-time All-Conference First Teamer and earned an honorable mention on the Division 3 All-UP basketball team in 2020 and 2021.
Mountain climber Annslee Runsat jokes with her teammates while warming up for softball practice earlier this spring. Runsat was a West Pac Conference first-team player that season. (Photo by Dennis Mansfield/Daily News)
And in softball, Runsat was a first-team player in the West Pac Conference that season. Though the honor was well deserved, Runsat laughed and she laughed “kind of shocked about the softball.”
For opposing coaches, Runsat has been Iron Mountain’s most distinguished athlete in recent years.
“She was the best athlete we had” said Newberry. “What was really amazing was their ability to make the game look slow. She had an extended reach and could lengthen her body.
“You don’t (often) see such athletes.”
Runsat’s athletic journey actually began in North Dickinson County, where her family lived until she was in sixth grade. Her mother, Alissa, coached Nordic volleyball at several levels, including as a principal. Runsat points to her mother’s influence as key to her future athletic endeavors.
“My mother was a very good athlete when she was younger and she coached volleyball when I was very young at North Dickinson.” said Anslee. “And she always let me practice basketball. She’s the one that pushed me and I would say my mom was the greatest person I looked up to.”
That’s not to say her father Knute and siblings Gavin, Reighan, and Zeke haven’t impacted her competitiveness.
“With three other siblings, it was all a competition,” said Runsat. “Everything was game. And my parents are also very ambitious.”
While volleyball became her sport of choice, Runsat said basketball was her first love. She said volleyball wasn’t pushed through elementary and middle school, while basketball was.
And a tall player who had skills and mobility was sure to be a huge hit when she arrived at Iron Mountain.
“It wasn’t difficult to fit in” Runsat said about their start at Iron Mountain. “I used to play baseball with some of the guys, so I knew them and I wasn’t nervous because I knew them and they were like, ‘We’ll show you how.'”
Runsat actually caught the attention of then-college basketball coach Katelynn Grenier when she was in the eighth grade.
“My older sister was a player and I was a manager, so I just hopped into their scrimmages.” said Runsat. “So I think she already had her eye on me.”
So does Newberry.
“I watched her in seventh and eighth grade and then her freshman year.” said the longtime Mountaineer volleyball coach. “When I was raising her as a sophomore, I thought, ‘Why didn’t I raise her sooner?’
Though admittedly wary of joining a group, Runsat has never hidden on the pitch or field. Her inner confidence combined with her skills and size made her feel comfortable joining teams with older players.”
“I think I proved myself to the older girls, so it wasn’t very difficult to get in touch with them and be a team (together).” She said.
Runsat said she set goals early on, one of which was to make first team at all conferences in both the Mid Pen and West Pac conferences. While she managed to do that, Runsat seems a bit ambivalent about her athletic accomplishments in the black and gold.
“I think I exceeded a lot of my goals and was very happy to be named Mid Pen Player of the Year.” said Runsat.
But when asked if she’s fulfilled her potential as a high school athlete, Runsat’s response is quick and firm.
“Definitely not. I probably could have pushed myself more in all sports, but maybe my competitive side speaks.”
Runsat was the most honored volleyball player and will continue to play the game at Lakeland University Division 3 in Plymouth, Wisconsin near Sheboygan. But her accomplishments in basketball also caught viewers’ attention, and she was awarded the inaugural Richard Olds Basketball Dedication Scholarship at Iron Mountain that spring.
Runsat, a 3.97-year-old high school student, also received a boatload of academic scholarships, including Lakeland University’s $72,000 Presidential Merit Scholarship.
She said she’s undecided about her major, but said she’s considering exercise science.
With her departure to Lakeland, Runsat will be extremely difficult to replace in the Iron Mountain girls’ track, not only because of her size and athletic ability, but also because of her leadership skills.
“She doesn’t have a great voice, but she always came with a very educational attitude.” said Newberry. “She would make everyone around her aware of where we were going that day.”
“I’m definitely a little more shy, but when I got on the pitch I was more like, ‘Okay, we’ve got to get this done, get this done and get this done’.” Added runsat.
And that attitude is every coach’s dream.
“She was someone I could put in any position” said Newberry. “She was reliable and very instinctive. She saw the whole picture. It was an absolute privilege and honor to coach her.”
Jerry DeRoche can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 247 or at [email protected].
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