ASICS Future Stars: Sophomore Girls Update #2
ASICS Future Stars: Sophomore Girls Update #2
Our second update for the top sophomore girls in the country is here, and there are several new names on the list that didn’t make the September 14th release. Headlining release #2 is a performer who just this two weeks ago ran the second-fastest prep XC 5K EVER in the state of Virginia!
Check out the ASICS Future Stars sophomore girls Update #2 below:
Weini Kelati (Leesburg, VA)
2014 Foot Locker finalist Weini Kelati finally made her sophomore XC debut two weekends ago at the Oatlands Invitational, and what an opener it was, as Kelati completely blitzed the field en route to a US #5 time of 17:11, the second-fastest prep cross country 5K ever on Virginia soil. Kelati, an Eritrean native, owns a 9:12 3K PR that she set at World Juniors two years ago in Eugene. She sits at #3 in the current Saucony Flo50 rankings.
Annie Hill (Kalispell, MT)
Not only does Glacier High sophomore Annie Hill still own the US #2 3-mile of 16:25 from September 6th, she also has yet to lose this XC season as she won three races since our last sophomore update. Hill, who was the top frosh at Foot Locker in 2014 (8th), most recently scored an impressive 21-second victory over 2015 adidas Dream Mile champion Christina Aragon at last weekend’s Great Falls Invitational.
Lindsey Payne (Glen Ellyn, IL)
Glenbard West super sophomore Lindsey Payne returns for week 2 of the Future Stars list after another impressive victory on September 19th at the Richard Spring Invitational. There, Payne ran 16:34 to win comfortably by an 18-second margin, and more importantly, led her team to victory.
Allie Chipman (Highlands Ranch, CO)
Mountain Vista High sophomore Allie Chipman shot onto the national radar with her stunning defeat of 4:40 miler Amanda Gehrich at the Woodbridge XC Classic on September 19th. Chipman, who is ranked #15 in the Flo50, dropped a 16:31 to outdistance the senior Gehrich by six seconds. Her victory propelled her from an unranked status to the top 15.
Mariah Castillo (Saugus, CA)
Saugus sophomore Mariah Castillo already has plenty of XC experience from her freshman year as she competed at NXN last fall, but her first real breakout performance didn’t come until the Sundodger Invitational on September 19th, where she ran a 17:33 5K to lower her PR by more than a minute. The time stands as the second-fastest for a sophomore in 2015.
Karenna Duffey (Macomb, MI)
Macomb L’Anse Creuse North sophomore Karenna Duffey appears on our second release by virtue of her two victories over fellow Future Star Annie Forsyth at the Spartan Invitational and Jackson Invite. Duffey’s 2015 XC record now stands at a perfect 3-for-3.
Julia Curtin (Beverly, MA)
Beverly High’s Julia Curtin scored a huge breakthrough this past Saturday with her 17:43 victory at the Frank Kelley Invitational in Wrentham, MA, simultaneously running the fastest time in Massachusetts this season and lowering her 5K PR by 1:36. The sophomore now owns the sixth-fastest mark for her class in 2015.
Taylor Cuneo (Murfreesboro, TN)
After she finished 8th at NXN as just a freshman, we knew it was only a matter of time before Central Magnet High’s Taylor Cuneo found her way onto our top sophomore list. After taking a season-opening loss to Brentwood Academy’s Claire Cheeseman on August 29th, Cuneo got her revenge on September 19th by beating Cheeseman and winning the Trinity /Valkyrie Invitational by a comfortable five seconds. Her time of 17:42 for 5K ranks her 5th for all sophomores in 2015.
Sielle Kearney (Traverse City, MI)
As a freshman, Sielle Kearney was 5th at the Michigan State XC meet, second-best for all 9th grader’s behind only Karenna Duffey. After taking another loss to Duffey at the Spartan Invitational on September 18th, Kearney destroyed her PR with a 17:34 5K this past weekend at the Cougar Falcon Invitational and now sits at US #4 for all sophomores in the distance, three spots ahead of her fellow Michigander. It should be an epic matchup when these two clash again.
Isabelle Sparreo (Lincolnshire, IL)
Stevenson High’s Isabelle Sparreo grabbed a huge victory this past weekend at the Palatine Invitational over fellow outstanding sophomore Jocelyn Long, running 17:06 for the 3-mile course to nab her first victory of her high school career. Most notable about the performance is Sparreo’s improvement from this meet last season: she was 33rd in 18:38 at Palatine in 2014.