Alumni Roundup: Freshman Performances You Can't Miss

We knew the class of 2017 was arguably one of the best classes of boys distance athletes in a long time, and they've already made their impact known in XC -- now they are really starting to shine on the track. Sam Worley came just shy of breaking the 4-minute mile barrier twice while in high school by running 4:00.61 at Texas Relays and then later running 4:02.04 to win the talented mile field at the Brooks PR Invitational. 

This past weekend, Worley had a huge race at the New Mexico Classic running 4:03.91. That time with altitude conversion converts to a 3:58.60 and 14th in the NCAA. Even crazier is the way in which Worley won the race. It came down to a kick on the final curve. Worley switched gears and blew by UTEP junior Jonah Koech in the final stretch. 

Worley is not the only freshman having a great season so far; he is also joined in the top 20 mile times in the NCAA by Oregon freshmen Reed Brown and Cooper Teare, who both broke 4 minutes by running 3:59.05 and 3:59.29, respectively, at the Dr. Sander Invitational Columbia Challenge. Take a look at the freshmen below who have run sub-4 or close to it.