Inside The 10 Best XC And Track And Field Moments Of 2019

Just how good was Nico Young's fall cross country season? 

If you compare his season to the 2011 campaign of Lukas Verzbicas, who we recently named the Runner of the Decade, there are some particular marks that stand out. 

• Nico ran more: 8 meets to 6
• Nico ran under 14 minutes for 3-miles twice; Lukas accomplished that feat just once, and during a record attempt
• Nico set a 3-mile national best cross country time of 13:39.70; Lukas' best was 13:54.00
• Nico's 5K best of 14:28.50 is 16 seconds faster than Lukas' -- though Verzbicas' 14:44.20 was on a much harder course
• Lukas won both Foot Locker Nationals and Nike Cross Nationals; Nico set the new course record at NXN and didn't have the chance to race at Foot Locker

Those performances are obviously compared within one-season parameters. Verzbicas, a talented triathlete over his time in high school, went undefeated across his entire cross country career and won 12 straight races. Nico didn't really truly become a star -- as these things are concerned -- until his final season.

Still, Nico's season may be one of the best ever. 

* Nico describes his NXN win

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If not for the poor conditions at NXN in December, there's a chance he could have put a time on Glendoveer's course that could have been close to untouchable. 

And while the Newbury Park High School senior and NAU signee saved his record attempts for just three performances -- Woodbridge, Clovis and NXN -- he ran with purpose all season-long and showed the kind of poise and talent that few had in 2019. 

An unmistakable byproduct of all this success, too, was the all-too-real gaze of social media followers. Nico went from roughly 1,000 followers at the beginning of the season to a still-growing follower-count of 17,000 on Instagram. 

But a sterling work ethic and a strong base prepared Young for the season. He capitalized with a national win and meet record at NXN, plus two more meet records at Woodbridge and Clovis and a course record at Riverside. He was just four seconds shy of the overall course record at Woodward Park at the CIF State Cross Country Championships.