INDEX:
Big Performers At Roy Griak - Cheyenne Mountain's Boys Triumph - Gavin & Callum Sherry Shine At Ocean State - Larry Josh Edwards & CJ Singleton Dual - Niwot Doubles At Desert Twilight; Ping grabs win - Caroline Wells Produces Historic Florida Performance
* Sioux City North's runners talk about their Roy Griak win
Big Performers At Roy Griak
Sam Scott, Micah Blomker, Ali Weimer, Ava Parekh and Lauren Pansegrau: What do they all have in common?
Every one of these athletes can walk away from the Roy Griak Invitational on Friday with the utmost confidence moving forward in their seasons. But for Scott, in particular, perhaps it was a sign of something more. The Minneapolis Southwest (MN) sophomore may be developing into one of the top underclassmen in the country.
He's 5-0 and just can't stop winning. In defeating fellow sophomore Blomker -- with both dipping under 16 minutes on the course -- Scott made an even bigger statement.
Now, how much are these two separated by one another? The fact that the duo was separated by just second seconds? It means that equity is there, that each runner has equal parts talent and ability to perform at the highest of levels. They're probably more equal than they are separate.
But Scott's win in 15:49.30 at Les Bolsted continues to showcase why he's a special runner. Blomker came around in 15:56.00. Scott's performance ranks No. 31 all-time at Roy Griak, while Blomker's was No. 52.
On the girls side, Ali Weimer has been on our radar for a long time. But her win in a time of 17:48.50 was a big moment for the STMA athlete. It might be her best win to date after finishing 14th as a sophomore.
All three of her performances this fall have been under 18 minutes.
Parekh was second in 17:58.40 and Pansegrau -- who's kind of under-the-radar but won't-be-for-long athlete -- was third in 18:08.30. Weimer's performance was No. 5 in Roy Griak history, while Parekh was No. 11 and Pansegrau was No. 16. In fact, the top 11 performances are now all among the top 100 performances at the meet overall.
On the team front, Sioux City North (IA) grabbed its most impressive win to date, securing a 7-point win over Dowling Catholic in a field of 446. The Iowa boys squad ran smart, finishing three scorers inside the top 20 to build out a 16:48 average.
The girls race was a little more wild. Four teams scored under 200 points, and all four were separated by just 21 points. It went like this: Olathe North (172), Middleton (178), Saint Paul Highland Park (185) and Naperville North (193).
All four were impressive.
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