National Boys Performer Of The Week (10/2-10/8)

National Performer of the Week
Maxx Bradley


 * Cameron Todd (left) won this season's sixth NPOTW poll; Anthony Fast Horse is one of the nominees for this week's National Performer of the Week

Photo Credit: Jespinosa7/MileSplit & Raymond Tran/MileSplit

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For Brebeuf Jesuit Prep senior Cameron Todd, practically everything that could have gone right at Nike XC Town Twilight last week did.

For starters, Todd picked up the individual win, running a new 5K PR and breaking the meet record that was set just a year prior. Todd won his fourth race of the year in 14:48.10, which currently has him as the 24th-fastest athlete in the country. 

But Todd also joined a pretty tight-knit list of boys to break 15:00 at Lavern Gibson. Only seven others have ever accomplished that feat before the NXR Midwest Regional in November.

Todd is on a roll in his final year before he heads to Notre Dame next fall.

He almost picked up half of the nation's votes a week ago, ultimately taking in 45-percent of the votes in a very strong group of nominees. 

As always, congratulations to Todd for becoming the sixth winner of the season, and another round of applause for the other four nominees who had great performances in their own right.  

Here are this week's five nominees for the National Performer of the Week. 

Anthony Fast Horse, Ventura (CA): It's official, Fast Horse is the top dog in California after a dominant win at this weekend's ASICS Clovis Invitational. Clocking 14:32.5, Fast Horse lowered his previous best by 36 seconds, and also took the nation's top spot in the 5000m, and he still sits in second in the 3-mile. The Ventura senior picked up his second win of the year, and now got some sweet revenge after finishing runner-up at Woodbridge. It's clear that Fast Horse is a force to be reckoned with, and has officially inserted himself into the conversation as a national title contender.

Seth Norder, Grand Haven (MI): For his third win of the season, Norder outlasted the field at the Portage XC Invitational in Portage, MI, running 14:57.3 to take the win by nearly ten seconds. A year ago Norder took 3rd in one of the fastest races the course has seen, but picking up the win in his last trip to the meet must feel pretty sweet. In addition to his win, this also marked his first trip under 15:00 this season, and his second-fastest time of his Buccaneer career. The Michigan State commit joined a coveted list of boys to break 15:00 on this course, joining notable names including Grant Fisher and Hunter Jones.

Nathan Neil, Bozeman (MT): Not one, now two, but five straight wins to open up his senior campaign. This time crossing first at the Nike Hole in the Wall Invitational, the future Washington Husky had a comfortable 21 second gap between himself and the field. Winning in 14:53.9, Neil has now ran his three fastest times of his career this season, with his performance in Arlington, WA being his second-fastest, trailing his lifetime best by a mere three seconds. After a runner-up performance at state as a junior, Neil is alone in the driver's seat and is searching for his first state title, and of course another trip to Nike Cross Nationals.

Keegan Smith, Knoxville Catholic (TN): Smith had himself a weekend, winning in a big PR and taking down some of the top talent both in the region and the country. At the Jesse Owens Classic in Oakville, AL, Smith out-leaned Cold Springs' Ethan Edgeworth, winning in 14:39.17. That's now three straight races under 15:00, with two of those being lifetime bests. Just a junior, Smith is slowly climbing the national leaderboard and will probably make some more appearances on this list over the next year. 

Noah Valyo, Athens Drive (NC): For years, the WakeMed Soccer Complex in Cary, NC has played host to some of the biggest regular and postseason meets in the country, producing fast performances and championship level racing. At the 2023 edition of the Great American XC Festival, one of North Carolina State's top recruits added his name to a long list of legends. Valyo won the Boys Race of Champions in 14:46.6, leading eleven boys under 15:00. He also jumped to 4th on the all-time list in course history, surpassing familiar names including Sean McGorty, Drew Hunter and Charles Hicks. This was Valyo's second race of the season, and arguably the biggest win of his career. 


    NPOTW's Previous Winners: