National Boys Performer Of The Week Presented By Firefly

National Performer Of The Week Presented By Firefly

Mar 25, 2024

* Allen's Jonathan Simms is a nominee for this week's National Performer of the Week presented by Firefly

Photo Credit: Texas MileSplit

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Justin Northwest's (TX) Cooper Lutkenhaus is already making plenty of noise over the outdoor track and field season, especially after clocking a shiny personal best of 1:50.8, which was the No. 2 time in the country last weekend for 800 meters.

Lutkenhaus stole the show at the Texas Distance Festival at Carroll High School (TX), out-pacing dozens of upperclassmen as he snagged the win over the experienced field.

Winners of our indoor NPOTW program will receive a Firefly Recovery starter kit from our presenting sponsor. For athletes interested in Firefly Recovery, you can also use promo code MILESPLIT to receive 15-percent off any Firefly Recovery Starter kit purchase.

Lutkenhaus picked up just over 37-percent of the votes in last week's poll, edging out Warsaw Community's (IN) Jordan Randall who was just four-percent back.

Just like last week, voting will close on Friday at 12:00 p.m.

Email us at signings@milesplit.com with your email address. With that being said, have fun voting!

This Week's Nominees:

Jonathan Simms, Allen (TX): It took just one meet for the junior to take his seat at the top of the national leaderboard, as Simms clocked 46.37 to improve to No. 1 in the country. At the Jesuit-Sheaner Relays, Simms prevailed over the field, winning in meet record fashion. Simms also helped the 4x400m relay finish second out of 39 teams; the Eagles now sit at No. 9 in the country this season.

Riley Smith, Buchholz (FL): Another race, another untouchable bell lap for the Florida senior. Smith dueled with Leon's (FL) Patrick Koon, who entered the race as the state record-holder and two-time defending state champion. Smith threw his opponent's accolades to the wind, breaking the state record with a new PB of 8:39.71. Smith was able to pull away with a 58.11 final lap, more than enough to become just the 10th high schooler to ever run sub-8:40.

Vance Nilsson, Gilbert (AZ): If there's one thing Nilsson doesn't do, that's lose. The senior hasn't lost in any of his nine races this month, but has shined the brightest in his speciality, the hurdles. Nilsson picked up a pair of wins at the Chandler Rotary Invitational this past weekend, leaving with personal bests in both the 110mH (13.78w) and 300mH (36.43). His wind-aided mark in the 110mH ranks him No. 8 in the country, while he is the lone athlete under 36.5 in the 300mH.

Gates Hinton, Fuquay-Varina (NC): Hinton was oh-so-close to breaking into the 200s in the discus, but will have to settle for a nation-leading 199-7 for the time being. The North Carolina-based senior wasn't really challenged last Thursday, out-throwing the field by more than 25 feet. The reigning state champion is already 20 feet ahead of his junior year PB and remains one of just three athletes this season with a throw of 190-0 or better. Additionally, Hinton is undefeated in the event so far this spring.

Luke Himes , Heritage Christian (IN): One of two dominant throwers nominated this week, Himes' best event is the shot put, one in which he's seen plenty of success in throughout his high school career. Himes had an incredibly busy indoor slate, competing at ten meets during the indoor season, setting a new indoor PB (67-5) and posting a record of 9-1. Over the weekend, Himes made his outdoor debut, winning the Nike Hoosier State Relays with a heave of 66-8, which was his fifth-best throw ever. Himes, the two-time defending state champion, has gone 33-2 since the start of 2023 and he's off to a strong start as he aims for a three-peat.