The Nike Festival of Miles added high school all star races to its lineup in 2011 and those races have gotten faster and faster ever since. Last year the meet exploded at the high school level, with Missouri’s Spencer Haik running 4:05.98 to lead seven boys under the 4:10 mark for the mile. All told, five of the top 25 times in the nation in 2014 were run at FOM. Three-time Foot Locker finalist Stephanie Jenks won the FOM girls race in 4:46.90, leading seven ladies under the 5:00 mark. As a result of the fast times in 2014, the entries for the 2015 edition of the meet have taken off with athletes from 13 states signed up to compete. Below is a quickie preview of the great high school action you can expect in Saint Louis on June 4. Full entry lists will be released at Noon Central time on Sunday May 31st:
BIG RIVER RUNNING COMPANY CHAMPIONSHIP MILES:
TOP BOYS ENTRIES
ZACH DALE, SR, Conant HS (IL) – Dale was part of last year’s historic HS boys race at FOM where he finished 7th in 4:09.96. He’s in the middle of another great season in 2015, having already run 4:09 for 1600 meters to win the Prospect Wanner Knight Invitational.
BEN BARRETT, SR, Norman North HS (OK) – Barret was 10th at last year’s FOM in 4:12.89. Yes, 4:12 was 10th! This year, Barrett ran 4:09.97 at his Conference meet and will undoubtedly be looking to break 4:10 for the full mile on June 4.
THOMAS POLLARD, SR, GILBERT HS (IA) – Pollard is the top returner from FOM 2014. His 4:08.28 was good for fourth a year ago and ranked him 19th in the country. On May 21, Pollard defended his Iowa State title at 3200 meters in 9:07.
Others to watch: Kendall Muhammad (KY), Heath Warren (IL), Dustan Davidson (MO)
TOP GIRLS ENTRIES
STEPHANIE JENKS, JR, Linn Mar HS (IA) – What can we say? Jenks is putting together one of the best high school careers in Iowa history. She’s a three-time Foot Locker National Finalist, she was second at last year’s adidas Dream Mile (4:42) and she’s the two-time FOM defending champ and meet record-holder (4:46). Oh and did we mention she’s a world class triathlete? Jenks will look to break her own meet record for the third year in a row at FOM where she has become a fan favorite.
TAYLOR WERNER, JR, Ste Genevieve HS (MO) – Though she’s just a junior, Werner has a laundry list of accomplishments at the national level including two trips to both Nike Cross Nationals and Foot Locker Nationals in cross country and personal bests of 4:44 for 1600, 10:19 for 3200 meters and 16:47 for 5,000 meters cross country.
LEXI REED, JR, D’Evelyn HS (CO) – Reed is one of Colorado’s best, coming off a fall where she was third at the State Cross Country Championships. So far this spring she finished 4th at the State Track Champs and ran a personal best of 4:57.99 for the full mile at the prestigious Chandler Rotary Meet in Arizona.
Others to watch: Anna West (MO), Micah Huckabee (AR), Trina Moreno (IA)
FIRST BANK CHAMPIONSHIP 800s:
TOP BOYS ENTRIES
CARLTON ORANGE, SR, Memphis University HS (TN) – A jumper and hurdler in his younger days, Orange has moved up in distance but kept an incredible range. This year his best marks include a 22.61 200, a 48.14 400, and a 4:23 1600. But his best event is the 800 where his 1:50.94 currently ranks him 6th in the country.
BEN WEISEL, SR, Father Ryan HS (TN) – Talk about a breakout season. Weisel has dropped his 800 PR from 2:02 in 2014 all the way down to 1:52.78 in 2015. He’s also shaved four seconds off of his 1600 best, down to 4:14.
DARRIEN CASE, SR, Park Hill South HS (MO) – Case looked very strong in winning the prestigious KU Relays 800 title in 1:53.65 earlier this season. He just ran 1:54 to win his District and is the favorite to take home the Class 5 Missouri State title.
TOP GIRLS ENTRIES
HANNAH LONG, SR, Eureka HS (MO) – Long, one of the nation’s top recruits, announced in the fall that she’ll be headed to Stanford University to run for the Cardinal in college. She is the defending FOM champion at 800 meters (2:09) after having won the mile as a freshman. She then finished runner-up to Jenks as a sophomore. There is a chance that Long may end up running in the professional women’s 800 at FOM this year– a fitting treat for FOM fans who have seen Long race at this meet since she was in the fifth grade.
KARINA LIZ, JR, Aurora Central Catholic High School (IL) – This will be Liz’s second straight trip to FOM. She was 4th in 2014 with a 2:13.67. Her 2:10.73 personal best was set when she won last year’s Illinois State title.
PARKER FANE, JR, St. James HS (MO) – Fane burst onto the scene this season with a hand-timed 2:15.57 at the Rolla Invitational. More recently she was the District champion and will look to challenge for the Class 3 State Championship on May 30.
DO YOU WANT TO JOIN THESE AMAZING FIELDS? There is still time to sign up. Check out the details HERE. Questions? Email Ben Rosario at ben@nazelite.com.