National Scholastic Athletics Foundation

This is the 9th Fall 2013 edition of our NSAF weekly feature on nationalscholastic.org: the Emerging Elites of the Week.  The New Balance Nationals Indoor and Outdoor meets have become known for the ever-expanding and improving competition in the divisions of the same name.  Similarly, the NSAF seeks to give weekly recognition to track and field and cross-country athletes reaching new and exciting competitive levels with their recent performances.

This week we honor two more first-time XC state champions, this time from Maine and Kansas (photos submitted by parents).

Female – Kirstin Sandreuter, Greely HS Class of 2014, Cumberland ME

1st, 18:37.96, MPA Class B State Champs 5k, Twin Brook Park, Cumberland

There was a book published in the 1980s called “The Maine Quality of Running,” written by World War II veteran Dick Goodie.  Upon reading it, one was left with the sense that Maine distance runners were a special breed, perhaps with a toughness and hardiness that was just a little different.  Certainly marathon legend Joan Benoit, a native of the state and the first Olympic champ at the distance in 1984, embodies that kind of special spirit.  Almost thirty years later, Greely (Cumberland ME) senior Kirstin Sandreuter seems to have some of that, too, as she advances from her first state cross country championship last weekend to the New England Champs, Foot Locker Northeast and, hopefully, beyond.

In her final race November 2 on her home XC layout – Twin Brook Recreation Park in Cumberland – which happened to host the MPA championships, Sandreuter dominated the Class B race with her victorious PR of 18:37.96.  Not only did she win by 1:11, but she had the fastest girls’ time of the meet by 57 seconds.  It was doubly special for the senior since it was just her second race back from an injury that slowed her for most of a month.

Nagging ailments, or “bumps in the road,” haven’t derailed Sandreuter, but they’ve probably kept her progress from being as meteoric as it could have been.  But much of her exciting senior year of running is still ahead.  Besides the upcoming post-season, where she hopes to make her first national XC meet, Sandreuter will look to improve her track times in 2014 and hope to venture to again to New York for New Balance Nationals Indoor in March and Greensboro for NBN Outdoor in June.  Earlier this year, she made her debut in the unseeded 2-mile races in each meet, breaking 10:50 each time.

A few thoughts from Kirstin:

On how it has felt to capture her first Maine championship:  Winning a state title was definitely exciting.  Maine has had quite a talented field of female distance runners throughout my entire high school career, which has provided me with great opportunities to compete and improve over the past few years.  It’s a wonderful feeling to realize that the work I’ve put in has helped me climb to new levels! 
Saturday’s success was extra-special since it was that last time I would ever race on my home course.  I really tried to focus on each moment and enjoy it – getting a PR and my first state title made for a truly memorable experience, and I’m so grateful for all the kind words of encouragement I’ve received in the past few days!

On what has helped her raise her game as a senior:  Honestly, I think things just sort of aligned in my favor this season.  Ever since I got past the freshman year adjustments to a new routine of high school running, I’ve really paid attention to important lifestyle factors like stretching, rest and diet, which I know can help maximize my performance.  Though I’ve never had to deal with any truly major setbacks, little road bumps have come up along the way, including mono (which kept me out of states my sophomore year) and some nutritional issues (which interfered with pre-season my junior year).
I think my own love for the sport and desire to discover what I’m capable of, combined with the incredible support of family, friends and coaches, have helped me to reach where I’m at as a senior.

On how she got involved in cross-country:  My mom always tells this one story about a class field trip I took while in preschool.  We went to a farm and everyone was running around to see the animals – apparently I was leading the pack every time!  My teacher then made a very accurate prediction, saying, “She is going to be a runner.”
A couple of years later, I joined our town’s summer track and field program, mostly because my older brother Stefan did it.  It was a lot of fun, but I still decided to stick with soccer in the fall until my eighth grade year.  Again, this transition had a lot to do with having watched Stefan enjoy success on the trails and me wanting to be a part of it!  So I really owe a lot to my brother for demonstrating how awesome running is.  He now competes year-round for Colby College, and I love that we both share a passion for running.

On the positive influence of her state’s recent national-class champions – like Abbey Leonardi and Bethanie Brown – and Maine’s Olympic legend Joan Benoit:  It’s been a blessing to grow up surrounded by so many inspiring athletes in my sport. Abbey has always kind of been a legend with my generation of runners growing up in Maine.  She was a senior when I was a freshman, and watching her race was just incredible!  Even though she was such an obvious stand-out, she was a great example of how being a humble and gracious competitor can be very rewarding.
I had a lot more personal encounters with Bethanie, as she’s only a year older than me and we both competed in Class B at state meets.  She was always very focused and determined, which helped her make incredible improvements from her freshman to senior year.  And although I never caught her head to head, I owe her lots of credit for being the runner who pulled me along to many PRs and gave me some very impressive records to chase!
And I’ve always loved the fact that I can read about Joan Benoit in Runner’s World, and then run into her shopping at a local grocery store!  My mom posted a quote of hers on my mirror a few years ago, which is one of my favorites:  “Love yourself for who and what you are. Protect your dreams, and develop your talent to the fullest extent.”

On her experiences racing at New Balance Nationals Indoor and Outdoor in 2013:  I was so thrilled to qualify for NBNI last March, especially after a challenging winter in which I struggled just to better my times from freshman year.  However, I saw some steady improvement in the post-season, and had a great race at New Englands, which earned me a spot in the unseeded championship race at Indoor Nationals!  That race, as well as NBNO in June, were without a doubt the best opportunities I’ve had to experience racing in an extremely talented field at this point in my career.
I definitely feel I am much more prepared to up my game at those high levels now, so I’d love to earn a spot at NB Nationals again in the upcoming seasons – it’s a privilege that must be earned anew every year, so I will be working as hard as possible to make that happen and hopefully thrive if I do get the chance to compete!

On her final races planned the remainder of the fall:  I can’t wait to run New Englands at Manchester this weekend!  My team attends an invitational meet there early in the season.  I love the course, so I can’t wait to try to improve my performance there and compete against many other incredible athletes! 
Afterward, I’m looking forward to enjoying the next month of training outdoors on the beautiful trails where I live, as I missed most of October due to injury.  My next race will be Foot Locker Northeast Regionals, where I’m hoping for a top ten finish so I can earn the opportunity to run at the national level in cross-country(my favorite running season)!

Male – Stuart McNutt, Blue Valley West HS Class of 2015, Overland Park KS

1st, 15:33.30, KHSAA 6A State Champs 5k, Rim Rock Farm, Lawrence KS

There was a time when running, at least without a lacrosse stick in his hands, was quite a chore for Stuart McNutt.  But the sport can grow on you, especially when you find out you can win.  McNutt discovered that feeling before he got to Blue Valley West (Overland Park, KS) and, with support from the Jaguar upperclassmen, he kept growing in the sport during his 2011-12 freshman year. 

With a 3rd in the New Balance Nationals Outdoor Frosh 2M in June (9:47.14), he leapt toward his sophomore year with confidence.  And during the following fall, he blasted his first sub-16 in getting 7th at Rim Rock, then went on to place 3rd at 6A state.  In the spring, he improved to 9:20.35 for 3200 and 4:23.03 for the mile. 

This fall, McNutt was ready to lead as a junior.  The season took off in mid-late September as a sequence of three huge invitationals began: The Missouri Southern Stampede, the Rim Rock Farm Classic, and the Chile Pepper Festival.  A tough trio of races for a junior trying to make his mark, but McNutt won the Stampede and Chile Pepper, and only US#9 Missouri standout Noah Kauppila could beat him at Rim Rock.  Again, more confidence that carried him back to Rim Rock last weekend to claim his 6A crown in 15:33.30.

A few thoughts from Stuart:

On taking his first Kansas state title as a junior, with the overall best performance:  It was a great blessing.  Being able to run the fastest time out of all the classes, win by that margin, and do so as a junior was such an amazing experience.  These last few days since have been amazing.  My friends and family have supported me so much all year, and they've just made this week so fun and unbelievable.

On what have been the keys to his strong first two years, and continued improvement this fall:  I was fortunate that we had some great senior leaders when I was a freshman and sophomore, guiding me in a direction which helped me have early success. What really has made the difference this year was just setting short- and long-term goals and being very flexible with my training and races.  I’ve tried to be smart about my training, and making sure I don't overdo anything, while still putting in enough work to be able to go out and compete at a very high level.  I had set a couple goals early in the summer for this fall, and those helped keep me mentally focused and strong each week. 
The biggest factor, though, was just believing in myself and my training.  Before every race, I would look back at all of it and I knew that I was ready to go out and run my very best.

On getting started and what it took to really appreciate the sport:  All through middle school I played lacrosse.  My mom had thought it was a good idea for me to try XC in the fall to help train for endurance.  I'm sure I felt the same about running as many other middle-schoolers did: I despised it (at first) ... but I stuck with it.  Then during 8th-grade, I began to find that I had some talent in running and started to enjoy it more and more.  Then I won my first race, a spark occurred and I really began to love what I was doing.  I no longer dreaded going out on runs or going on a bike ride or maybe even a swim.
Then I began to want to know more and more, so I could progress more as a runner.  Every component of running for me has become more efficient, from my form to my breathing to my foot strike.  I still look for things to improve upon, because I am not perfect.  I still have many things to work on and that is what helps me to progress more and more each year.

On running the NBNO 2M in 2012, what he took away from that, and thoughts about returning in the spring of 2014:  My freshman year I was fortunate enough to go to New Balance Nationals Outdoor and it was an amazing experience.  To be able to run against some of the best runners in my age group was eye-opening.  What I was able to take away from that experience was that the sky is the limit and, if you work hard, you can reach all of your goals.  I learned to never count yourself out of a race, no matter who you are racing.  I remember going in thinking, man, I'd be really happy if I could just medal and take top seven.  But as the race progressed, I began moving up more and more, until during the last 100m I found myself in 3rd place and set a PR by 10 seconds. 
I am very excited for a chance to return to NBON this summer; if all goes well, I would love to be able to go out and set new PRs. I would love to go out and maybe run a 5000m and see what that's like, and maybe a very fast mile or 2-mile.  Time-wise, I am not sure yet, because with every new set of goals, you push the limits. It will all depend on how my training goes and how my body feels.  I don't want to sell myself short setting goals this early for such a big meet, but I would like to try to be with the leaders late in the race and hopefully bring home another medal.

On what he learned during the MSSU Stampede/Rim Rock/Chile Pepper “gauntlet” and he feels the experience of those major meets has helped him:  Those three races were amazing.  I raced against great competition each week and learned so much from each of them.  I went in this season with a goal of not overdoing it with races, so I could hopefully excel more later on in the year. So those three turned out to be a huge turning point. I didn't even fathom that they would turn out the way they did and with each race I gained more and more confidence.
That is what allowed me to have such good league, regional, and state races.  Once I reached my state meet, I had complete belief in my ability to go out there and win, because of all the knowledge and experience I had accumulated from those races.  I'm hoping to put those two attributes into my race on Sunday at NXN Heartland and hopefully come away with another successful race.

On what he’s hoping to do the rest of this fall:  As far as goals go for the post-season, it is a little harder to set those because it's a new experience for me.  I would love to be able to qualify for the NXN Finals.  Hopefully I can put myself in contention with the top group of guys and maybe be fortunate enough to come out with a win.  As far Foot Locker Midwest, I have not decided yet.  I am going to wait until after NXN Heartland to decide, as I should have a much better idea of where I fall competitively and be able to assess how my body feels.