Athletes of the Week: Xiang, Sanchez, Performances Best of the Best

Florida XC 2013: Athletes Of The Week

Sep 12, 2013

GIRLS WINNER: Karen Xiang - Senior @ Nease High School

If this is the first time you've heard the name Karen Xiang, it certainly won't be the last. After finishing 22nd at last year's Cross Country Finals, the Nease senior has been on fire in 2013. Over the summer she worked on building her base and increasing her foot speed. Coach Kristine Williams says she ran some pretty high mileage, but overall kept a pretty good balance.

"Knowing she had great quality and speed was a huge asset going in. Karen is a very determined and goal focused athlete. Her ability to "turn her head off" and get the job done is a rare quality in someone her age. She also has an innate ability to grasp the concept of race strategy. This has been evident in her two races this season."

Xiang kicked off the 2013 campaign at the Ridgeview Bob Hans Invitational. She had run the course several times and at the district meet, but admitted afterwards it wasn't one of her favorites. The senior could have fooled a bunch of people jumping out to an early lead and crossing the line in a personal best time of 18:42.51. It was a personal best by 42 seconds and according to her stats page her first win of her high school career. Coach Williams says it was a meet that Xiang had been looking forward to for several weeks.

"Karen had been telling me for weeks prior that she just couldn't wait to get out there and race. She knew she had it in her to perform at this level. I had just come on board as her coach over the summer and wasn't quite sure where she would land at this point of her training. Our very first workout this summer, she threw down some very impressive splits and then when she ran Bob Hans, her performance was beautiful, and I knew that she was going to be something very, very special."

The schedule didn't get any easier, for Xiang who spent a month this summer in China. At the Katie Caples Invitational she would face off against 2x 1A cross country champion Julie Wollrath, 2A champion Julia Montgomery, and a slew of talented runners from Oak Hall and Bolles, two of the best programs in 1A and 2A. Rather than taking out the lead from the gun, Xiang employed a different strategy. Her coach says the game plan was to stay back and let the others do the work.

"We told her to hold back and let the other girls do the work. She actually did hold back but I think that was more because she wasn't 100% sure how the course laid out. We found out later that she was having stomach issues as well, but she didn't tell us. She kept her focus and did what she needed to do. That is a testament to her determination."

Two weeks, two sub 19 minute performances. She is only one of three girls to do that in the state this season and her time of 18:42 is the fastest time this year regardless of class. Coach Williams isn't surprised by the performances, but knows the season is still early. She says they will set the bar high, but also focus on keeping Xiang grounded.

"We want her to take each race as it comes. The last few weeks of practices have been very hard. She has been racing on tired legs. Karen is such a terrific girl. We are only at the beginning of the season and we have a lot more work to do. She has impacted not only the other girls ,but the boys as well. We are all stepping our game way up and I am excited to see where this season takes us."

Karen's Athlete Profile

BOYS WINNER: Ilio Sanchez - Sophomore @ John I. Leonard

Ilio Sanchez is the next in line of a long list of standouts to come out of the John I. Leonard cross country program. Sanchez finished 119th at the Cross Country Finals as a freshman in 2012, but has worked hard over the past year to become one of the top runners in Palm Beach County. Coach Al Jordan says Sanchez and the rest of the team have been focused on putting in five miles per day, and that his training has been evident in recent results.

"Three meets and three wins. He has had a great start to the season. We can now see what we need to do next to keep improving."

The first win of the season came at the Benjamin Invitational, a small Tuesday meet held at Carlin Park in Jupiter. Sanchez looked very controlled winning in 17:10.77, two and a half seconds faster than his nearest competitor, and more than 50 seconds faster than the third place finisher.

Three days later he was back in action at the Martin County Under The Lights Invitational. The length of the course might have been a little questionable, but the end result was still the same, another convincing win for the sophomore. Less than 12 hours later, he was back at it again for a final hoorah at the TKA Lions Invitational. This race was a little closer, however, as Sanchez edged out Coral Glades senior Anthony Deleva by three tenths of a second in 16:58.62. Coach Jordan feels the influx of meets will only help his runners get stronger.

"We focused on the Martin County meet. The next meet we used as a practice to push their bodies when they are tired. It's early in the season."

Next up for Sanchez and his teammates is a local road race. It's a chance for the team to unwind and not have the pressure of a high school competition, while still get in their weekly mileage. Coach Jordan says the youngster is a leader of the squad and has some lofty goals ahead of him.

"We lost our whole team to graduation. We are without are leaders from last year. The team is realizing they are the ones that have to step up. He is doing his job. His goal is to run at college and to take down some of my sons times Ryan Pickering (now at the University of Oregon) before he goes."

Ilio's Athlete Profile