Pine Crest seventh grader Tsion Yared and Merritt Island junior Steven Cross are this week's Athletes of the Week. Yared, who was sixth at the 2A Cross Country Finals last year as a sixth grader, opened up her season with a new personal best and state leading time of 18:18.40 to win the Martin County Under the Lights Invitational. Cross, who was 10th at the 2013 3A Cross Country Finals, started off 2014 with back to back wins at the Mike Gibson Summertime Run and Astronaut Invitational where he ran 15:47.90, the second fastest time in the state this year.
GIRLS WINNER: Tsion Yared - 7th Grader @ Pine Crest
Tsion Yared is small in stature, but a giant force to be reckoned with when she hits the cross country course. Yared, only a seventh grader began running road races at an early age. When it was time to select a middle school she chose Pine Crest, the same school as older sister Mahmet. Her first year in a Panther's uniform she showed that she belonged with not just the girls on the team, or the older competition, but with the best in the state. She didn't break nineteen minutes until the FSU Invitational- Pre-State where she ran 18:27.46, to finish outside the top ten in 11th place. At the 2A Cross Country finals, she was sixth, and helped Pine Crest to a 2A runner-up trophy. The competition bug was still itching Yared as she decided to test her skills against the best girls in the region at Foot Locker South. An 18:28.70 and 25th place finish was just the beginning of her potential. Coach Paul Baur has seen a lot of young talent come through his program, but says he was surprised by the type of year she had.
"Anytime you have a 6th grader run those times it is definitely a surprise. Tsion has been running competitively for years and we knew she was capable of running fast, but we really had to manage her training. Most 6th graders who run fast don't have the years of running and soccer like she had on her legs which has helped get her to this point. She was super mature and focused for a 6th grader, but still would show you at times she was still in 6th grade by her silliness!"
Yared wasted no time getting to work after the cross country season and translated that success onto the track. She posted times of 5:45.04 for 1,600m and 11:54.70 for 3,200m in her first races in those respective events By the end of the spring, those times had dropped drastically to and 5:06.56 11:01.82 earning her a third and fourth place finish at the 2A state meet. Baur says it is that balance of speed and endurance that make her such a lethal weapon.
"Yes, those times are really fast for a 6th grader, not to mention her splits that we have clocked her in for relays, sub 65 in the 400 and sub 2:20 in the 800. She is very versatile and has a great range of events.We have taken some time towards the end of the summer to replace some of her running with work on the bike and in the pool. While many people like to add that stuff to their regime, we backed her off some of her running as we have been able to get her some endurance training without the pounding on her knees. She has been working hard, but without a doubt, her strength and speed have allowed her to start the season with a PR."
That personal best came at the Martin County Under the Lights Invitational where she ran a state leading time of 18:18.40. Coach Baur says the game plan was to just go out and have fun after a long summer of training.
You might remember her incredible dance skills that won the dance contest at the flrunners.com Invitational 14. Yared's fun loving personality is contagious among teammates. Baur says it is important to properly develop Tsion, as well as the rest of the youngsters, and keep that passion burning.
"One thing would be to make sure we keep their training at a place where they stay healthy and can progress throughout their careers and eventually into their young adult lives. Running is something we want them to fall in love with and want them to continue doing for a life time. We also place a lot of emphasis on the team which is why we take a week and have our own team camp at Camp Highlander in North Carolina before we start the season. Focusing on the team helps they stay focused."
I'll always remember Tsion's mom coming up to me at Pre-State and saying to watch out for her daughter. Now that she is one of the top runners in the state, the only watching that will be done, will include sitting back and enjoying the show!
BOYS WINNER: Steven Cross - Junior @ Merritt Island
Steven Cross started his cross country career running in the 17-18 minute range. As a sophomore, he continued his rise toward the top, breaking sixteen minutes four times and finishing 10th at the 3A Cross Country Finals. Merritt Island Coach Bill Buonani says the progression is typical to a four year high school program and remembers the first he saw or heard of Cross when he showed up to the team's summer training before his freshman year.
"I thought he might be something special, but we’ve slowly grown his conditioning over the past three summers from 300 miles, to 500, to 600 with cross training. His growth is because he is self-driven and wants it. He is absolutely self-motivated to become a top runner. We follow the conditioning programs and take advice from Coach Braman at FSU as well as from Coach Spangler from UF."
After a successful cross country season in 2013, Cross crossed off another note, perform well on the track. Training under the Mustang's track coach, Pat Campbell, he was able to work on improving his form and take that form and extend it to longer endurance training/racing which is paying dividends on the trails. Combine that speed with summer training that consisted of running six days a week and almost 600 miles through the trails of Brevard County and Cross was prepared for what the season had in store. He also swam twice a week, cycled two to three times a week, and lifted twice a week. The day consisting of running in the morning and cross training in the evenings.
The Merritt Island junior is off to a great start in 2014. At the end of August, he won the Mike Gibson Summertime Run (on a long course) in 16:28.70 beating a tough field that consisted of 1A Cross Country Finals champion Franco Martins of Windermere Prep. An even stronger field awaited at Chain Of Lakes Park the site of the Astronaut Invitational. Staying with the front pack early, Cross picked it up in the last mile to come away with the win in 15:47.90, the fourth fastest time of his high school career. Buonanni says the ran two great races, but the season is still very early.
"The strategy for the first two races was to run with the lead pack for the first mile, see how you feel and then adapt based upon the conditions. I am not surprised at all that he hit 15:47 last weekend. He’s been training for speeds faster than that – but the conditions were humid and soggy. He had a great start so far, but the season is long, and although he’s faced some real good competition – he has some difficult races ahead with some real fast runners."