Jessica Tonn, the Arizona Republic selection as
Girls Runner of the
Year, finished out an outstanding high school career in which she ran undefeated her final two years, finishing in 13th place at the prestigious Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in San Diego, CA.
The Xavier Prep phenom (photo right), a Wendy's High School Heisman national finalist, placed fifth in the regionals with a personal-best time of 18:07 - and then lowered that mark even further with a 17:57 in the championships.
On the boys side,
Brian Shrader from Sinagua HS in Flagstaff, The Republic'
Boys Runner of the Year, logged a fifth place finish in a field of 40 runners, improving over his 11th place finish last year. And
Steve Magnuson from Ironwood Ridge in Tucson was not far behind, finishing in 12th place.
Shrader finished in 15:31 and Magnuson in 15:38; both were part of the West Team that won the team title, defeating teams from the Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern regions.
Shrader is also ranked No. 5 in the Milesplit national Top 25, one of two local runners so honored.
Sherod Hardt from Queen Creek HS is ranked No. 9.
Tonn will be running for Stanford University next year, while Shrader heads for University of Oregon and Magnuson will compete for North Carolina.
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