Photo by Christine Langford/MileSplit TX
While last season saw the continuation of Southlake Carroll's dominance over the rest of the state, one team made the battle a lot closer than in previous years. In fact, they may have made it so close that they pose a legitimate threat to win the state title this year and finally start a new era for Texas cross-country.
We're talking of course about Austin Vandegrift, a team that's long been known for producing outstanding individual talent. Whether it be Anthony Monte, Kevin Sanchez, or their current team leader Hudson Haley, the Vipers have a reputation for being one of the best programs in the state and that looks to be the case again this year. And with the outlook of this year's returning team, this could be the best Vandegrift team we've seen yet.
To start, Austin Vandegrift returns last year's runner-up at the state meet Hudson Haley who will once again lead the team. Haley has proven to be one of the state's best runners over the last two years and he should be in prime contention to fight for the state title again this year.
Outside of Haley, Vandegrift returns several important supporting guys including Kai McCullough who finished 26th last year, Collin Goodwin who finished 33rd, along with Jack Ebeier and Jackson Stafford who both ran under the 16:00 mark last year.
The most important loss from last year's Vandegrift team is Dylan Schieffelin who finished 7th at the state meet last year. This loss hurts because Schieffelin provided Vandegrift with a rear gunner to Hudson Haley who could essentially nullify or reduce the damage that Caden Leonard and Blake Bullard could do up front for Southlake Carroll.
Take the state meet for example, where Leonard and Bullard finished 1st and 4th, Haley and Schieffelin finished 2nd and 7th. While they were still outscored here, the loss of that second low stick that Schieffelin was could prove painful for Vandegrift if they aren't able to find performance in other areas.
However, before we dive into that, we first need to look at the individuals that make up this team and how their accomplishments contribute to what could be a state championship team this fall. And who better to start with than Vandegrift's most recent top individual talent Hudson Haley.
As mentioned, Haley is the next great Vandegrift runner in a long line of individual talents that have led this great team. While Haley wasn't one of those guys who come into school and immediately contend for the state title, he still started his career off hot, finishing his first year with personal bests of 4:26.19 in the 1600m and 9:42.98 over 3200m. As with many of the state's top runners, Haley was fortunate to have some incredible training partners with the likes of Kevin Sanchez and Dylan Schieffelin helping him make the big jumps in performance that would soon follow.
In his sophomore year, Haley showed steady improvement on the grass as he lowered his personal best under the 16:00 mark, running 15:26.39 and placing 30th at the state meet. He would continue his steady improvement in the spring, lowering his personal bests down to 4:16.63 in the 1600m and 9:18.61 in the 3200m.
Coming into the fall, Haley was regarded as one of the better runners in the state but to say he was considered as one of the top contenders for the state title may have been a slight reach. That being said, he quickly elevated himself into that conversation. He opened up his season at the McNeil Invitational where he ran 15:18.90 for 2nd and would follow this up by running 15:06.00 at his district meet. As we all know, he'd then go on to finish second at the state meet in an incredible 15:04.20 performance which saw him run an incredible back half of the race.
Heading into this season, Haley currently holds personal bests of 4:16.63 over 1600m, 9:08.77 over 3200m, and 15:04.20 over 5000m.
Flanking Haley in the 2nd and 3rd spots will be sophomore Collin Goodwin and junior Kai Mccullough.
Goodwin quickly showcased his value to this team by running 15:54.20 in his debut race which he then followed up with his current personal best of 15:38.00. He'd then go on to finish 33rd at the state meet as only a freshman. With a great base to build on heading into track season, Goodwin continued his momentum from the fall into the spring where he ran 4:28.35 over 1600m and 9:25.01 over 3200m. His career so far has been very similar to Haley's so don't be surprised if we see him make a big jump this fall and move towards the top-fifteen at the state meet.
Photo by Christine Langford/MileSplit TX
As for Kai Mccullough, he serves as yet another example of a Vandegrift runner who comes into school, adapts to the training well, and quickly impresses. He ran 16:01.10 as a freshman and followed that up with a great debut track season which saw him run 9:41.07 over 3200m.
He continued to be a key part of this Vandegrift squad last fall where he ran 15:38.00 at the state meet to finish 26th. Following this, he also had an impressive spring season which saw him run 9:17.53 over 3200m, setting him up well to perform this fall.
Vandegrift also returns Jackson Stafford who ran 15:44.00 last fall and further improved in the spring which saw him run 4:24.44 over 1600m and 9:38.83 over 3200m. Jack Ebeier will also play a critical role in Vandegrift's success this fall, he ran 15:51.40 last fall and will look to continue his steady improvement this fall.
While it takes five people to score, Goodwin and McCullough realistically hold the key to Vandegrift's state title hopes this fall. We know that Hudson Haley will be able to hang at the front with Caden Leonard, but closing the gap between Blake Bullard who finished 4th, and Kai McCullough who finished 26th will be critical if Vandegrift wants to win a state title.
That being said, Goodwin and McCullough have made stark improvements over the spring, putting them in a prime position to move up the field and give Vandegrift a shot. Both teams have very similar performances when it comes to the 4th-7th runners, so it will likely come down to whoever has the best 1-3 punch. If I had to put my money on someone right now it would still be Southlake Carroll, but depending on how Vandegrift opens up the season that could change very quickly.
This team was closer than a lot of other teams have been in recent years, and they didn't lose much so don't discount this year's Vandegrift team as a group showing up just to finish 2nd again. Their strength will lay in their back half running throughout the race and if they're able to execute their race on the right day, I see no reason why this can't be a state championship-winning team.