In the program’s first trip to Oregon since winning NXN in 2019, Kinetic Track Club takes down Suffern all-time mark that had stood for 15 years with 19:40.67 effort; Real Training runs 19:45.37, then returns to capture 4x800 title in 8:52.48, with boys 4xmile also winning in 17:19.70 for group from Niwot High in Colorado

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor/Photos by Becky Holbrook

EUGENE, Ore. – The girls from Saratoga Springs High in New York reached such an elite level of performance Friday in the 4xmile relay at The Outdoor Nationals, presented by Nike, that it can no longer be said with absolute certainty that their 82-point victory at the 2019 Nike Cross Nationals is the strongest distance showcase in program history.

Ella Kurto, Alycia Hart, Mackenzie Hart and Emily Bush, competing as Kinetic Track Club, ran 19 minutes, 40.67 seconds at Hayward Field to smash the 2006 national record of 19:56.75 achieved by Suffern High from New York.

Lucca Fulkerson, Mia Prok, Stella Vieth and Madison Shults of Niwot High in Colorado, representing Real Training, placed second in 19:45.37 in the strongest 4xmile prep showcase ever produced.

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Mackenzie Hart, Kurto and Bush were all members of the national championship cross country lineup 18 months earlier at Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland.

And Friday provided a strong indication that the group will be favored to capture the national title again after not being able to defend its championship last year when NXN was canceled as a result of the pandemic.

Niwot was the third-place team at the 2019 nationals, and has also improved significantly since with the arrival of the freshman standout Prok and the improvement of the sophomore Shults.

But even though the group was leading at the midway point and possessed veteran experience from Princeton commit Fulkerson and Vieth, it still wasn’t enough to deny Kinetic, which had all four girls split between 4:52 and 4:58 to smash the indoor national record 19:59.24 achieved by Saratoga Springs in 2005.

Saratoga Springs had won the 4xmile relay in 2019 in Greensboro, N.C., by clocking 20:31.67, and achieved the fifth national championship in the event, more than any school in the history of the meet.

Onalaska High in Wisconsin, the leader following the opening leg, took third in 20:11.12, the No. 18 all-time prep performance.

Lydia Malecek opened the relay in 4:51.70 and sister Kora Malecek closed in 4:49.29 for the Onalaska Hilltoppers.

Fulkerson, Prok and Shults returned to the track a couple of hours later to join Stanford-bound senior Taylor James, as Real Training lowered its own Colorado state record in the 4x800 relay to capture the national title in 8:52.48.

Sarah Naticchia, Lindsay Colflesh, Olivia Stoner and Allison Colflesh of Haddonfield High in New Jersey placed second in 9:00.51.

Real Training became the first Colorado quartet to secure the girls 4x800 championship, ascending to the No. 17 all-time prep competitors. The group also became the first to win girls 4x400 and 4x800 titles in the same year since Columbia High of New Jersey in 2013.

And the success for Real Training wasn’t only limited to the female athletes, as Grayden Rauba, Simon Saia, Curtis Volf and Zane Bergen of Niwot set the Colorado state record, as well as the Hayward Field all-time prep mark by clocking 17:19.70 to win the 4xmile relay.

It marked the first 4xmile victory by any Colorado program, boys or girls, and elevated Real Training to the No. 19 relay in high school history.

Loyola High of California, with Dylan Bissell, Richard Moreno, Zachary Zambrano and Arjun Vadgama leading the Cubs, placed second in 17:28.58.

Valley Project, representing Ridge High in New Jersey, repeated as the boys 4x800 champions by clocking 7:39.06.

Will Pinto, James Kisker, Jackson Barna and Luke Roberts helped Ridge join Northport High in New York as the only programs to capture back-to-back 4x800 titles.

Louisville Xtreme, with Roman Schrader, Sami Hattab, Nicholas Brooks and Nolan Hester competing for St. Xavier High, took second in 7:47.84.

Following a two-hour turnaround after winning the 4xmile relay, Real Training returned to place fourth in 7:53.13.