We're breaking down our MileSplit LA team's top 5 subjective rankings ahead of the cross country season on both the girl's and boy's sides! We'll release our full MileSplit LA Rankings after revealing the #1 teams and update them over the course of the cross country season.
No. 2 Dominican
Louisiana 3 Mile Returning Rankings
Louisiana 5A Returning Rankings
Returning:
Kelsey Major - 1st
Morgan Trauth - 2nd
Virginia Turner - 3rd
Catherine Kernion - 4th
Bryce Couvillon - 5th
Elise Raque - 6th
Roma McAlear - 7th
Dominican took home the silver at last year's 5A XC State Championships and demonstrated how its young team is one of the best squads in the state. The team has three runners that could really make an impact on their final score, however, this burden primarily relies on young talents, Morgan Trauth and Virginia Turner, and less on senior Kelsey Major. What stands as Dominican's greatest strength is that it returns all of its runners from 2020, as well as the state champion.
Junior Roma McAlear returns with a best of 19:59 for 3 Miles. Even though she finished 7th for her team at the state meet last year, she is usually within the top 5. Looking to her track season, McAlear showed out at one particular meet with a performance of 5:46 for the 1600m. Perhaps this cross country season, McAlear will be able to make use of her past two years of experience.
Senior Elise Raque had an incredibly consistent cross country season during 2020 and managed to finish 6th for her team at the state meet. She finished out the season with a personal best of 20:39 and a 38th place finish in the 5A field. Raque did not shy away during the track season, she finished with top times of 12:23 for the 3200m and 5:49 for the 1600m. Raque will be in great shape this cross country season if she manages to carry over this fitness from the outdoor season.
Sophomore Bryce Couvillon is yet another consistent runner from Dominican. She finished 5th for her team at the state meet with a 34th place finish and recorded a season-best of 20:38 for 3 Miles. Couvillon's best mark comes from 2019 with a 20:06, however, she was by far more consistent with her marks this year and ran well below her average marks from 2019. During the track season, she only competed in the 800m and finished out the season with a personal-best mark of 2:39.
Senior Catherine Kernion finished 4th for Dominican at the state meet last year and she concluded her season with a 28th place finish, along with a best time of 19:51. Her best finish at the state meet comes from 2018 with a 15th place finish in the 5A field. During this most recent track season, Kernion recorded bests in the 3200m with a 12:20 and a 5:42 for the 1600m.
Freshman Virginia Turner had an extremely successful season last year. She almost cracked into the top 10 at the state meet as just an 8th-grader. She concluded her first-ever cross country season with a 14th place finish at the state meet, which is also where she collected her best time for 3 Miles in 19:36. During the track season, Turner did not focus on any distance events and instead turned to the hurdle sprints.
Sophomore Morgan Trauth returns with the 2nd fastest time for Domincan. She is the only girl on the team, other than Kelsey Major to consistently run under 20 minutes. In addition to that, her personal best lies at 18:55 which is a massive time drop from the year prior. Trauth concluded her season with a 12th place finish at the state meet, and there is little doubt that she will be able to place herself within the top 10 this year.
Senior Kelsey Major is the defending 5A cross country champion, as well as the fastest returning runner in the entire state. She has been an extremely talented runner from a young age and has demonstrated this by breaking 19 minutes for 3 Miles from her first cross country season back in 2017. On top of that, she has never finished outside of the top 8 at the state meet. Deservingly so, Major received the 2020-2021 Gatorade Cross Country Player of the Year award, however, some may not know that she also received this reward for soccer in the past year as well. After graduation, Major will compete for LSU's soccer program.Boys Top 5
#1 - Coming Soon
Girls Top 5
#1 - Coming Soon