Austin-Area Regional Athletes Of The Week Presented By Ready To Run
Fast times are great, but championship finishes can make careers.
These 12 Austin-area high school athletes all knew the stakes when they toed the line at their respective Regional Championships last week across Texas.
All of them secured tickets to the UIL Texas State Cross Country Championships in Round Rock this week and will have an opportunity to close out their seasons on Texas soil.
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We compiled the best efforts from Regional action to determine our Austin-Area Regional Athlete of the Week Presented by Ready To Run.
Here are the winners:
Gage Horejsi, Leander: The high school senior exhibited great patience during his Regional 5A-4 Championship on Tuesday in Corpus Christi, turning things on late to nab the first state championship qualification of his career to finish third overall in 16:08.71. Considering Horejsi was his team’s seventh runner at districts, his about-face at regionals was a significant improvement.
Regional Boys Athletes Of The Week Presented By Ready To Run Nominees:
| Athlete | School | Results | 5K Time |
| Gage Horejsi | Leander | Third at the Regional 5A-4 Championships | 16:08.71 |
| Hudson Haley | Austin Vandegrift | Second at the Regional 6A-4 Championships | 15:29.56 |
| Kai McCullough | Austin Vandegrift | Third at the Regional 6A-4 Championships | 15:31.39 |
| Luke Bone | Austin High | Sixth at the Regional 6A-4 Championships | 15:49.00 |
| Colby Huntress | Austin Anderson | Sixth at the Regional 5A-3 Championships | 15:55.89 |
| Matthew Morales | Georgetown | Eighth at tthe Regional 5A-3 Championships | 16:07.15 |
Eva Cragnolino, Austin LASA: Winning just means more. And that’s exactly what Cragnolino — a high school freshman — did at her Region 5A-3 Championship in Huntsville, taking the race in 18:38.10, a full 11 seconds ahead of fellow Austin-area athlete Melia Flowers of Georgetown. Of course, the win wasn’t too surprising. It was Cragnolino’s seventh across her 2024 campaign.
Regional Girls Athletes Of The Week Presented By Ready To Run Nominees:
| Athlete | School | Results | 5K Time |
| Eva Cragnolino | Austin LASA | Won the Regoinal 5A-3 Championships | 18:38.10 |
| Meredith Wolfe | Round Rock | Fifth at the Regional 6A-4 Championships | 18:49.97 |
| Melia Flowers | Georgetown | Second at the Regional 5A-3 Championships | 18:49.87 |
| Faith Murphy | Austin Anderson | Fourth at the Regional 5A-3 Championships | 19:07.54 |
| Olivia Laudicina | Austin Lake Travis | Seventh at the Regional 6A-3 Championships | 18:53.22 |
| JJ Arellano | Leander Rouse | The last state qualifier out of the Regional 5A-4 Championships | 20:08.37 |
What’s Next:
The Texas UIL State Cross Country Championships will take place from Nov. 1-2 at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock, Texas. That timeline will give state qualifiers roughly two weeks off before their final regular season meet of the season. The state championships will be split into two days, with Class 2A, 4A and 6A taking place on Nov. 1 and Class 1A, Class 3A and Class 5A finishing on Nov. 2.
