Henry Ilyasova continues to show that he’s not just one of the best runners in Class 3A, but one of the best runners in all of Colorado.
Ilyasova got his second win of the season at the Fountain-Fort Carson Invite over the weekend, finishing his race in 15 minutes, 57 seconds. He was 23 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher.
Cody Kelley and Kian O’Boyle also performed well, finishing fifth and 11th, respectively.
With his second win of the season, Ilyasova is starting feel like he’s hitting the stride he needs to earn a state championship next month.
“I’m feeling good,” Ilyasova said. “At this point, it’s all about intensity. I have the mileage down, so I just have to keep up the intensity so I don’t peak before state.”
Bella Coscetti continued her solid season, taking 20th in the girls race. Her time of 24:33 was tops for the Mustangs, with Anna Kilpela finishing a little more than a minute later.
Although they didn’t quite have the same success as the boys, they feel like they’re trending in the right direction heading into very important races in the near future.
“For every practice, we’re working on our pace and preparing for certain meets,” Coscetti said. “This should set us up for regionals and hopefully help us place well in leagues.”
The Mustangs will run their next meet in a very familiar place as they take on the Coronado Invite at Monument Valley Park. The downtown Colorado Springs park serves as the team’s frequent practice site, so they’re very familiar with the grounds.