Lincoln Park Academy's Khan Imran and Vero Beach High School's Jimmy Granburg are TCPalm's All Area Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year finalists. CARYN SHAFFER/TCPALM
Jimmy Granberg and Khan Imran both were determined to dedicate themselves to running and training more in the offseason.
The hard work paid off.
Granberg, a Vero Beach senior, placed in the top 10 in five races this season, including winning the Sharks Invitational and the District 9-4A meet.
Imran, a senior at Lincoln Park Academy, also placed in the top 10 in five meets, including a first-place finish at the Tommy Locayo Invitational and was second at the District 14-2A meet.
Granberg and Imran are finalists for TCPalm’s All-Area Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year.
Granberg upped his workouts during the summer when he logged 620 miles. He had run 400 miles before his junior year.
“I could feel the difference,” Granberg said. “I was in a lot better shape. In my junior year, the first race I ran 18 minutes. This year, in the same race (Wickham Jamboree) a year later, I ran a 17 flat.
“I really wanted to get better. I had some pretty big goals and I feel like I had a really good year.”
Granberg set a personal best when he finished the Sebastian River Invitational in 16 minutes, 48.02 seconds. He had three sub-17 minute performances in 2017; he had only one in 2016.
“Jimmy had a really great season,” Vero Beach coach Kelli Stewart said. “He has a runner’s build and he puts in a lot of time and dedication. He adds extra days to his workouts and extra mileage than the other male runners. We adjusted his workouts to achieve some of the results that he wanted.
“He had several PRs throughout the season and he performed really well at states. As a senior, he was our captain and with his guidance he was able to help the boys get to states, which they hadn’t done it two years.”
Based on the encouragement from former Lincoln Park teammate – and 2016 Class 2A state champion – Caleb Pottorff, Imran increased his offseason workouts.
“Honestly, there was just a drive,” Imran said. “After my junior year, my friend Caleb Pottorff, he always talked about how I had the potential to get better and get my running to where I could be competitive at this level. We spent whole winter break training on the track and getting my times down. I went all out during the summer every day I ran.”
Imran ran a personal-best 16:56.23 at the Class 2A FHSAA Finals in November, which was the fastest time of any runner on the Treasure Coast. His best time heading into this season was 18:59.39.
“If someone told me he was going to cut two minutes off his time from one season to the next season, I would say, ‘I’ll believe it when I see it,’” Moore said. “He did a good job of dedicating himself and making himself a better runner.
“He set goals for himself for every race and where he wanted to be. He wanted to go out with the fast guys and every race he did that. He wanted to race with the guys who on paper were better than him.”
Coach of the Year
The Pine School’s boys cross country team graduated the best runner in program history in the spring, but coach Beth Lettengarver didn’t allow the program to take a step back this fall.
The Knights won the Pine Invitational and the District 12-1A championship, finished third at the Region 3-1A meet and placed 13th at the FHSAA Finals.
Lettengarver, TCPalm’s All-Area Boys Cross County Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season, said she was the confident the team would sustain its success even without Chase Hyland (the 2016 Class 1A state runner-up).
“Last year they really started improving and I also knew that we had (some younger runners) coming in,” Lettengarver said. “Before we always had the superstar in Chase and he was so much better. But there was a pack of guys right underneath him and I thought the team would be stronger if we had that pack of kids running 17, 18, 19 (minutes) than if we had one kid running 15.”
Senior Christopher Textor, who was the District 12 individual champion, and sophomore Lucas Pereira, who had three top 10 finishes, led the team this season.
Lettengarver, a former professional ice skater, started Pine School’s running program 16 years ago and has cultivated a culture that is both competitive and fun.
She said having a family atmosphere also is key to the Knights’ success.
“We do lots of stuff together,” Lettengarver said. “It’s not a traditional sport, so it allows you to have flexibility. We’ll do runs to my house because it’s two miles from the school and then do a pool party or pasta party. We’ll do runs to the beach. We have a real sense or community.
“I wasn’t a cross country runner in high school or college, so I think I have a different approach than a lot of other coaches.”
Considering the strength of Pine School’s running club for the lower school and the accomplishments the Knights have had under Lettengarver, it’s likely they will continue to field strong teams in the future.
“I think kids see the success of we’ve had and our school does well with individual sports – golf and swimming have done well,” she said. “We have a cross country course on campus, so it’s a visible sport because kids can see us running on campus. I think the last couple years have really fostered excitement.”
Boys Cross Country Finalists
Jimmy Granberg, Vero Beach senior
Notable: Ran a personal best 16:48.02 at the Spanish River XC Invitational. Placed in the top 10 in five races this season, including winning the Sharks Invitational and the District 9-4A meet. Placed 11th at the Region 3-4A meet and 90th at the FHSAA Class 4A state meet.
Khan Imran, Lincoln Park Academy senior
Notable: Ran a personal best 16:56.23 at the FHSAA Class 2A state meet, where he placed 50th overall. Placed in the top 10 in five meets, including first at the Tommy Locayo Invitational and second at the District 14-2A meet.
First Team
Billy Buntin, Martin County junior
Notable: Ran a personal best 16:51.01; placed third at the District 9-4A meet
Kyle Fohrman, South Fork senior
Notable: Ran a personal best 17:19.17; runner-up at the District 14-3A meet
Zach Rohrbough, John Carroll Catholic junior
Notable: Ran a personal best 17:19.20; runner-up at the St. Lucie County Championship
Alan Ross, St. Edward’s School senior
Notable: Ran a personal best 17:06.94; won the District 11-1A meet
Thomas Weiler, South Fork sophomore
Notable: Ran a personal best 16:44.80; won the District 14-3A meet
Ryan Ziskinder, Martin County freshman
Notable: Ran a personal best 17:22.26; placed fourth at the District 9-4A meet
Honorable mention
Zachary Grimsdale, Martin County senior
Dillon Helzerman, Vero Beach freshman
Lucas Pereira, Pine School sophomore
Bryan Pinon, Okeechobee junior
Michael Powers, Pine School freshman
Natan Sanchez, Martin County junior
Noah Scammel, Martin County junior
Christopher Textor, Pine School senior
Elliot Thomas, Vero Beach senior
Brian Vega, Fort Pierce Central sophomore