You could certainly forgive the St. Francis coaching staff if they were playing the long game in 2016. After all, the Troubadours had three freshmen in their top 7, including young star Isabella Fauria, against only one senior. And yet, despite knowing that 2017 would really be the year for them to succeed, this team still finished 4th in Division 2 last November. It's what happened after that, though, that draws my interest the most: track season brought some very divided results for St. Francis. On the "good news" side, Sydney Vandegrift had a great spring, clocking 10:32 for the 3200 and showing that she is more than capable of running #1 for this team whenever needed. The Troubadours may also have discovered a new top 5 runner in Noelle Lynch, who dropped a 5:13 1600 (she only ran 2 races in the fall, but we're hoping that number will go way up this time around). On the "bad news" side, Fauria's racing was very limited on the track, which is highly unusual for a runner that came up through USATF summer competition. If Fauria is healthy, this is the season where the leadership of Vandegrift can join with the young guns to shoot for the Division 2 title - and also try to lay claim to the title of "Best in the Sac Joaquin."
2017 Returning Stats:
- 5K Ranking: 2nd
- 3-Year 5K Improvement Rating: 6th
- 5-Year 5K Improvement Rating: 8th
- Team 1600 Ranking: 5th