Who are the top runners coming back this year? Who will make the most impact this fall.
During the next few weeks, MileSplit RI will highlight the athletes (boys and girls) we feel to keep an eye on this season. Among the top 14 boys at last year's state meet, seven are gone to graduation. For the girls, just three have graduated. The competition will be stiff once again. Both of our returning state titlist, La Salle Academy junior D.J. Principe and Barrington senior Emma McMillian will back on the trails with McMillan aiming for a record, fourth consecutive individual crown.
Without further ado...
Dominic Parlato
Bishop Hendricken, senior
One of the surprises at last year's state meet was the performance of Parlato. The Hawk senior finished fifth overall with a PB of 16:02. Parlato ran 4:08 for 1,500 meters during the outdoor track season and was sixth in the 3K at the state meet this past June. La Salle Academy is favored to win its second straight team crown this November, but Hendricken is certainly capable of pulling off the upset with Parlato leading a strong contingent of returning runners. He proved on Aug. 9 at the Bobby Doyle Summer Classic that his summer training has gone well by winning the high school division with a fast 26:16 clocking for the five-mile course. That's an average of 5:17 per mile! Don;t be surprised if he improves on his top performance from 2014.
