Mississippi’s Top Five Girls Cross Country Athletes of 2020


Mia Card, Saltillo High 3rd at Class 5A State

5. Mia Card   Saltillo High   Freshman

First on the list starting at #5 is the young talent from the stacked Saltillo team, Mia Card. She turned in some stellar times this year, especially at such a young age, as she ran sub 19:30 in three different races! One of those occasions was a 19:27 in the loaded field of the MHSAA 5A State Championships, where she ran an impressive 3rd place finish, as well as helping lead her team to claim the state title. Card also turned in a couple of wins this year, as she won the Mooreville and Tupelo invitationals. Every other race, she placed in the top 4, most of the time finishing second, so she was always a solid and consistent #2 runner for the undefeated lady tigers this year.

One other thing that stuck out for the talented freshman, who also is a Baldwyn HS transfer, is how well she handled the transition from Class 1A to 5A, especially with how fast Class 5A was this year. I say this meaning no disrespect towards 1A, but 5A was arguably the deepest class this year in the state across all divisions. For example, with the exception of MHSAA 6A, her 19:27 in the class 5A State Championships would have been first in every other class in the state, public or private. This young star hasn't quite snagged a state title yet, but expect that to change in the latter stages of her career. There are no track times on record for Card, but hopefully, that will change, as her cross country PR's could for sure translate to something fast on the track.