Sanders finishing at the 2021 MHSAA 6A State Cross Country Meet
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'Future Stars' is a new, weekly series that we are starting in 2022 that focuses on the young and up-and-coming track and field athletes that, one day, very well could shape our sport!
Note from the State Editor: Full disclaimer: These articles are simply giving credit where credit is due. We are not trying to set the burden of expectations on any particular athlete, and that goes out to anybody. All we are doing is recognizing and rewarding one's hard work. Keep it up Mississippi!!
Starting off the series is someone that we just touched up in the most recent weekend recap podcast, and that is Tupelo Middle School's, Abbey Sanders!
Abbey Sanders is an 8th-grader who specializes in the long-distance events. This indoor season, she has mainly stuck to the 3200-meter run, where she just recently ran 12:32 for a lifetime PR at the Holiday Invitational, and also won the entire heat that she was in!
Sanders at the 2021 Holiday Invitational
Sanders is also a menace on the cross country course, as she was one of the best junior high school girls in the 2021 season, winning four out of the eight races that she competed in, and placing inside of the Top 4 in the others. One of those wins was in the very high-caliber 2021 Watson High School Meet and has cross country PR's of 12:05 in the 3k and 12:58 in the 2-mile.
Sanders decided that junior success wasn't enough, however, and she ran as a varsity athlete for Tupelo High School at the 2021 MHSAA 6A Cross Country State Championships, where she placed 14th overall, which was the last finishing spot to make the All-MHSAA 6A Cross Country Team!
Finally, if her resume wasn't already impressive enough, she has already thrown down times in the middle distance events this indoor season of 2:47 in the 800m and 5:59 in the 1600m.
All in all, Abbey Sanders is really already an integral part of the Tupelo High distance running program. Not only could she be a future star in the sport, but she is already a star today.
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