Week 3 Middle School Top 10s: Florida FLYRA Cross Country Rankings

FLYRA middle school cross country, week three: August 30-September 5, 2026

The Florida Horse Park Invitational put 415 middle schoolers on the line in Ocala on Saturday, 246 boys and 169 girls, the biggest fields of the season, and it settled a lot. RJ Destremps won the boys race in 9:53.8, the first middle schooler in Florida under ten minutes this year. Colette Heffernan won the girls race in 10:17.8, and Alice Ilea, the No. 2 girl in the state, was second, seventeen seconds back. That was the first time the top two girls had raced each other. Both of them ran faster on Saturday than they did at the state meet last October.

The rest of the week mattered too. Luke Lomoriello won the Pace Patriot Invitational middle school race by 73 seconds. Sophia Underwood, the defending private school state champion, finally opened and won the Dolphin Dash in Fort Walton Beach by more than a minute and a half. Zoie Hart led Emerald Coast to the first five places at the Panhandle pre-conference meet. Fourteen of the twenty kids on these two lists raced last week, and the boys list in particular looks nothing like it did seven days ago: four boys ran their way into the ten at the Horse Park, and Drake Matyka, third at Jim Ryun, finished behind all four of them.

How to read the numbers: every runner is listed with the time they actually ran, and the number in parentheses is our projection of what that run is worth at the FLYRA state meet in November. The projections set the order, but the raced time is always the official number. When the run that ranks a kid is not the most recent one, the meet is named. Runners who have not opened yet are seeded on last November's state time and marked that way. We use data and judgment both, and we will miss one or two along the way.

One thing to know about the Horse Park before the lists. The kids who ran there and also ran the state meet came through a few seconds quicker than they did in October, which makes it the fastest middle school course we have seen this season. So a Horse Park time gets no August credit here, and for the kids who ran it the projection can sit a few seconds behind the clock. That is the cautious reading, the same call we made on Vero two weeks ago, and it is why Destremps and Heffernan are still ranked on their earlier runs. They are first either way. Where two ranked runners met on Saturday, the finish decides the order.

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Girls Top 10

1. Colette Heffernan, No Excuses RC, 7th grade - 10:44.2 at Cecil Field (projects 9:57.2)

She ran the Horse Park unattached and won it in 10:17.8, seventeen seconds ahead of Ilea and 29 seconds faster than her 10:46.4 from state last fall, when she was third in the public race for Landrum as a sixth grader. Two starts, two wins, and she has now beaten the No. 2 girl in the state head to head. Her 8:51 for 2.5k at Cecil Field is still the run that ranks her, and it does not matter. First either way.

2. Alice Ilea, Red Sea Running Club, 8th grade - 11:05.9 at Jim Ryun (projects 10:27.4)

Three races, two wins and a second. She won Jim Ryun in 11:05.9, won Indian River in 10:56.8, and ran 10:35.5 for second at the Horse Park, seven seconds faster than the 10:42.2 that won her the public school title at state last fall. She is the only girl in this ten who has raced both Heffernan and Motycka: she beat Motycka by 1.3 seconds at Jim Ryun and lost to Heffernan by 17.7 on Saturday. That is exactly where she sits.

3. Brianna Motycka, Liberty Pines Academy, 8th grade - 11:07.2 at Jim Ryun (projects 10:28.7)

The defending state champion has not raced since Jim Ryun, where she lost to Ilea by 1.3 seconds. A missed week is not a result, so she holds third on her opener. Her 10:24.8 in the club race last October was the fastest girls time of the entire state meet, in a No Excuses jersey, and which jersey she wears in November still decides the team race. She and Ilea have one meeting on the books and it was decided by a stride.

4. Amelia Flood, No Excuses RC, 8th grade - 11:23.0 at Cecil Field (projects 10:36.0)

Second to Heffernan at Cecil Field on opening night in 9:23 for 2.5k and has not raced since; No Excuses did not go to the Horse Park. She ran 11:20.0 at state last fall, sixth in the club race, and her opener already projects better than that.

5. Emily Del Mazo, WIND Runners, 7th grade - 11:27.3 at Jim Ryun (projects 10:48.8)

Third at Jim Ryun, and she has been racing high school varsity since for Community School of Naples. She won the Cape Coral Seahawk Invite 5k outright in 20:08.7 on August 29 and did not finish at the 3D Sommers Invitational on Saturday. Her ranking still comes from Jim Ryun. She ran 11:06.6 at state last fall, third in the club race for Gulf Coast Runners.

6. Sophia Underwood, Liza Jackson Preparatory School, 7th grade - 11:37.9 (projects 11:08.4)

Opened at the Dolphin Dash and won by more than a minute and a half in 11:37.9; the next girl ran 13:14.7. She won the private school race at state last fall in 11:01.2 as a sixth grader for Saint Mary Catholic and is listed with Liza Jackson Prep this season. She was sixth on a seed last week. She is sixth on a race now, and the race is worth a little more than the seed.

7. Zoie Hart, Emerald Coast Middle School, 8th grade - 11:48.7 (projects 11:09.0)

Won the Panhandle pre-conference meet in 11:48.7 and Emerald Coast took the first five places behind her: Mia Emhoff 11:59.0, Callie Skinner 11:59.3, Corbyn Fellers 12:00.3, Kora Murphy 12:43.7. She ran 11:29.5 at state last fall, tenth in the public race. Fair warning on the spot: only a handful of kids at that meet have a state time to compare, so the course reading is thin, and on the harshest version of it she would be outside the ten. On every other reading she is right about here.

8. Acadia Hassell, Montford Middle School, 8th grade - 11:04.9 at 2025 state, hasn't raced yet

Montford's front runner has now missed three weekends, and the seed has not moved. Underwood and Hart both raced within a few seconds of it and a race beats a seed, which is the only reason she is eighth instead of sixth. Fourth in the public race at state last fall. When she opens, this whole middle of the list rearranges.

9. Valentina Sarcos, Miami Vice Project, 8th grade - 11:12.5 (projects 11:17.5)

Third at the Horse Park in her first race of the season, 24 seconds faster than the 11:36.9 she ran at state last fall for Conchita Espinosa, fifth in the private race. She beat Kopcikova by fifteen seconds and Bailey Eggleston by nearly a minute, and nobody outside the top two was within 14 seconds of her. New name, real result.

10. Mia Kopcikova, Imagine Town Center, 8th grade - 11:40.6 at Indian River (projects 11:24.3)

Three races and each one faster on the clock: won Spikes and Spurs in 12:13.6, third at Indian River in 11:40.6, fourth at the Horse Park in 11:27.2. That last one was five seconds under her state time from last fall, when she was 14th in the public race for Indian Trails. She beat Eggleston by 41 seconds on Saturday after Eggleston had been ranked ahead of her all season, and the most recent race decides.

Next five: Layne Schiebel (Httr Tornadoes, 7th) 12:15.7 at Jim Ryun (11:37.2), fifth at the Horse Park in 11:47.1; Lilliana Gutfreind (Red Sea Running Club, 8th) 12:18.5 at Jim Ryun (11:40.0), sixth at the Horse Park in 11:55.5; Bailey Eggleston (Hillsborough Harriers, 8th) 11:53.8 at Jim Ryun (11:15.3), tenth at the Horse Park in 12:08.6 and beaten there by Sarcos, Kopcikova, Schiebel and Gutfreind, which is why she drops from eighth to 13th; Mia Emhoff (Emerald Coast Middle School, 7th) 11:59.0 (11:19.3); Callie Skinner (Emerald Coast Middle School, 8th) 11:59.3 (11:19.6).

Also worth knowing from week three: Madelen Finch (No Excuses RC, 7th) and Camila Boucher (Boca Warriors Track Club, 8th) have not raced since our last list and sit 17th and 18th. Callaway Bolt (Foundation Academy, 8th) won the Trinity Prep two-mile on Tuesday in 14:46.1 and ran 11:59.9 for eighth at the Horse Park on Saturday. Reagan Harder (Jacksonville Classical Academy) was seventh there in 11:57.6 as a seventh grader. Lia Kamar (Ransom Everglades, 7th) won Miami Country Day by 33 seconds in 13:12.2 on a slow Tuesday. Heidi Eason (Tampa Bay HEAT) won the Grayling Memorial by a minute and a half in 13:49.8. Katie Bichan (Wallace Lake K8) won the Pace Patriot middle school race in 13:48.1.

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Boys Top 10

1. RJ Destremps, Hillsborough Harriers, 8th grade - 10:08.4 at Jim Ryun (projects 9:29.9)

Two starts, two wins, and nobody within eleven seconds of him in either one. He beat Jobe by that much at the Horse Park in 9:53.8, and his 10:01.6 from the club race at state last fall, tenth that day, is already behind him in September. Nobody else in the state has broken 10:05, and no middle schooler in Florida has beaten him this season.

2. Luke Lomoriello, Hobbs Middle School, 8th grade - 10:17.3 at Jim Ryun (projects 9:38.8)

Second at Jim Ryun, nine seconds behind Destremps and two ahead of Matyka, and then a Saturday at home. He ran the Pace Patriot Invitational in his school colors and won the middle school race in 10:10.8, 73 seconds clear of the field. He ran 10:16.9 at state for Hobbs last fall, eighth in the public race, and he is the only boy in the top three who was not at the Horse Park.

3. Colton Jobe, VCMS (Middleton), 8th grade - 10:05.2 (projects 10:10.2)

Opened his season at the Horse Park and ran 10:05.2 for second, 37 seconds faster than his 10:42.7 at state last fall, where he was sixth in the charter race. He beat Moylan by a tenth, LaHayne by eight seconds and Matyka by eleven. Only three of the 246 boys broke 10:10, and he was one of them. The boys he beat are ranked behind him.

4. Aidan Moylan, Imagine Town Center, 8th grade - 10:05.3 (projects 10:10.3)

Three weekends, three courses, three different answers, each faster than the last. He won Spikes and Spurs in 11:04.9, ran 10:38.7 for second at Indian River, and then ran 10:05.3 for third at the Horse Park, a minute faster on the clock than his opener. He was 40th in the club race at state last October in 11:13.3. It is the biggest rise on this list.

5. Andrew LaHayne, NEXT, 8th grade - 10:42.8 at Jim Ryun (projects 10:04.3)

Sixth at Jim Ryun, fourth at the Horse Park in 10:13.0, thirty seconds faster on the clock. Matyka and Maxwell Claypool both beat him at Jim Ryun and he beat both of them Saturday, and the most recent meeting is the one that counts. He ran unattached at Jim Ryun and is listed with NEXT at the Horse Park, and he ran 10:52.2 at state last fall for the Soldier City Striders.

6. Joao Cardoso, NEXT, 8th grade - 10:14.7 (projects 10:19.7)

First race of the year, fifth at the Horse Park, and his 10:14.7 was within a second of the 10:14.1 he ran at state last fall for the Soldier City Striders, 13th in the club race. He beat Matyka by two seconds and Claypool by eight. He was sitting on a seed last week. He is sitting on a result now, and it holds up.

7. Drake Matyka, Unattached, 8th grade - 10:19.3 at Jim Ryun (projects 9:40.8)

Third at Jim Ryun, sixth at the Horse Park in 10:16.6, and the four boys who beat him Saturday are the four boys now ahead of him. Beyond that his season says what it said two weeks ago: 10:20.9 at state, ninth in the public race, and dead even with Tommy Schulte on the day they raced. Of the boys below him, he has beaten or tied everyone he has met.

8. Tommy Schulte, Naples Elite, 8th grade - 10:19.3 at Jim Ryun (projects 9:40.8)

Same time as Matyka at Jim Ryun, and he has not raced since. Two weekends off are not held against him. The boys who went to the Horse Park simply went past him on their results, and he can take the spots back the next time he runs. He ran 10:31.4 at state last fall for Gulfview.

9. Maxwell Claypool, WIND Runners, 8th grade - 10:36.5 at Jim Ryun (projects 9:58.0)

Fifth at Jim Ryun, seventh at the Horse Park in 10:22.2, fourteen seconds faster on the clock. Matyka beat him both times, and LaHayne and Cardoso got him Saturday, which is the whole story of where he sits. Solid both times out, and he is already under his 10:31.8 from state last year on the clock.

10. Elliot Lasota, No Excuses RC, 7th grade - 10:49.1 at Cecil Field (projects 10:02.1)

Won the Cecil Field boys race on opening night in 8:55 for 2.5k and has not raced since; No Excuses did not go to the Horse Park. He is a seventh grader who ran 11:03.8 in the open race at state last fall. His run and Liam Jopling's seed are less than a second apart on paper, and a race beats a seed.

Next five: Liam Jopling (Ruckel Middle School, 8th) 10:01.3 at 2025 state, hasn't raced, the fastest returning time in Florida and three weekends without a start; Elliot Macki (Calvary Christian Academy, Fort Lauderdale, 8th) 10:49.2 (10:10.7), racing high school varsity since, 18:53.9 for 5k at the Dr. Garcia Bulldog Invite on Thursday; Daniel Hage (Calvary Christian Academy, Fort Lauderdale, 7th) 10:49.6 (10:11.1), won the Dr. Garcia JV race in 18:38.9; Parker Whittamore (WIND Runners) 10:54.4 (10:15.9); Marco Garcia (Miami Elite) 11:03.6 at Cecil Field (10:16.6).

Also worth knowing from week three: Noah Chandler (Tampa Bay HEAT, 8th) won the Grayling Memorial in 10:33.2 by 34 seconds, ten seconds faster than his state time; he is 18th here on a course with a thin sample. Jack Ilea (Red Sea Running Club) ran 10:34.3 for 13th at the Horse Park as a sixth grader. Belen Jesuit's Jake Rubiera (10:25.7) and Aiden Cruz (10:28.1) were ninth and tenth there. Connor Lucas (Foundation Academy) won the Trinity Prep two-mile on Tuesday in 12:45.5 and came back Saturday for eighth at the Horse Park in 10:25.0. Christian Psilos (Emerald Coast Middle School) won the Panhandle pre-conference meet by 33 seconds in 11:12.9. Ransom Everglades went 1-2 at Miami Country Day, Nicolas Adler in 12:09.1 and Ruslan Lefrak three tenths back, on a slow Tuesday. Aiden Lambright (Bay Haven Charter Academy) won the Dolphin Dash in 11:04.8 a week after winning Bay County.

How these lists were built

• Fifteen meets count so far. New this week: the Florida Horse Park Invitational (Ocala), the Pace Patriot Invitational (Pace), the Dolphin Dash (Fort Walton Beach), the Panhandle pre-conference meet, the Grayling Memorial, Miami Country Day and the Trinity Prep middle school series opener.
• The raced time is always the official number. The projection in parentheses converts it to what it is worth at the FLYRA state meet in November, using the kids who have run both this season and the 2025 state meet. The projections are only used to order the lists.
• We re-measured every course this week with three weeks of results, and we now match kids by name instead of by jersey, so a runner who changed clubs since last fall still counts. A few projections moved a couple of seconds without anybody racing. Courses where only a handful of kids have a state time to compare are blended toward the statewide figure rather than trusted on their own.
• The Horse Park graded out as the fastest middle school course of the season, and Indian River still runs fast. Times from those two courses get little or no August credit. That is the cautious call. Where ranked runners met at the Horse Park, the finish order there decides the order here.
• A real result outranks a seed that is a few seconds better. A missed week is not a result and is never held against anyone; Brianna Motycka and Tommy Schulte keep their spots on their openers.
• Returners from the 2025 state meet who have not opened are entered at their state time and labeled that way. Those seeds get no credit for the summer, so they are floors.
• Every 2025 eighth grader is gone. The Class of 2030 races high school now, and you will find them on our week 3 boys top 10 and week 3 girls top 10.
• Cecil Field's races were 2.5k and Trinity Prep and the GFAC ran two miles, so those times are shown as their 3k equivalent. The middle school races at Pace Patriot and the Dolphin Dash are included.
• Kids who appear under both a club and a school jersey are merged and listed under the jersey they raced for most recently. Heffernan ran the Horse Park unattached and stays listed with No Excuses.

Ruckel, Montford, No Excuses and Belen all have kids sitting on seeds or on opening night, and every one of those numbers is built to be beaten. Last week's lists are here. Catch up on Saturday in our Horse Park recap, and see every result in the Florida XC results database.

Some middle schoolers skip this circuit entirely and race high school varsity instead. We ranked those too: the top five middle schoolers in every grade, boys and girls, racing Florida high school cross country.