Land O’ Lakes resident Elli Black took first place in AAU Cross-Country National Championships for the 11- to 12-year-old girls group — clocking a 10:13.24 in last month’s 3K race at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee.
Black’s 3K time set a course record, which equated to a 5:29 minute per mile pace.
Black is a home-schooled seventh-grader who runs varsity cross-country and track for Tampa’s Cambridge Christian School.
Prior to the national meet, the local youth finished runner-up at the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Class 1A state championships, registering an 18:28.5 mark in the 5K race. (The winner of the 1A state race was Black’s prep teammate Caroline Lehman, a high school junior who clocked an 18:07.80.)
