LARSON TAPPED AS NJCAA NATIONAL RUNNER OF THE WEEK

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Hutchinson Community College sophomore cross country runner Serenity Larson was named the NJCAA Division I Cross Country Women's Runner of the Week on Wednesday.

Larson, a sophomore from Dodge City, led the No. 7-ranked Blue Dragon women to a third-place finish on Saturday at the Carol Swenson Invitational in McPherson.

Larson ran a time of 18:45.96, her fourth sub-19 minute performance at 5,000 meters and third-fastest time in her Blue Dragon career.

She was the top junior college runner in a race that had NJCAA, NAIA and NCAA runners.

The Blue Dragon sophomore had her fifth career Top five finish in her Hutchinson career.

Last season, Larson was an NJCAA third-team All-American after a 12th-place finish at the NJCAA Championship. She owns the Blue Dragon women's cross country 5K record of 18:12.1 set at the 2022 Chili Pepper Classic in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Larson is the first Blue Dragon cross country runner to be named a national runner of the week since Tegan Flanagan in 2020.