Senior-to-be was Oregon’s 6A state champion and top finisher at Nike BorderClash and Nike Cross Nationals
For immediate release
PORTLAND, Oregon (July 31) -- Five years have passed, but the Prep X-Country Runner of the Year honor is returning to distance running powerhouse Summit High.
Senior-to-be Fiona Max, who captured the 6A Championship in November and led the Storm to a team title at the meet, was presented with the Prep Girls X-Country Runner of the Year award on Wednesday. Max is the first Summit distance runner to win the award since Matthew Maton received the honor in 2014.
Max is the first girls runner from Summit to win the award, which was incepted in 2012 and has gone to a Summit athlete four times – Travis Neuman (2012), Maton (2013, 2014).
The Oregon Sports Awards voting panel tabbed Max as the winner over fellow finalists Kyla Becker (Lincoln) and Makenna Schumacher (Jesuit). Six runners were nominated for the award.
Sport Oregon, which manages the Oregon Sports Awards, and NBC Sports Northwest announced Max as the winner on Wednesday during “The Noe Show” with Brian Noe.
Single sport prep award winners were announced live on “The Noe Show” throughout July and through a partnership between Sport Oregon and NBC Sports Northwest. Announcements began on July 8 and concluded on Wednesday.
Consistency was the name of the game for Max this fall. Schumacher ran the state’s fastest girls 5,000m time (17:12) but Max was the top finisher at the 6A Championship and fastest runner from Oregon at Nike BorderClash 20, the NXR Northwest Regional Championships and Nike Cross Nationals.
Max took third at BorderClash (18:10.30), sixth at the NXR Northwest Regional Championships (17:44.60) and 11th at Nike Cross Nationals (17:29). Her personal best in the 5,000m (17:28.60) was third-fastest in the state this season.
She won the 6A Championship in 17:29 and was 14 seconds in front of Schumacher, who finished second.
Max was named the Gatorade Oregon Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year as well. She won three regular season meets, including the Mountain Valley Conference Championship, and finished second in two others for the Storm.
Max was also nominated for the Prep Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year and Johnny Carpenter 6A/5A Prep Girls Athlete of the Year awards.
She won the 3,000m at the 6A Girls Track and Field Championships in May and clocked the state’s fastest time (9:43.91) in the event. Max also set a personal record in the 1,500m at the state meet (4:27.27) to finish second in the event. Her 1,500m time is the third-fastest nationally and ranks No. 9 in 6A state meet history.
Max won a total of 10 individual events this spring and helped the Storm win their 14th consecutive girls district title at the Mountain Valley Conference Championships. She also ran indoor track this spring and competed for Mondo Track Club.
Stanford, University of Washington and Princeton have been in contact with Max about running collegiately. She has yet to decide on a school.
Max is a competitive cross-country skier during the winter. She was named an All-American during her freshman and sophomore years but focused more on indoor track and offseason training in 2019.
She is active in the classroom and in other extracurricular activities at Summit. Max will be the co-editor-in-chief at Summit’s student-run newspaper, The Pinnacle, this fall. She is also a member of Interact Club at Summit and is a co-founder of an initiative called Fashion Forward, which aims to provide kids in need with donated stylish clothing and gift certificates for clothing.
Presenting sponsor: HP
State Champion Sponsors: NBC Sports Northwest Nike Pamplin Media Group Portland Thorns Portland Timbers Portland Trail Blazers Providence Heath and Services Washington Trust Bank
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