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Owen Kelley is a National Caliber Racer
I've always believed that you've either got it or you don't. It's hard to teach a championship mentality. And that's something Owen Kelley looks like he has.
The senior from Bentonville got his season off to a hot start at the Southlake XC Invite in Texas, finishing 4th en route to his first sub 15 performance. A week later in Kansas, he did it again, running a US #31 14:50.00 and winning the Olathe Invitational.
Since then, Kelley has cruised to a 26 second victory on his home course and finished 2nd at the prestigious Chile Pepper Festival.
It's been three weeks since his last race, which tells me Kelley has his eyes set on a bigger prize - the postseason. It takes a lot of discipline to resist the urge to continue the hot streak Kelley started his season on and perhaps Coach Power, a former Olympian, can be credited for the decision to train through the grittiest part of the season as this Bentonville team finds themselves squarely in the mix to race at NXN again in 2024.
Without having to worry about racing, Kelley has been able to fine-tune the parts of his training he believes are his most vulnerable for nearly a month, which will make him one of the most dangerous individuals in the country in November and December.
We get to see Kelley and the Tigers race again this Saturday at the Lake Hamilton Cross Country Invitational, which should give us a good idea as to how ready the team is for state and beyond.