The 2025 Arkansas high school cross country season officially came to a close with the conclusion of the Brooks XC Championships in San Diego, where two of the state's brightest stars, Rogers senior Lilly Beshears and Bentonville senior Brian Burns, lined up against the nation's best at storied Balboa Park. Both athletes entered the meet as state champions and both capped remarkable high school cross-country careers with performances that demonstrated Arkansas' growing presence on the national stage.
Beshears Closes Out Her Rogers Career with Strong Late-Race Progression
For Beshears, the race marked the final chapter of a historic career at Rogers High School. A back-to-back Arkansas 6A state champion, Beshears had already proven her consistency and postseason strength throughout the year, highlighted by her 1st-place finishes at the Arkansas State Championships (17:29) and the Southlake 5K Invite (16:47), along with top-10 performances at NXR South and the Brooks XC Championships-South race.
At Balboa Park, Beshears once again showed the intelligence and toughness that defined her 2025 season. She opened conservatively, crossing the half mile in 42nd place at 2:42.9, before moving up slightly by the mile, where she split 5:35.1, maintaining close contact with the large chase pack. The challenging hills of Balboa began to thin the field in the second half of the race, and that's where Beshears made her strongest move. She advanced to 28th at two miles (11:37.9), gaining more than a dozen positions, and continued her steady progression over the final mile to finish 29th overall in 18:15.7.
While the result may not have matched her podium-contending aspirations, Beshears proved she belongs in the conversation with the nation's elite. Her ability to move through the field on one of the most technical and demanding national courses reflects not only her talent but also her experience and composure in championship settings.
Burns Delivers a Front-Pack Battle in His Second Straight National Championship
In the boys' race, Bentonville senior Burns, racing as a Brooks NIL athlete, stepped confidently onto the national stage for the second week in a row after a strong 16th-place finish at Nike Cross Nationals. The 2025 season was a career year for Burns, featuring a dominant Arkansas 6A state title (15:31), a 4th-place finish at NXR South in a blistering 14:45, and top-tier performances at major invitationals such as Chile Pepper and Gans Creek.
True to form, Burns attacked Brooks XC with poise and fearlessness. He got out perfectly, crossing the half-mile in third place at 2:20.2, surrounded by many of the same top athletes he battled at NXN. By the mile, he remained firmly in the lead group in 5th place (4:49.2), showcasing both strength and efficiency as the pace surged over the rolling terrain.
The demanding hills of Balboa Park began to reshape the race during the second mile, but Burns held strong. He came through two miles in 9:58.8, still inside the top 10, demonstrating that he could maintain contact even as the leaders pressed. In the final mile, often the decisive segment on this challenging course, Burns battled through the steep inclines and technical descents, ultimately finishing 13th overall in 15:44.1, a performance that solidified his reputation as one of the top distance runners in the South Region.
A Fitting Finale and a Look Toward 2026
With Beshears' and Burns' performances, Arkansas once again proved that it can produce national-class distance athletes capable of competing stride-for-stride with the best in the country. Their runs at Brooks XC not only close out exceptional seasons but also cap off two of the strongest high school cross country careers the state has seen in recent years.
As the 2025 cross country season officially concludes, both Arkansas athletes and the rest of the nation's top talent now turn their attention to the upcoming 2026 indoor track and field season, where new opportunities and new goals await on the oval. If their cross-country campaigns were any indication, Beshears and Burns are far from finished making noise on the national stage.
