A potential state cross country and track and field title contender was ruled ineligible last month by the Colorado High School Athletic Association after his transfer to Mountain Vista High School, considered one of the top running programs in the state.
That wasn't exactly great news for Easton Allred, who just closed out a breakout year in Colorado.
Not only is the sophomore viewed as one of the top runners in the state, but he's quickly becoming a national name in distance circles. On May 31, he posted the top overall mile for sophomores at the Festival of Miles in St. Louis, scoring a time of 4:09.49.
But after meeting with Allred's family at some point last month, the CHSAA ruled that Allred, who isn't a full-time high school student, would be ineligible based on an "athletically motivated" transfer.
It's important to know a few details.
- 1. While Allred is technically a sophomore, he tested out of high school at 14 and has been taking college courses for the past two years
- 2. He won't be a full-time student when he arrives at Mountain Vista, though he will be enrolled in a handful of AP classes that will go toward earning college credits
- 3. He said he wanted to transfer to Mountain Vista because his sister, Madelynne, will be a sophomore at the school and the pair are close
- 4. As an aside, Allred's family's home is about five minutes away from Mountain Vista and Allred said, 'I can see it from my house."
Allred ran during the fall, winter and spring seasons for Rock Canyon High School. In cross country, he finished eighth at state and was third at NXR Southwest in a personal best time of 14:53.00 for 5K. He qualified for his first Nike Cross Nationals, where he was just outside All-American status in 22nd place.
In the spring, that same success continued. He competed at the Arcadia Invitational in California, later posted a top 10 sophomore 3200m time of 9:08.34 and then was third in both the 1600m (4:18.67) and 3200m (9:15.36) at the state championships in Colorado.
He dropped his US No. 1 sophomore mile of 4:09.49 in a high school section of the race in St. Louis, Missouri, just a few weeks later.
Where does that leave his junior season?
Allred may still be eligible to compete for Mountain Vista in national meets like NXR Southwest, but that will depend on a casing of Nike's rulebook which tackles eligibility.
This past fall, the Brentwood (TN) Track Club was able to compete at an NXR Regional despite several of its athletes having never raced across the state season -- a first in the history of an NXR Regional. But that was likely because all of its athletes were eligible -- they chose not to run based on a prior situation with the high school team.
In time, Allred will figure out the situation more clearly.
But in the interim, he said he will practice with Mountain Vista, race in JV competitions and could run unattached in collegiate races. He says he hopes to convince Cole Sprout, a potential NXN title contender and friend -- the pair met at NXN -- to do so alongside him next year -- Valor Christian's coach, however, shot down that idea on Twitter quickly.
Allred hopes to qualify and run in more national meets next spring, too.
"It's super tough for me," Allred said. "The team means a ton for me. For me not to help them out, it's sad.
"Running is my passion," he added. "To be unable to compete and do the sport I love, it's heartbreaking."