Southern Boone’s Connor Burns was introduced because the Gatorade Missouri Boys Monitor & Area Participant of the Yr on Wednesday. He turns into the primary athlete from Southern Boone to win the award.
The junior’s season on the monitor was nothing in need of historic. Burns — the son of former MU cross nation coach Marc Burns — turned the primary Missouri and fifteenth U.S. excessive schooler to interrupt 4 minutes within the mile, posting a 3:58.83 again on June 2 on the Pageant of Miles in St. Louis.
His time is the seventh-fastest for a excessive schooler in U.S. historical past. He additionally broke the junior class file, which was initially set 58 years in the past by Jim Ryun, the primary excessive schooler to ever break 4 minutes.
Burns additionally discovered success within the 3,200-meter race. On the Missouri state meet again on Might 27, he broke each the Class 3 and state file after ending in 8 minutes, 48.76 seconds. He would enhance his time on the Brooks PR Invitational, successful the race in 8:45.52 — the nation’s quickest clocking in 2022.
The award additionally acknowledges Burns’s efforts off of the monitor. Burns has maintained a 4.0 GPA within the classroom and serves because the Scholar Council President. He is also a math tutor and volunteers on behalf of a meals financial institution.
“Connor has a grind like no different—he reveals up day-in and day-out together with his onerous hat on,” Southern Boone coach Adrian Cummings stated in a press launch. “He’s very goal-oriented, he leads from the entrance and he’s an excellent teammate.”
Burns is a finalist for the Gatorade Nationwide Boys Monitor & Area Participant of the Yr award, which will likely be introduced later this month.