2026 Top Returning Sophomores: Ohio's Next Wave, Boys and Girls

Fifteen twenty-seven. Write it down.

That's what Calvin Watson ran as a freshman. A 15:27.02, the kind of time that usually belongs to a senior with three years of varsity racing behind him, not a kid who hasn't started his sophomore season yet. And here's the part that should really get your attention: he's not even the only name on this list who's about to make the rest of the state nervous.

Podium Watch pulled every 2025 5K time and built the definitive top 10 for all eight groups, four divisions, boys and girls. Eighty names. Eighty athletes who are still sophomores-to-be, still years from their fastest race, and already good enough to headline a statewide ranking. If you're a runner on this list, screenshot it. If you're not, find the person who is and send it to them, because this is the class that's going to define Ohio cross country through 2028.

The fast facts

• Fastest sophomore in the state, boys: Calvin Watson, Thomas Worthington, 15:27.02
• Fastest sophomore in the state, girls: Lucia Schafer, Kettering Fairmont, 18:21.81
• Closest race anywhere on this list: Schafer vs. Beth Baker, Girls Division I, separated by 0.17 seconds
• Most dominant #1: Watson, more than 48 seconds clear of second place, the single biggest gap in the entire preview
• Tightest division top to bottom: Girls Division II, just 23.32 seconds from first to tenth
• Widest division top to bottom: Boys Division III, 86.76 seconds separating first from tenth

Both of the fastest sophomores in the entire state, boys and girls, run in Division I. That's not a coincidence you can ignore. It's the headline.

Superlatives

Before the division-by-division breakdown, the awards. Every one of these is pulled straight from the times, no exaggeration required.

Most Dominant Performance — Calvin Watson, Thomas Worthington. A 48-second gap over the field isn't a ranking. It's a statement.

Closest Race — Lucia Schafer vs. Beth Baker, Girls D1. Seventeen hundredths of a second. That's closer than most photo finishes at the state meet itself, and these two haven't even raced each other as sophomores yet.

Tightest Division — Girls Division II. Five different runners within four seconds of the top spot. Nobody is running away with anything here, and that's exactly what makes it must-watch.

Deepest Programs — six teams landed two runners apiece: Thomas Worthington, Olentangy Berlin, Kenston, Bryan, Huron, and Liberty Center. Individual talent wins races. This is what wins team titles.

Sibling Watch — Micah and Mason Ballinger, Olentangy Berlin. Same last name, same program, back to back at second and third, 6.56 seconds apart. Related or not, Berlin fans are about to get very used to hearing that name.

Boys Division I

The standard-bearer.

Nobody else in this entire preview, boys or girls, opened a bigger gap than Watson did here. More than 48 seconds over second place, as a freshman, in the state's toughest division. That's not a ranking anymore. That's a target on his back for the next three years.

But don't sleep on what's happening two spots behind him. The Ballinger brothers at Olentangy Berlin are 6.56 seconds apart, sitting second and third, and Thomas Worthington didn't just produce the fastest sophomore in Ohio, they landed a second Cardinal in Riley Greco at seventh. That's not a fluke. That's a program.

Boys Division II

Five deep, and nobody's separated yet.

Calvin Heithaus has Mount Vernon's next great one, more than 20 seconds clear at the top. But the real story is what's happening behind him: five sophomores within seven seconds of each other, second through sixth. That's not a top 10, that's a pack, and packs like that produce the best racing all season, every season, for the next three years.

Kenston's the program to know here. Tyler Cingcade at third, Huck Rundo at tenth, same school, both ends of the list.

Boys Division III

The widest gap in the entire preview.

Nearly a minute and a half separates first from tenth here, the widest spread anywhere in this preview. Anderson Scott's 15:46.94 is the second-fastest time posted by any sophomore in Ohio, period, and he's already built real distance on the field. Bryan's the sneaky story: John Deitemeyer at second, Cael Neilson at ninth. Two Golden Bears, same class, both ends of the state's deepest talent gap.

Boys Division IV

A three-way fight for the top, and everyone else chasing.

Ten schools, ten different corners of the state, zero repeats, that's how spread out Division IV talent really is. But look at the top three: Paxson Bixler, Andrew Gannon, and Owen Cappuzzello are separated by less than six seconds combined, before a real gap opens to fourth. That's a genuine three-way fight for the next three seasons, and everyone else on this list is chasing a 24-second head start.

Girls Division I

The closest race in the entire state.

Seventeen hundredths of a second. Read that again. Lucia Schafer and Beth Baker are separated by less time than it takes to blink, and Chelsee Fischer is barely a second behind both of them. Three sophomores, 1.34 seconds combined, in the toughest division in the state. This isn't a ranking, it's the opening scene of a rivalry that's going to run for three more years, and whoever's still ahead by senior year will have earned every hundredth of it.

Schafer's mark matters beyond Division I, too: it's the fastest time posted by any sophomore girl in Ohio, any division.

Girls Division II

Nobody's safe. That's the point.

The tightest division in this entire preview, boys or girls: 23.32 seconds covers all ten names. Kaylee Ingratta leads, but four other sophomores are within four seconds of her. This ranking could look completely different by the first meet of the season, and that's exactly what makes it worth watching every week instead of just once in August.

Girls Division III

Two runners pulling away from everyone else.

Sadie Schultz's 18:25.64 is the second-fastest time by any sophomore girl in the entire state, trailing only Lucia Schafer, and she's already built a cushion over the field with Evelyn Reinoehl right behind her. After that duo, a real gap opens, just over 21 seconds back to third. And down at the bottom of the list, Huron closes it out with two teammates back to back, Laney Schlessman and Andrea Lesnak, who are going to be pushing each other in practice for the next three years whether they like it or not.

Girls Division IV

Quiet depth that shows up when it matters most.

Kamdin Snider leads for Bellaire, but Liberty Center is the name to remember. Castyn Miller at fifth, Mya Stark at tenth, same program, both ends of the list. That's the kind of depth that doesn't make headlines in August but wins regional titles in October.

Bookmark this one

Every name on this list is still heading into their sophomore season. That means three full seasons of high school racing ahead of every single one of them, this year, then a junior year, then a senior year before any of it is final. Some of the runners sitting at the bottom of these top tens right now will be leading their divisions by 2027. Some of the ones on top will have to hold off the field they're currently ahead of. Rankings in August are a starting line, not a verdict.

Here's what's already true, though. Calvin Watson and Lucia Schafer are the two fastest sophomores in Ohio, and both of them race in Division I. Girls Division II is the most wide-open field in the state. Boys Division III has the widest gap top to bottom. And six programs, Thomas Worthington, Olentangy Berlin, Kenston, Bryan, Huron, and Liberty Center, already have the kind of sophomore depth that turns into team hardware.

Three years is a long time in distance running. It's also not that long at all. Podium Watch will be tracking every name on this list, all the way to the podium.

Rankings based on 2025 5K times. These athletes were freshmen during the 2025 cross country season and will be sophomores in 2026.