Leah Lisle (#588) and her Kent State teammates at the start of the Tommy Evans Invite.
2018 St. Vincent-St. Mary grad, Leah Lisle has made a smooth transition from the high school ranks to competing at the college level. Lisle, who now represents Kent State University, has lined up twice so far this season for the Golden Flashes. In her debut, the freshman recorded a thirty-second place time of 15:07.90 in the 4K race at the Toledo Rocket Opener. In her most recent outing, she placed fourteenth in the 5K contest at the Tommy Evans Invitational. Lisle's time of 18:47.30 represents a new pr. Her previous best was 18:58.24, which she achieved at the 2017 Midwest Meet of Champions.
Lisle raced at the DII State Championship meet on three occasions and the highlights of her high school career include a trip to the 2017 Nike Cross Nationals Midwest Regional and a second place showing in the 3200m event at the 2018 DII/DIII OATCCC Indoor State Championship meet.
MileSplit tracked down Leah to gain insight on her transition from high school to college racing and to learn about the goals that she has set for herself.
How has your transition from high school to college competition gone thus far?
So far my transition to college competition has gone pretty well. It has been a lot of fun getting to know my new teammates and coaches and I'm starting to adjust to the new competitive atmosphere. I'm definitely excited to see what new experiences this season will bring!
What are the biggest differences relating to competing in college?
The biggest difference I've noticed so far is that the coaches create your own personalized training schedule, unlike high school where everyone did the same mileage and workouts. Practices are also pretty different because not everyone gets out of class at the same time, so we can't all practice together every day. There also isn't a meet every week like in high school; some of my scheduled meets are two weeks apart.
What are your goals for your freshman year and your college career in general?
As of right now, my main goal for freshman year is simply to help my team improve from the year prior. I haven't ran a 6K race yet so I'll have a goal after I get a baseline time, but as for the 5K I'd like to run 18:20 or better by the end of this season.
Tommy Evans Invite Results -
Kent State's Team Scorers -
Leah Lisle (#588) and her Kent State teammates at the start of the Tommy Evans Invite.
