MileSplit Fast Four: A weekly glimpse at four of our nation's best

Each week here at MileSplit we will be giving you a quick look at four of the nation's best runners in our new feature called MileSplit Fast Four. Featured this week are Joash Osoro (ND), Alex Dunne (CA), Andrew Springer (RI) and Kaitlin Hanenburg (CO).

Joash Osoro
St. Mary Central/Bismarck H.S.
Bismarck, ND

Highlights: Attends St. Mary Central, a private school which does not have cross country, so he runs as a co-op athlete for Bismarck in the fall … Osoro (photo courtesy of Dave Zittleman) arrived from Kenya in the summer of 2005 and played soccer as a freshman … Osoro placed second at the North Dakota State Cross Country Finals as a sophomore, before winning back-to-back individual crowns the last two seasons … Placed first at the Roy Griak Invitational in 15:37 … Won the NTN Heartland Regional with a time of 15:40 in 2007 … Finished 18th at the FL Midwest Regional in 2007

Coach (Dave Zittleman) says: “He’s come a long ways in three years. He keeps getting better. He has a bright future. He absolutely loves to train. He’s not afraid to put in 70-mile weeks. If you can get a kid that’s born to run that loves to go out and train, racing is going to be easy. He really gears up for practice and he’s not afraid to go out and do the morning runs. He does great things for our program. He’s been a great leader.”

Osoro says: “It was a great feeling to win the individual and the team title too; that was the goal coming into the season. In track I never really put in a lot of miles a week. Now I don’t go a day without running because it’s such a great feeling and I have fun doing it. I knew from last summer how much I improved by putting in the mileage.”

Summer mileage (max): 84

Weekly mileage: 70-75

Training shoes: Saucony Pro-Grid

Race day superstitions: None

Hobbies: Video games, basketball

Favorite movie: Run Fatboy Run

Alex Dunne
Jr., San Clemente
San Clemente, CA

Highlights: Captured a bronze medal at the World Junior Mountain Running Championships in Switzerland ... Dunne (photo by Margot Kelly, calrunners.com) finished second (16:48) to Jordan Hasay at Mount SAC, recording the sixth fastest time ever at the event … Ran a 5k PR of 17:43 at the Clovis Invitational, placing first … Placed second (16:44) to Texas standout Sarah Andrews at the Woodbridge Invitational … Has lost only  dual meet in her three-year career … Placed 28th at the Foot Locker West Regional in 2007

Coach (Dave Proodian) says: “She’s really determined to do the best that she can. As far as a student athlete, she’s got everything together. She’s very appreciative of what she’s able to do, the talent that she has been given. But talent is one thing, going out there and doing what you need to do is another. You can be as talented as you want, but you still have to be able to put the work in. She has put all the work in and done what she needs to do to get to where she is. She doesn’t let setbacks bother her, she uses it as motivation later on.”

Dunne says: “It’s a blessing, though, to have someone like [Jordan Hasay] to try to catch up to year after year. There’s always bigger and better that I can reach, instead of being complacent with where I am. My biggest goal was to run low 17’s [at Mt. SAC]. I was definitely happy with my performance, and to be so close to [Hasay] at the 2-mile mark was an amazing feeling. Everything has been going really well this season. I am a lot more focused now and dedicated than I have been in the past. And I am getting a lot more sleep this year, which, I think has been the key to my success so far. My workouts have a lot more quality now.”

Summer mileage (max): 46

Weekly mileage: 30

Training shoes: Asics DS Trainer

Race day superstitions: Always wears the same pink socks

Hobbies: Writing

Favorite actress: Reese Witherspoon

Andrew Springer
Sr., Westerly H.S.
Westerly, R.I.

Highlights: A former soccer player running cross country for the first time, Springer (photo by King To) won the Rhode Island Class B Championships in 15:56 … His time of 15:02 in winning the Brown Invitational was the second fastest time ever at Goddard Park … Also placed first (15:55) at the Ocean State Invitational on a slightly different course at Goddard Park … Won a pair of state titles (1,500 and 4x800 relay) at the Rhode Island State Track & Field Championships in 2008

Coach (Ryan Palmer) says: “This is the first year he has actually trained all year. In essence he kind of reminds me of Pre. He’s carefree. He wants to go out and break records. He gets in big races and you can’t even tell he’s in a big race. He’s very free spirited. He’s almost like a grown man on how he approaches races. The big stage is where he really thrives. He loves running the big races. But you would never know it. If you would talk to him before a race, you would never know that he is running in a big race.”

Springer says: “At first I was doing it so I could get some better training for outdoor track. I really wanted to have a good senior year on the track. I didn’t have any expectations or anything coming in, but now that I’ve run cross country for almost a full season, I like it a lot more, at least more than I thought I would coming into it. I like the whole team aspect of it. Every race I’ve been improving. I wasn’t expecting to break records, but I definitely wanted to have a successful year, which I think I have done so far.”

Summer mileage (max): 40

Weekly mileage: 70

Training shoes:  Asics Kayano

Race day superstitions: Springer always eats oatmeal for breakfast on race days

Hobbies: Soccer

Favorite athlete: Bernard Lagat

Kaitlin Hanenburg
The Classical Academy
Colorado Springs, CO

Highlights: Hanenburg (photo by Alan Versaw) plays guard for the basketball team … Colorado 3A State Cross Country Champion - 2007, 2008, leading her team to the title as well … Colorado 3A State Track Champion at 1600 and 3200 meters in 2008 … Finished fourth (17:57) at the NTN SW Regional in 2007… Her sister Emily runs for the University of Colorado

Coach (Alan Versaw) says: “In addition to bringing a whole lot of natural ability to the table, Kaitlin brings a will to win that takes a back seat to just about nobody. On the outside, she's very quiet and tranquil, but she is absolutely the one person you don't want to have breathing down your back at the end of a race. She will find a way to get by, and she will close the door.”

Hanenburg says: “I saw my sister [run] and she did really well, and I thought it looked like fun. I really enjoy it. I love running. I love my team and coaches. They definitely help keep me going. The team is a really big part of my running … I had a great season and it was just such a blessing not to get injured during the whole thing.”

Summer mileage (max): 35

Weekly mileage: 40

Training shoes: Brooks GTS

Race day superstitions: Always eat the same thing, warms up the same way and prays with her team before every race

Hobbies: Drawing and scrap booking

Favorite school subject: Anatomy