Freshman Amari Dudley ran well at the 2025 Region I-5A cross country meet in Lubbock

She toured the Mae Simmons course in 21 minutes, 36.20 seconds to finish 73rd out of 177 runners.

She was the top finisher for Wylie High School.

Her next run there, however, was eye-popping.

Now a sophomore, Dudley went out fast, kept her pace, moved by three runners toward the end, and finished in 19:32.0 over the 5,000-meter course.

That improvement of more than 2 minutes placed her 11th overall but more importantly, ninth among runners on non-state qualifying teams.

In other words, Dudley will be running at the UIL state meet this weekend in Round Rock.

She lines up at 8:15 a.m. for the Class 5A race at Old Settlers Park.

A quiet person, Dudley wasn’t overflowing with reaction. Not compared to her coach, Jody Harvey, who is sending his first competitor to state and Wylie’s first in cross country at the 5A level.

“I am so proud of her and happy,” he said.

The last Wylie girl to make it to the state meet was Hanna Sanchez, who was fourth at the Class 4A meet.

One difference is that Dudley achieved her feat on a 5,000-meter course while state runners 11 years ago ran 3,200 meters.

MAYBE SHE CAN...

Harvey believed his sophomore could be the one to take Wylie back to Round Rock, but maybe not this year.

“I thought she was our outside chance to have someone qualify,” he said. “She fast-forwarded that process a little bit.

“But it didn't surprise me.”

A move from 73rd to 11th overall is remarkable.

Also remarkable is how District 4-5A competed at the regional meet.

Mia Garcia of Abilene Cooper was the bronze medalist (18:43.90) while teammate Lila Murrillo was fourth (18:55.90).

Dudley trains with both.

“Being in that same group did a lot for her,” Harvey said. “She belongs in that group.

“I am really proud of how our district did.”

Abilene High’s Aubrey Duran, a state qualifier in 2025, was seventh (19:13.30) at this year’s regional meet. She was ninth last fall in 19:23.90, so she moved up, too.

That’s four runners from the district in the top 10, all going to the state meet.

“I’m very excited … I’m happy … I’m very good,” Dudley said ahead of running the state course for the first time.

Proudest of her achievement may be her sister, Marisa, who ran as a senior for Wylie last year. She was 85th at the regional meet.

“She is super excited. I called her first and she said, ‘You actually did it? Good job,’” Dudley said, smiling. “‘You deserve it.’”

Harvey echoed that.

“It’s a great testament to her, and t her commitment and determination,” he said.

RACE STRATEGY

Asked if she saw such a good performance coming in Lubbock, Dudley said she had hoped to perform well based on her training and her plan for the course.

If Harvey had an indication that it was going to be a huge day in the Hub City, it may have been the box draw. Wylie drew its starting spot from the right, or north, side of the long starting line. That is the best place to be because runners have some room to maneuver.

“It gave us an advantage,” she said.

Still, Dudley and her teammates had to run for the hill. Literally.

“I knew that if I didn’t, I’d get stuck on that hill,” she said. Runners sprint across a wide field that funnels runners into a narrow uphill climb and across a ridge.

“I got out fast and up the hill, then tried to maintain my pace,” she said. “Trust everything I’ve practiced through.”

It’s a whirlwind of color at the race but Dudley looked out for Cooper’s blue and red and Abilene’s black and gold. If she could stay with them, she’d be in good shape.

“I always try to look out for them. Then I kinda of know where I should be,” she said.

The familiarity, Harvey said, doesn’t make a runner feel out of place among so many runners.

“Maybe a sense of comfort where you are running and believe that you can be where you should be and it’s not something that is out of reach,” he said of running toward the front of the race.

Her district runners, however, were in the center of the pack, so Dudley was more on her own to start.

She had checked on the runners from other schools.

“I familiarized myself with them so I knew where I should be,” she said.

Harvey told Dudley to get out fast and take advantage of the positioning.

“Which I knew she could do,” he said of his runner’s start.

As she completed her first lap, Dudley realized that she was running a great race.

“I heard somebody say ‘You’re in 14th, so I knew … I had somewhat of a shot,” Dudley said. “I looked at the other girls to see how close they were and I told myself that I could be up there.”

The runners trek two laps on the other side of the course.

Harvey said his girl was 13th after one loop and then moved up to 11th after the second loop as runners headed back across a bridge to the start/finish area.

“I caught a couple of people coming down the last hill and on that last straight, I almost caught another girl,” she said. That girl was Camila Pena of El Paso Burges, who was 10th in 19:30.0, 2 seconds ahead of Dudley. The Wylie runner was 1.6 seconds ahead of Ava Duncan of Mansfield Legacy, who was the final state qualifier.

Amelia Anderson of Lubbock High won the race with a time of 18:00.60.

Harvey said the times are higher than what would be expected at a regional meet but the course was muddy. That, however, favored his runner.

“It wasn’t the perfect storm, but it favored Amari’s toughness and grit to shine through,” Harvey said. “She followed our game plan perfectly.”

PUTTING THE TRAINING TO WORK ONE MORE TIME

Dudley said she was able to move forward from her injury last year that slowed her performances and put a training program in place that she hoped would pay off this season.

It obviously paid like a jackpot.

As for the time between Lubbock and Round Rock races, it’s a matter of keeping the training going.

“Keeping my routine and letting it all work out,” she said.

Dudley is realistic about running in Round Rock.

“It’ll be gaining an experience so I can do better in the future,” she said. Besides running a challenging course for the first time, there is the hoopla of a state meet. Old Settlers requires physical and mental toughness.

The sophomore would like to “get a “PR to end the season out with and see how the course is. Just the experience because it will be one of the biggest meets I’ll run in. Find the people I’m familiar with and settle into the pace I’ve built.”

Her coach said finding a 4-5A runner among the others will help Dudley gauge where she is on the course.

“I think that would be a great benefit to her,” he said.

A first-time runner needs those kinds of confidence builders.

“The stage is really big and just the nerves … being anxious about it can play a part,” he said. “But I think Amari is a very grounded and even-emotional person, so I don’t expect the moment to get the best of her.

“She is so detail oriented on how she runs that she will do a good job. Accomplishing this will push her forward with more momentum next year. Proving to herself that she can do it .”