Christian Groendyk Gatorade 2022 - 2023: Player of the Year Boys Cross Country

“When all was said and done, Christian Groendyk’s legs authored one of the greatest seasons in Colorado history. The Princeton University-bound senior recorded the third-fastest time at the venerable Liberty Bell Invite, won one of the nation’s largest meets—the Desert Twilight Festival in Arizona—and delivered the fastest all-class performance in winning the Class 5A state meet by 10 seconds.”

Rich Gonzalez

PrepCalTrack editor

Athletic Excellence

The 5-foot-7, 135-pound senior raced to victory at the Class 5A State Championships with a time of 15:13.50 this past season, pacing the Lambkins to ninth-place team finish. Groendyk also crossed the line first at four invitationals this past season, including a personal-best clocking of 14:48.0 at the Liberty Bell invite. He capped his campaign with a top-40 finish in the Boys Gold featured race at the Garmin RunningLane Championships in Alabama.

Academic Achievement

Groendyk has maintained a weighted 4.10 GPA in the classroom. He will attend Princeton University this fall, where he will compete in cross country and track.

Exemplary Character

Groendyk has volunteered locally at the Larimer County Food Bank in addition to serving as a youth track coach at the Fort Collins Recreation Center.

Boys Cross Country - Colorado