The 5-foot-11, 155-pound junior won the Class A state meet this past season with a time of 15:37.67, breaking the tape 55.09 seconds ahead of his next-closest competitor and leading the Trojans to a second-place finish as a team. Peters finished 31st at the Nike Cross Nationals Heartland Regional championships and placed 32nd at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional championships. He was undefeated against in-state competition and recorded the fastest prep time of the year with his first-place finish at the Lennox Invitational in 14:57.18.
Peters has maintained a 4.0 GPA in the classroom and ranks No. 1 in his class. He will begin his senior year of high school this fall.
A drum major for the West Central Marching Band and a trombone player in the West Central Concert and Jazz bands, Peters has volunteered locally as a youth soccer referee. "Even though we had a very talented team this year, every time we raced against Derick Peters, he was the one who stole the show," said Luke Vander Leest, head coach of Sioux Falls Christian High. "We expected him to be one of the top runners in our conference, but he far exceeded the expectations that many of us had."
