The 5-foot-6 senior overcame a stress fracture she suffered a year ago to break the tape at the NCHSAA 2A State Championships with a time of 18:03.43, leading the Knights to the state championship as a team. She also finished 20th at the national Foot Locker Cross Country Championships, crossing the line in 18:29.00. A double state track champion in the 1600 and 3200 last spring and Greater Charlotte’s two-time Runner of the Year, Howlett clocked the state’s fastest 5K time among prep girls in 2017 when she finished fourth at the Foot Locker South Regional championships in 17:29.00.
Howlett has maintained an A average in the classroom. She has signed a National Letter of Intent to run cross country on scholarship at North Carolina State University this fall.
A member her church youth group since sixth grade, Howlett has volunteered locally on behalf of Operation Christmas Child and in association with an adopt-a-firehouse initiative. Also a Key Club participant, she has completed a three-week program living and working at Natural Bridge State Park in Virginia, serving as one of 10 girls who helped build and maintain trails, bridges and benches. In addition, Howlett has donated her time to Girls on the Run, a youth-empowerment program rooted in recreational running.
