As the 2022 season begins for the Mehlville girls cross country team, the Panthers are looking to its diverse team members to bring success to this year’s squad.

“We had a huge turnout,” Mehlville head coach Erin Rekosh said. “It’s really exciting with the huge spread of girls that we have on the team that have diverse interests. We have swimmers, triathletes and they all have different strengths that they bring to the team which is awesome.”

Junior Amy Escamilla returns to the Panther’s lineup this season as their top runner after a successful sophomore campaign.

“Amy has shown steady improvement in the offseason,” Rekosh said. “She’s a lot stronger, her speed has gotten better and see her medaling a lot this season.”

Sophomore Allison Miller will use her experience as a seasoned triathlete to be more than competitive for the 2022 school year.

“Allison is an extremely strong competitor,” Rehosh said. “She’s a very well rounded athlete that’s very driven.”

Another sophomore that could make some noise in the Panther’s line this year is Kayla Barrett.

“We call Kayla our little sniper,” Rekosh said. “In the last half mile of every race, she comes out like a torpedo and passes everyone. She came out of nowhere last year and just killed it.”

Natalie O’Brien is another second year runner that has made significant strides in the offseason. 

“Natalie is a good athlete that’s made huge improvements from last year,” Rekosh said. “We’re really looking for her to step up her game this season.”

The Panthers open up the 2022 season at the Fleet Feet Classic Tuesday, Aug. 30 at Arnold City Park with a 5 p.m. start time.