Born to run? It would sure seem so. 

Senior Parker Wolfe is dominating this cross country season, setting a state record in the 5K on Saturday, September 12th, when he won the Heritage Distance Classic on the Liberty Bell Course, running an blisteringly fast 14 minutes 30 seconds. 

Dig a little deeper, and you’ll find that Wolfe was indeed born to run… and fast.

“It’s definitely genetics,” Wolfe said. “I would never be able to run without my mom’s genetics.”

If you found yourself on CSU’s campus back in 1993, you would hear about Wolfe’s mom, Debbie Maass, CSU’s female Athlete of the Year who earned All-American Honors in the mile run for track with a 4 minute 45 second mile. 

Parker Wolfe’s sister, freshman Baylor Wolfe, an up-and-coming member of Creek’s cross country program, won the JV Bruins 5K on September 5th. Baylor Wolfe has nothing but high praise for her older brother, and when he won the Heritage Distance Classic, she was definitely there for it.

“I was trying to run around to see as many places as I could to watch him run,” she said. “It was really cool to see his time, and I was amazed by it because I can’t even imagine running that fast, so I was really, really excited and happy for him.”

The Liberty Bell Course is mostly flat and ends with a mile-long downhill-stretch on asphalt. When Wolfe reached this point, knowing he was hitting his pace, he really started thinking about the state record, which he knew was 14 minutes 38 seconds, set by Cole Sprout in 2019.

“I started kicking it as hard as I could because I knew I was really close to [the record],” Wolfe said. “And then once I got close enough to the finish line, I just coasted in, because I knew I was fast enough to break it.”

Maybe Wolfe got his speed from his mom, but Head Coach Ethan Dusto doesn’t think it’s all genetics, and he is very impressed by Wolfe’s work ethic.

“Parker has a lot of talent, but he is an extremely hard worker,” Dusto said. “To be a successful runner, you need to find a balance between what your goals are as an athlete, what kind of punishment your body can handle, and what you can mentally sustain. He has done an excellent job of finding this balance and taking his training seriously.”

Wolfe plans to continue his record breaking success through the State Championship in Colorado Springs, where he hopes to win an individual title and break the course record of 15 minutes 12 seconds, also set by Cole Sprout in 2019.

Most of Colorado’s high school running talent graduated last year, leaving Wolfe in a great place to bring home some hardware to Creek before he continues his running career next fall at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Wolfe recognizes his elite abilities compared to other runners in Colorado.

“I’m kind of the only one left in the state in 5A in terms of good competition,” he said. 

But Wolfe knows that cross country is ultimately a team sport, and he wants to see the team succeed after the disappointment of missing state in both his sophomore and junior year.

“My bigger goal is hoping the team does well, so I’m hoping that we can place top five at state.”