When representatives of The Master’s College first spoke with Saugus runner Karis Frankian, they mistook her for someone else.
“My freshman year, they thought I was (former teammate) Courtney Wilson, so they started talking to me at the state meet,” Frankian laughed.
There’s no mistaking the senior now. There’s no mistaking the importance of her commitment to the rising program, either.
Frankian, one of the most decorated prep runners in the history of the Santa Clarita Valley, committed to The Master’s College this weekend. The school will hold a formal signing ceremony later this week.
Frankian said she had offers from Arizona State, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Lipscomb University (Tenn.) and UC Santa Barbara — which was her second choice.
In the end, she bypassed the Division I opportunities to stay close to home and help the Mustangs continue their ascent in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
“It was just where my parents and I thought God wanted me to go,” Frankian said. “We thought it was the best place for me to go to college.”
Frankian will join her older sister Micayla, who is a sophomore at TMC. Frankian said that familiarity played a role in her decision, as did the direction of the cross country program.
The Mustangs finished 10th at the NAIA National Cross Country Championships late last November in Vancouver, Wash. TMC finished second in the Golden State Athletic Conference behind national runner-up Azusa Pacific.
With Frankian in the fold, TMC head coach Zach Schroeder hopes to contend for national championships and become the first women’s program in school history to win a GSAC title.
He showed no hesitation when asked if Frankian is the biggest running recruit the school’s ever had.
“Without a doubt,” Schroeder said. “You’d be hard-pressed to find any athlete that has the background that Karis has, period. She’s one of those kids that only comes around once in a lifetime.”
Frankian is one of only three girls in California history to be a part of four state championship cross country teams, along with former teammates Amber Murakami and Kaylin Mahoney. She recorded a top-five individual finish at state three times, peaking at third this past November. That capped a senior season in which she led the underdog Centurions to their unprecedented sixth straight state championship.
Frankian has also made a name for herself on the track. She’s been a top-five finisher in the 3,200-meter race at the CIF-Southern Section Division II finals each of the past three years, and she’s made two trips to the state meet in the event.
Schroeder is hopeful that other top prep runners will take note of Frankian’s decision, watch her progress and look at The Master’s College differently than before.
“I’m really excited,” Frankian said. “I kind of know the girls. I can’t wait to start running with them and live with them on campus, and I hope we’ll make it to nationals again this year.”
