Zane Lipsky is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication student assigned to cover Paradise Valley High School for AZPreps365.com.

GILBERT — Julia Zhang won the individual title at the AIA Division II East Sectional cross country meet on Thursday as two Paradise Valley freshmen finished in the top 10. 

The race at Crossroads Park was unusually fast, as 34 of the 73 competitors recorded a personal record, while five more completed a season’s best time. 

With the top seven individual athletes advancing to the state championship meet on Nov. 15, competition was especially fierce, and with nearly everyone running much quicker than usual, racing strategy became all the more paramount. 

Zhang, a sophomore competing for Desert Mountain, won the individual race with a time of 22 minutes, 19.8 seconds. She was closely followed by her teammate, senior Mai Piel, who finished less than a second later in 22:20.7.

Julia Dakroub and Sara Suresh, Paradise Valley’s star freshmen duo, finished fifth and ninth, respectively, and both set PRs. Since she finished inside the top seven, Dakroub advanced to the state meet as Paradise Valley’s lone female representative. 

Though both runners raced incredibly well, Dakroub in particular had an outstanding showing, as her thrilling 22:59.8 finish eclipsed her previous PR by almost a minute, leading to her first sub-23 time. 

“I am genuinely surprised — not going to lie,” Dakroub said about her performance. 

Though talented, her last couple races had seen her struggle with starting out too quickly and burning out over the course of some especially brutal hills marking the previous two courses. 

For sectionals, on the other hand, Dakroub was nearly perfect. Starting out a bit more measured compared to recent races, she cruised through the first mile, not making a move until about 10 minutes into the race.

Once settled, however, Dakroub was relentless along the back half of the course. Attacking downhills and quickening her turnover led to her passing nearly half a dozen runners over the last mile of the race, and she now carries incredible momentum heading into what is so far the biggest meet of her career. 

Racing in spite of a brutal illness that had left her unable to attend school for practically the full week leading up to the meet, Suresh was excellent in her own right. Her time of 23:51.1 eclipsed her prior best by three seconds. She maintained her racing composure good enough in spite of her illness that she managed to outkick Vista Grande senior Anaya Carrillo to cement her spot in the top 10, winning by just half a second. 

“If I didn’t have sectionals today, I’d be home sleeping,” Suresh said. 

Though her season is over, her high school career has gotten off to an incredible start. Suresh said the duo of Suresh and Dakroub will be back even better for the 2026 season. 

“Next year, I’m going to qualify for state,” Suresh said. “Me and Julia are going to do a lot better, and then we’ll make it to state together.” 

Though remarkable, Dakroub and Suresh racing their best in the biggest meet of the year didn’t shock many who have watched them race

“I wasn’t surprised that they did so well because they were so dedicated to do their best, even at the race today prior to them competing,” said Paradise Valley coach Annie Butterfield.