Valerie Lastra TFRRS Profile
AWARDS AND HONORS
2025-26 CUSA Commissioner's Academic Medal
2025-26 CUSA Commissioner's Honor Roll
2025 XC All-Conference Second Team
3x CUSA Cross Country Athlete of the Week (October 18, 2022, October 3, 2023, September 30, 2025)
2024 Indoor All-CUSA First Team (Mile-Gold Medalist)
2024 Indoor All-CUSA Second Team (3k-Silver Medalist)
2024 Outdoor All-CUSA Second Team (1500-Silver Medalist)
2023 All-CUSA Third Team (Cross Country)
2022 All-Academic Team (Cross Country)
2022 All-CUSA Second Team (Cross Country)
2023 All-CUSA Second Team (Cross Country)Â
2025-26 (Graduate): Cross Country - Ran in three meets... Was the top Panther finisher and ninth place overall at the CUSA XC Championships (20:45.6), earning All-Conference Second Team... Placed 54th at NCAA Regionals.
2024-25 (Senior): Cross Country - Ran in three meets... Won the Ave Maria Invitational. Indoor - Competed in three events... Placed fourth in the distance medley relay at CUSA Indoors. Outdoor - Competed in four events... Set a PR in the 5K at the Florida Relays with a time of 16:40.38, placing second... Made it to the finals in the 1500m at CUSA Outdoors.
2023-24 (Junior): Cross Country - Began her FIU career in impressive fashion by posting a PR of 17:30 at the FSU Invitational, earning a fifth-place finish and Conference USA Athlete of the Week Honors for her performance...placed 16th at the Alabama Crimson Classic...Placed 15th at the Conference USA Outdoor Championships, helping guide FIU to a fourth-place team finish...set a 6K PR at the NCAA South Regional Championships, running 20:07 to place 46th. Indoor: Opened the season with a first place finish in the 3000m at the RADD Track and Field Invitational, clocking in at 9:33.07... placed first in the 800m with a time of 2:10.60 and second in the mile with a time of 4:39.52 at the Scarlet Knight Open... placed third in the mile at the Music City Challenge, finishing in 4:38.46... secured first place in the mile with a time of 4:39.98, and second in the 3000m with a time of 9:36.43, and fourth in the DMR with a time of 11:49.62 at the Conference USA Indoor Track & Field Championship. Outdoor: Placed fifth in the 1500m at the Pepsi Florida Relays with a time of 4:21.35... finished 93rd in the 1500m at the Bryan Clay Invitational with a time of 4:22.90... secured first place in the 1500m with a time of 4:23.95 and fifth in the 800m with a time of 2:09.01 at the East Coast Relays... finished fourth in the 1500m with a time of 4:44.98 in the prelims and second with a time of 4:27.81 in the finals at the Conference USA Outdoor Championships.
2021-22 (at UCF):Â Placed 5th at the UF Mountain Dew Invite and UCF Cross Country Invite... Earned an 8th place finish at the American Conference Championships... Placed 7th in the finals of the 1500 at the American Outdoor ChampionshipsÂ
2020-21 (at UCF):Â 2020-21 American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year... In her first collegiate race, won the UCF Cross Country Invite and set the freshman 5K record with a time of 17:43.6 (1/23... Posted the fastest time by a freshman at the conference meet since 2017, finishing fourth overall in 21:10.55... Earned all-conference accolades and became the first Knight to earn Freshman of the Year in The America... In just two meets, Lastra broke Anne-Marie Blaney's freshman 5K and 6K records... Fourth-place finish was the best conference debut by a Knight
HIGH SCHOOL: Two-time cross country All-American and qualifier for the Foot Locker Cross Country Nationals... Set the Apalachee Regional Park course record (17:17.58) in 2018... Won back-to-back 3A cross country state titles... As a freshman, won the AAU Nationals cross country meet... Finished second at the cross country state championship as an eighth grader... Graduated Cum Laude and top of her class in dual enrollment macro and micro economics... Silver Knight nominee... Member of the Art Honor Society and National Honor Society
Personal: Majoring in Electrical Engineering
