Recent Knoxville Catholic High School graduate and running standout Callie Grace Tucker received the 2020 female High School Athlete of the Year Award from the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame.
She joins KCHS runner Jake Renfree, the 2019 boys winner, in earning the honor. Callie received the award in a virtual ceremony July 21.
Callie has received numerous accolades for her performances in cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track. She was All-State in cross country in 2016, 2018, and 2019, winning an individual cross-country state championship in 2019, the first individual girls state title for KCHS since 2011.
In 2019, she was also named to the All-South Team at the Footlocker Cross Country Championship race. For indoor track, Callie was All-State in the 2-mile in 2018, 2019, and 2020. She also qualified for the New Balance Nationals Indoor in New York City in the 5K championship race in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020. In addition, she qualified in 2019 for the New Balance Nationals Indoor meet in New York City in the 2-mile Emerging Elite race.
During the 2020 indoor season, Callie broke the KCHS record for the 1-mile (4 minutes, 57 seconds) and the 800-meter run (2:20). She ran her personal best in the 3,200 run in March 2020 with a 10:37 mark, breaking the school record and currently ranking fifth in the nation by U.S. Milesplit.com.
In 2018, Callie won a state championship as a member of the 3,200 relay team in the large school division, which posted a 9:19 mark and set a school record. This team was also named the No. 1 relay team in Tennessee in the last decade.
Callie was named All-Metro in cross country and track in 2018 and 2019. She was nominated for the Knoxville News Sentinel’s PrepXtra runner of the year in the same two seasons. She was the Knoxville Interscholastic League’s cross country and track champion for 2018 and 2019. She won the Music City Invitational indoor title in the 2-mile and finished runner-up in the 1-mile. She is a nationally ranked distance runner.
In academics, Callie compiled a 4.45 GPA in her senior year. She made the President’s List for two years and the honor roll all four years. She is a member of Mu Alpha Theta, the Spanish Honor Society, and the National Honor Society, and she has been named a WBIR-TV Scholar of the Week.
She volunteers as a coach of youth track for the Knoxville Youth Athletics summer program and is an active volunteer at East Tennessee Children’s Hospital in Knoxville. She is a member of the Youth Leadership Knoxville class of 2018 and has served as president of the “IrishThon” dance marathon to raise money for Children’s Hospital.
Callie has signed with the University of Tennessee in cross country and track.