Yes. My memory however when our daughter was being recruited

Was that the times from sophomore year were important because the athletic departments at the most academically elite universities wanted her in "athletes of interest" queue very early. So she was fielding a lot of calls and visits early ... Whenever it was that the coaches were allowed to talk to the students.

I'm a former admissions officer, and my take on it at the time was that it was helpful for the athletic department in the relationship with the admissions office. And the coaches all seem pretty keen on fixing her interest early that year. She had a couple universities that asked her to apply early admit with the idea that they would be able to make sure she was admitted. She opted not to do that because it was too much pressure too early. She was a very good student, But I'm guessing admission at the most elite universities would have been a long shot without the athletic talent.

Maybe I'm overthinking the situation based on that... The wonderful thing about track is it's a number in a box.
🙂