Can Carter Blunt Challenge Drew Hunter At Foot Locker South?

Foot Locker Nationals 2015

Nov 24, 2015

Nevada Mareno (blue singlet) is red-hot after her first summer of training for cross country. How close can she run to Weini Kelati (pink singlet), the No. 1 ranked runner in the nation?

Girls Race Preview

Entries

Flo50 Individuals: No. 1 Weini Kelati, No. 4 Nevada Mareno, No. 12 Julia Heymach, Bubble Ashton Endsley, Bubble Abby Gray, Bubble Lindsay Billings

Top Returners (2014 regional placement): Libby Davidson (4th), Amaris Tyynismaa (1st, 13-14 Girls, 16:57), Weini Kelati (5th), Emma Grace Hurley (7th), Logan Morris (9th), Abby Gray (10th), Lindsay Billings (11th), Brianna Wolken (15th), Savannah Carnahan (18th), Blair Ramsey (19th)

When the gun goes off on Saturday, all eyes will be on Weini Kelati: does she dare take the field out with a sub-five minute mile, as she did at the Oatlands Invitational?

And, if she does, is anyone fit and/or crazy enough to keep pace?

A few weeks ago, I would have likely said 'no.' But that was before Leesville Road High School's Nevada Mareno, the defending national indoor mile champion (who has never raced outdoor track!), laid down a solo 10:02 3200m in her first-ever attempt at the distance last weekend. The run was only an afternoon removed from a 4:43 mile win over another former North Carolina prep national champ, NC State's Wesley Frazier.

November is not typically the time to press for quick track times. But Ryen Frazier, Wesley's younger sister, used the same races as tune-ups last year (albeit in 4:44/10:12) and went on to take runner-up honors at Foot Locker Nationals. Coincidence, no?

She'll have a solid measuring stick for nationals in Kelati, who is the nation's No. 1 ranked star for a reason. The Heritage, Va. sophomore has decimated her competition all year and raced a personal best of 16:29 for 5K. Remember, this is a girl who ran 9:12 for 3K at World Juniors in 2014 - that converts to 9:52 for 3200m. The Eritrean native is reportedly going after a sub-16 minute clocking at the notoriously fast McAlpine Park course.

What of the rest? The South girls won the regional team competition at Foot Locker Nationals in 2014 with just three seniors, making this perhaps the toughest region from which to advance.

The top two returners in Paige Hofstad and Gabby Karas are both out for the season with injury. No. 3 returner Libby Davidson is not in the form that we saw from her in 2014, though she ran within 30 seconds of Kelati at the Virginia state meet.

The top four girls ran sub-17 last year, as did Amaris Tyynismaa to win the Girls 13-14 division, though the eighth-grader was too young to advance to San Diego. The Montgomery Catholic, Ala. star does not look to be in 16:57 form again, but she remains an X-factor to qualify.

The 1-2 Texas duo of Ashton Endsley and Abby Gray from last weekend's NXN South Regional are doubling up here with good shots to advance, though the Lone Star state favorite must be No. 12 ranked Julia Heymach. The Houston Lamar junior placed 16th at NXN last fall but really ran into the spotlight this spring with a 10:14/4:40 double at the Texas state meet. She is lightly raced this fall and could contend for the top prize herself.

Bubble individual Lindsay Billings was the first girl out in 2014, but looks ready to qualify for the first time in her final prep season. Her only loss this fall is to fellow Georgian Savannah Carnahan, who is also a top 10 returner, though that was at a mid-season race and Billings went on to win the 5A state title by 42 seconds. Running just behind those two all season is sophomore Kaylee DuPont, Carnahan's teammate at South Forsyth High School, who has steadily improved throughout the fall and placed 21st as a freshman in the Seeded Girls race here last year.

No. 5 returner Logan Morris, ninth at Foot Locker South and 32nd at Nationals last year, has quietly won races in South Carolina all fall. The consistent 17-minute 5K runner is undefeated this season and has PRed on nearly every course.

PICKS: 1. Weini Kelati 2. Nevada Mareno 3. Julia Heymach 4. Ashton Endsley 5. Libby Davidson 6. Abby Gray 7. Lindsay Billings 8. Logan Morris 9. Amaris Tyynismaa 10. Savannah Carnahan

Read the Boys Preview