Watch Annie Hill win the NXN Northwest Regional.
The Darkhorses
Grace Ping | Utah | EIGHTH GRADE
Saucony Flo50 Ranking: #9
The middle school phenom most recently added an age 13 world record for road 5K to her resume by clocking 16:36 at the Silicon Valley Turkey Trot. She took fourth at NXN Southwest behind Oakley, Schadler and Lauren Gregory, but that was also her first race in a few months as middle schoolers aren't allowed to compete against high schoolers in the state of Utah. Ping, who lived in Minnesota last year, placed 14th at NXN in 2015 and was runner-up to Weini Kelati at the New Balance Nationals Outdoor 2 mile. Anything is possible for this fearless young star -- especially now that she's allowed to race.
Annie Hill | Glacier, MT | JUNIOR
Saucony Flo50 Ranking: #7
The two-time NXN Northwest Region champion has had an up-and-down cross country season this fall. She ran three races under 17 minutes for three miles, but also faded to 12th in 18:13 at the Mountain West Classic and seventh in 17:36 at the Montana State Championships -- both times behind Tiahna Vladic of Billings High. Hill recovered from state to set a new meet record of 17:22 at the NXN Northwest Regional and for the first time in her career, will compete at NXN this weekend instead of Foot Locker South. If the good Annie shows up, she'll be in the mix.
Annie Hill talks about winning NXN Northwest after a challenging season: