With 15 of the MileSplit Foot Locker National Power Ranking athletes competing this past weekend, and with all of them winning, few changes took place in this week's rankings. However, a few performances really stood out, thus raising an athletes ranking.
With most of the top teams winning this weekend, little movement occurred on the Oct. 30 installement of the MileSplit National Team Power Rankings. However, US #10 Wheaton North boys and US #8 Fort Collins girls both lost, with Murrieta Valley (CA) and Dakota Ridge (CO) taking their spots in this week's rankings.
Numerous state meets took place all around the country this weekend. Great results came from all around. Check out what happened in each state. Highlights and results are posted for CO, IA, ID, IN, ME, NCISAA, ND, NH, VT and WI.
With many top teams competing at conference or state-series meets, 17 of the 20 ranked teams showed results. Boys US #1 Albuquerque Academy won a clash of New Mexico titans, as they beat US #9 Los Alamos at the Los Alamos Invitational, while Girls US #1 Fayetteville-Manlius had the weekend off. See how everyone else competed.
The majority of ranked individuals competed this weekend, as conference and state-series races took place in full force. Kevin Williams won the Colorado State title, while Georgia Griffin (New Hampshire) and Katie Flood (Iowa) won their respsective state titles as well.
The Los Alamos Invitational showcased the top talent in New Mexico Friday evening. The boys varsity race became the main attraction, as US #1 Albuquerque Academy beat US #9 Los Alamos in a very tight battle 38-45. Alb. Acad. senior Ben Johnson won by 42 seconds, showing his Foot Locker potential. On the girls side, US #3 Eldorado showed why they are ranked so high, winning the team title by 45 points.
Over a dozen state meets take place this weekend around the nation. MileSplit brings you the most comprehensive coverage of those meets and an array of other top meets, including a fair share of state qualifying meets. All weekend long we'll be providing updates, so make sure to keep checking back.
Coverage this weekend includes numerous state series across the land, including many that the MileSplit Nation will cover. This is the most exciting time of year for cross country fans, so soak up the coverage.
District coverage posted: 20 Race Videos from D 1, 2, 3, 4, 11 | 6 Photo Galleries from D 1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 11 | 9 Interviews from D 1, 2, 4, 11Links to right or with each meet below Sun: District 3 - Spence, McNally (in photo by Tim O'Dowd), Northern, Cedar Crest win for AAA. Millhouse, Beveridge, York Suburban, Lancaster Mennonite win for AA. Sat: District 6 - Carly Seymour resets her course record to 17:39 and leads her team to states. State College girls and Altoona boys in AAA. District 10 - McLane boys nip North East. Union City takes AA Girls. Lauren Zerger 19:10. PCL - LaSalle boys repeat. Cardinal O'Hara girls four-peat on tie-breaker with Carroll. PA Indep. Schools - Germantown Friends sweeps, the boys with just 24 points. Fri: District 1 - North Penn comfortable win with 92 pts. Henderson sweeps AAA individual titles as Chris Aldrich and Carly Hamond run 15:02 and 18"06. Council Rock North girls. St. Basil wins AA by 6 over Christopher Dock - Steph Fulmer, Piux X 18:21. Phil-Mont Christian by 7 over Jenkintown in boys AA. Thur: District 7 - North Allegheny's guys and the Latrobe girls captured WPIALs. Individual titles went to David Adley, Baldwin (16:02) and Natalie Bower, Latrobe (18:51) in AAA, and Kacey Gibson, Neshannock (18:14), and Jonathan McElwain, Riverside (16:42). District 4 - AA Boys: 6th man Justin Rupert led Wellsboro to a come from behind win. They were in 4th with a half mile to go. Garth Watson, Canton, leads from gun. 1st & 3rd Casey & Kiah lead Lewisburg to AA girls title. Shikellamy sweeps AAA - boys in big upset of Jersey Shore by 4. District 11 - Liberty sweeps AAA individual titles and wins boys race and 2nd in girls. Emmaus girls :28 spread win with 32 points. Tamaqua wins team and individual titles in AA boys. Allison Constant, Notre Dame Green Pond, Saucon Valley in AA girls. Philadelphia Public League Champs - Records fall as weather turns cool, Jenna Arnold 19:05, Terrence Lee 16:02. Wed: District 2 - AAA Boys: Abington Heights, Anthony Rizzo, Crestwood 16:54 / AAA Girls: Honesdale, Kristin Schafer, Crestwood 19:57 / AA Boys: Scranton Prep-Holy Redeemer, Elk Lake Alec Richardson 17:12 / AA Girls: Elk Lake-Blue Ridge & Scranton Prep Alyssa Namey 19:56. District 5 - Chestnut Ridge girls 32-37 over Bedford. Teams reversed but score the same for boys.
Very little movement took place in this week's MileSplit National Team Power Rankings. With most teams either not competing, or going against lesser competition, few squads moved very far from where they were ranked in the prior set of rankings.
With dozens of state meets happening over the next two weeks, upsets are bound to occur. This week, little change took place in the rankings, however new #1 rankings for both boys and girls took place in the MileSplit US National Foot Locker Power Rankings. Luke Puskedra (UT) and Jordan Hasay (CA) took over the top spots after their stellar performances.
Chris Derrick, the senior star from Neuqua Valley (IL) who is ranked #2 in our current MileSplit Foot Locker National Power Rankings, remains undefeated as the regular season nears its completion in Illinois. Chris, who broke no less than six course records thus far, is the obvious favorite to win the Illinois state cross country title. Check out Chris' second journal entry of the year, where he writes about his conference and regional meets, as well as other thoughts on his team.
As the state series meets fall upon us, many of the top harriers in the land ran easy this past weekend, if at all. The one state champion crowned, US #2 Luke Puskedra, ran away to a meet record at the Utah State Cross Country Championships. While Puskedra kicked it to another gear, many others did as well.
With eight out of the top ten boys teams competing this past weekend, and eight of the top ten girls teams, a lot of great team performances occurred throughout the country. The top performance of the weekend came from the US #10 Yankton girls team, winning their state meet in convincing fashion. See how the top teams fared.
While Alaska's state championships took place a few weeks ago, the first set of state meets occured this weekend. Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, the small classes of Oklahoma and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan all competed in their final in-state competition of the year. Check inside for more details.
Mt. SAC hosted some of the top talent along the West Coast Friday and Saturday. The key races came Saturday in the Super Sweepstakes. The girls race shined as the brightest race of the day, where US #3 Saugus (CA) and US #5 Carondelet (CA) went head-to-head. Saugus proved they are one of the best in the land, if not the best, as they scored a mere 62 points. Jordan Hasay (Jr., Mission Prep, CA) lit up the individual race, winning by 23 seconds in 16:42.
With nearly a half dozen state meets taking place, and an infinite supply of conference and state series meets, the primary coverage this week highlights late season results. The weekend kicked-off with the state meet in Nebraska. See what followed...
The Nebraska State Cross Country Championships took place Friday night, and the big winners came as no surprise. In the Girls A Race, defending champion Emily Sisson (So., Millard North) won another state championship, while her old team, Omaha Marian, won the team title. On the boys side, Jon Ronhovde (Sr., Fremont) won the Boys A Race in the fastest time of the meet, 16:11, while Omaha Benson used a talented top three to win the team title.
Some of the top teams and individuals travel to the Mt. SAC Invitational this weekend. Over the course of Friday and Saturday the best of California and the Southwest match-up to see who is tops. The Girls Super Sweepstakes highlights the field, as three '06 Foot Locker finalists, Jordan Hasay (Jr., Mission Prep, CA), Jessica Tonn (So., Xavier Prep, AZ) and Kauren Tarver (Sr., Serrano, CA), go head-to-head, along with US #3 Saugus and US #5 Carondelet.
With a few state meets and many conference/state series meets taking place this weekend, the MileSplit Network covers more than half a dozen meets. See if we'll be near you!
Luke Puskedra (Sr., Judge Memorial, UT) won the Utah State Cross Country Championships Wednesday in record time, as the snow fell on the state course. Puskedra blew away the field, running 14:54.6 to repeat as 3A boys champion. Ogden easily won the boys team title, placing three in the top ten, while Cedar beat Judge Memorial on a sixth-person tie-breaker for the girls 3A team title, in the most exciting girls race of the day.
(Photo By Thomas Rizzo)Usually running 9:07 as a junior would earn a runner national acclaim. However, Tom Achtein (Sr., York, IL) continues to fly under the radar despite running under 9:10 twice last spring and leading his team to another Nike Team National birth last fall (plus another state cross country title). This year, Achtein looks to add his name to the historic York record books, as he reaches for the next level in his final high school year.
The Kentucky Track & Cross Country Association is proud to announce it will be hosting the inaugural Cross Country Coaches National Youth Championships at Masterson Station Park in Lexington, Kentucky, Saturday, December 1. This is a new national meet open to athletes across the country.
While few top individuals lost this past weekend, a few did, thus lifting a few fresh faces into the MileSplit Foot Locker Power Rankings - National. Three new faces grace the rankings this week in: Rob Finnerty (Sr., Burnsville, MN), Georgia Griffin (Sr., Hanover, NH) and Kathy Kroeger (Jr., Independence, TN). Also, a new girls US #1 is crowned.
Five new teams enter the MileSplit National Team Power Rankings this week. Saratoga Springs (NY), Fort Collins (CO) and Greenwich (NY) enter the girls rankings, while Los Alamos (NM) and North Penn (PA) enter the boys rankings. With conference and state series meets ahead, a lot more movement may occur over the coming week.
The New York Federations meet, set for Saturday November 17th at Bowdoin Park, Wappingers Falls, NY, is no longer the qualifying meet for New York teams to the Nike Team Nationals (NTN). Qualifying meet moving to the November 24th.
Rob Finnerty (Sr., Burnsville, MN) burst onto the national running scene his freshman year of high school, taking second in the Minnesota State Cross Country Championships, and winning the 1600 (4:16) and 3200 (9:06) meter runs in track. While a series of injuries slowed down Rob's rise to stardom, the boy wonder is now a matured veteran, healthy and rolling through his senior cross country season. Read what Rob's thoughts are on his current season, progression since his stellar freshman year and much more.
Many of the top girls east of the Mississippi faced off at either the Manhattan Invitational or the Great American XC Festival. Whlie a lot was shown at those meets, most of the nation's best kept on winning, as the high school regular season nears the final month of competition.
While the national focus pointed at the Manhattan Invitational and Great American Cross Country Festival, many teams competed elsewhere this past weekend. US #1 Fayetteville-Manlius girls won the Manhattan Invitational over two US ranked squads, while US #3 Midlothian and US #5 Burnt-Hills lost. On the boys side, US #3 Danbury proved victorious at Manhattan, while US #10 Naperville North lost their conference meet. See what took place amongst the best in the land.
Around the country we go, where the best in some states are starting to square off in conference and state series action, while packs of the top teams and individuals come together at the Manhattan Invitational and Great American XC Festival. See the highlights from this weekend in MileSplit's "Running Around the Nation."
Seymour Breaks Vanny Record - 13:55.3Fayetteville Manlius girls win Eastern States ChampionshipsNorth Penn, PA boys have best 5 man average of the day - 12:57.1VIDEOS Girls EasternsBoys D - North Penn, PA Boys F - Brian Leung 12:17.9 Girls D - Jillian Smith 14:33.9Carly Seymour InterviewCoach Randy Wilson InterviewVideo from the other 10 varsity races to follow2500 PICTURES POSTEDGalleries HereWinners Table - Pics of ALL 38 WINNERSMeet RESULTS hereSubmit your TEAM AVERAGE here photo above by wingedfootfotos.com
Carly Seymour entered this season intent on returning to the Footlocker Nationals, and after her impressive run this weekend she just may be a favorite to win it all. Seymour beat 3 returning Footlocker Finalists en route to her course record run of 13:55.7 on the 2.5 mile layout. The previous course record was 13:57 by Nicole Blood, Saratoga Springs.In the boys Varsity B race North Penn took home the win with 44 points. They also achieved the fastest team average of all the races with a 12:57.1.
Fayetteville Manlius (NY) girls win the Eastern States ChampionshipNorth Penn (PA) boys with the fastest team average of the day - 12:54.5
Two US ranked boys runners took to the fields at the Manhattan Invitational. US #4 Brandon Jarrett (Sr., St. Benedict's, NJ) and US #8 Doug Smith (Jr., Gill-St. Bernard's, NJ) toed the line, and ran stride for stride for much of the first half in the race. However, Jarrett dropped out, and Smith went on to win easily over the 2.5 mile course. More to come on the Manhattan Invitational. Keep checking back.
Can Ashley Brasovan (Jr., Wellington, FL) run much faster than she has been? An incredible 17:06 5k effort, beat one of the best fields assembled in the country this year, earned Brasovan the individual title at the Great American XC Festival in Alabama. Brasovan ran a monster last mile to beat defending national champion Kathy Kroeger (Jr., Independence, TN) by well over half a minute. In the boys race, Sean Keveren (Sr., Brentwood, TN) ran strong and even, taking the boys title in commanding fashion.
For nearly a decade, the Great American Cross Country Festival has hosted many of the top teams and individuals from around the country, in a series of races that are meant to be some of the best in the land. This year, Great American highlights many of the best teams in the South and Southeast. The top race, the Nike Race of Champions - Girls 5k, brings together over a half dozen Foot Locker hopefuls, and four teams hoping to qualify for Nike Team Nationals. The weekend once again is a major national meet.
With many conference and state series meets starting to creep up on the schedule, the MileSplit Network takes to the courses for this weekend's action. The highlight meet of the weekend is the Manhattan Invitational, where we have a huge staff covering the meet.
No meet is bigger this weekend than the Manhattan Invitational in New York. Teams from all along the eastern seaboard come together this glorious weekend to race in the most historic of cross country meets. The Girls Eastern States Preview highlights the best field assembled all year outside Nike Team Nationals, with a combined 22 national ranked or state ranked squads, and a slew of top individual talent. Check out the happenings of this weekend's competition.
Over the past year, Chris Derrick's (Sr., Neuqua Valley, IL) transformation from very good runner to great runner has sparked conversation implying Chris could be this year's Foot Locker National Champion. Always a big meet performer, Chris ran 8:54 last year in an amazing 3200m state championship race, where he nearly beat one of the nation's best in Evan Jager. For some, this signified his entry into national elite status. This fall, Chris has stepped up one more level, breaking numerous course records, leading his US ranked squad to an undefeated season, and showing he is perhaps the best harrier in the land. Over the course of the rest of the fall, Chris has been so kind to agree to keep a journal for MileSplit US. Keep checking back from time to time for new installments of Chris' journal, and how he and his team are doing.
With many of the top individuals not competing this past weekend, or running in smaller invitationals, few changes occurred on this week's top ten lists. However, one newcomer jumps onto the list. Peter Dorrell (Sr., Blacksburg, VA) moves to #10 on the boys side.
While most of the top teams in the country won their weekend meets outright, or didn't compete, a few changes are made to this week's top ten rankings. Three boys teams move out, while Loyola (CA), Naperville North (IL) and Brookline (MA) move in. On the girls side, Saugus (CA) moves up a spot after an impressive Clovis Invitational performance.
While it seems nearly all the top girls teams in the nation were idle this past weekend, the boys and girls teams that did compete did quite well. Boys US #1 Albuquerque Academy easily won their city championships, while girls US #5 Saugus (CA) and US #6 Carondelet both won their respective divisions at the Clovis Invitational. See how the rest of the top ten fared.
While many of the top ranked athletes took the weekend off to rest up for the bigger meets ahead, a few ran excellent in the races they ran. Colby Lowe (Sr., Southlake Carroll, TX) captured a big win at the Nike South Invitational, while Jordan Hasay (So., Mission Prep, CA) continues to get in shape, winning the Clovis Invitational in 17:23.
A local athlete’s long-running dream of making the Olympics took a giant stride forward on Sunday when Mike Cox took eighth place overall — and finished with the best time of any American runner — in a sweltering-hot Chicago Marathon. (Read on)By Tom Bone of the Register-Herald Editor's comment:Here are the splits for Coach Cox:5K: 16:33, 10K: 32:57, 15K 49:32, 20K: 1:06.09, Half: 1:09.48,25K: 1:22.42, 30K 1:39.20, 35K 1:56.35, 40K: 2:14.08, Finish: 2:21.42Coach, You made all of us proud. - Daddy Doug
The stakes were high Saturday in Charlotte, North Carolina, as many of the best runners and teams in the region matched-up at the Wendy's Invitational. For quite a while now, Wendy's marks the near completion of the regular season, as the post-season/state series meets start. The match-up of the day pit Griff Graves v. Ryan Hill, in a great dual between two Foot Locker finalists. Read what took place.
While few major invitationals took place this weekend, the ones that did take place were mighty intense, and featured some amazing results. Key weekend match-ups set the tone for the rest of the season, as conference and state-series action starts to occur next weekend.
Many of the top teams around Florida, a few others from out of state, took to the courses Friday night and Saturday morning at the flrunners.com Invitational 8 Presented by Nike. The race of the meet took place in the Girls Race of Champions on Saturday morning, where Florida favorite Episcopal beat Maryland powerhouse Eleanor Roosevelt, taking home the team title.
The 4th ranked Cedar Park Boys team put 5 runners in the top 27 overall to earn the Nike South Team victory over #1 ranked The Woodlands (3rd 124), Southlake Carroll ranked #3 (4th 159) and #2 Georgetown (5th 163). On the girls side, Kingwood H.S. won the team race over a strong the Woodlands squad, racing to the win in grand fashion.
The best of the South meet up Saturday at the Nike South Invitational, at the Woodlands in Texas. The top four 5A boys teams go head-to-head, as do Rogers (AR) and 4A #1 Seven Lakes. On the girls side, #1 in 4A, Hereford, enters as the favorite, while 5A #3-4, The Woodlands and Kingwood, challenge as well.
Another wonderful weekend of cross country coverage is coming your way. With the season starting to get close to the state-series time, some late regular-season match-ups are happenings. The MileSplit Network is on-site at 14 seperate locations this weekend. Check out where we will be!
Many of the top teams from Florida, and a few more from around the southeast, will compete in the FLRunners.com Invitational 8 Presented by Nike this weekend. FLR8 is one of the largest invitationals in the country this weekend, and will showcase some of the best talent.
Over the course of her junior year, Neely Spence (Sr., Shippensburg, PA) ran with an uncontrollable fire that pushed her to some amazing performances. At Foot Locker Nationals in San Diego, she finished an outstanding eighth place in her first FL Nationals competition. During this past spring, Spence took it to another level, placing second at Nike Outdoor Nationals in the two mile, running 10:20. Spence's goals for her final high school season are impressive, and the road to this point in her running career is an amazing story.
With most of the top teams facing off during the weekend, a few new teams enter the rankings this week with the loses of a few teams. Crater drops slightly on the boys side, nearly losing at the Stanford Invitational, while Eleanor Roosevelt drops out of the girls rankings.
A weekend of top notch action concludes, and the new MileSplit Foot Locker Power Rankings - National (Oct. 2) are now ready. Many of the top ten originals still roam the list, but a few fresh faces enter the mix. The biggest jump on the list is Katie Flood (So., Dowling Catholic, IA), moving from un-ranked to fourth in the country after a huge win over Emily Sisson at the Roy Griak Invitational. Meanwhile, Doug Smith (Jr., Gill-Bernard's, NJ) and Kevin Williams (Sr., D'Evelyn, CO) both enter the boys rankings.
Half of the top ranked individuals in the country competed over the weekend. While few all-stars lined up and raced each other, a few mighty battles insued. US #5 Emily Sisson lost big at the Griak Invitational to Iowa sophomore Katie Flood, while US #9 Mac Fleet showed weakness, taking third at the Jim Danner Invitational. See how the national top ten boys and girls competed this weekend.
Most of the top teams in the country took to the grass fields, as the mid-way points for most teams came and went. US #1 Fayetteville-Manlius showed why they are the top team in the country for girls, as they beat US #4 Burnt Hills at the McQuaid Invitational, while boys US #1 Albuquerque Academy won their home invitational out in New Mexico. Check in to see how all the top teams did.
Around the nation, big meets occurred in every corner of the nation. Big invitationals brought about big surprises and big marks. At the Roy Griak Invitational, U.S. ranked Rosemount (MN) boys faltered, fading to seventh place in the team standings, while in the girls race Katie Flood (IA) beat last year's third place finisher at Foot Locker Nationals, Emily Sisson (NE), by a huge margin. The Roy Griak Invitational exemplified what occurs this time of year. The stars rise to the top, while the pretenders fade away. Check-in for complete weekend coverage of all the top meets.
The NCAA sent out a press release over the past few days announcing that the early signing period for track and field/cross country has been eliminated. While the NCAA did not provide a statement on why it had been eliminated, nevertheless, this is big news for athletes around the country hoping to compete at the DI level.
Two of the biggest meets of the weekend took place on opposite sides of the country. The Stanford Invitational (CA) and the McQuaid Invitational (NY) hosted many of the top teams in the country, and dozens of top individuals. At Stanford, German Fernandez and Crater (OR) highlighted the results, while McQuaid showcased a girls US #1 v. US #4 match-up between Fayetteville-Manlius (NY) and Burnt Hills (NY). What a weekend!
