Top Three Storylines for Girls Foot Locker Finals

Foot Locker Nationals
Kyle Brazeil

Top 3 Storylines To Look For, by Kyle Brazeil


1. A Run Of Their Own.

While much of the seasons' focus has been on the 1-2-3 punch at another National Meet, two names are matched to meet up in another Clash of the Titans.  From the East Coast, you have PA State Champ Senior Tessa Barett.  Not only does she head into the race undefeated, those races haven't even been close.  But like last years Sarah Baxter/Mary Cain matchup at NXN, the West brings a competitor of their own to the challenge.  Makena Morley of Bigfork, MT was equally undefeated by similar margins.  That is, until she met up with Alexa Efraimson at NXN Northwest.  Surprisingly, the eventual NXN Champion was followed closely by Morley at their regional, only eight seconds back.  That means that these two should separate early, and turn a National Championship into a duel meet.


2. The Unknown Factor.

Two other athletes enter the race as the unknowns.  Both Anoush Shededah of MA, and Stephanie Jenks of IA took non-traditional paths to their regional qualifier.  Shededah, a native of NY, goes to private school in Massachusetts.  There, she runs in a prviate school XC League, with limited racing, and even more limited competition.  With a few meet records under her belt, she entered Foot Locker Northeast without the credentials some of the other ladies may have had, but she proved that speed conquers all.  Jenks took a different path.  She doesn't compete for her schools XC Team at all, preferring to instead compete in Open and College races, where she has fared relatively well.  That level of competition is the best preparation for a race like Foot Locker, and both ladies may just be the dark horses at Balboa.


3. Pulling Double Duty.

We may not have gotten the race we dreamed of with a split National Championship, but we will have the ability to put each in perspective.  Several athletes will be coming back from the cold up north, and will allow us to gauge the field.  Taylor Werner is the top returner, placing 5th overall in the frozen tundra last week.  She is projected to take eighth overall, which gives a scale to the difference between the two races.  Foot Locker seems to be more even at the top than NXN, and if Werner repeats the form she showed last week, we could see a trip to the podium for the sophomore from Missouri.  Other doublers include Kelcy Welch, Natalie Rathjen, and Devin Clark, who all finished in the top 20 last week.