Saturday's NTN Regional action highlights the first round of qualifying for the main event in a few weeks in Portland. This week, NTN Heartland, NTN Midwest and NTN Northwest all race their qualifying races.
MileSplit Coverage: NTN Regionals (Nov. 10)
NTN Midwest Regional Championships
Girls Qualifiers: Lake Central (IN) & Westfield (IN)
Boys Qualifiers: Neuqua Valley (IL) & York (IL)
Boys US #2 Neuqua Valley headed to Terre Haute, Indiana Saturday on a mission. Keeping the undefeated season they earned throughout the regular season was a goal, while earning their first ever trip to Nike Team Nationals was the other. With the return of top three runner Jim Riddle, Neuqua Valley looked strong to accomplish both goals.
From the gun Neuqua packed it up, running with four runners near the front. Senior leader Chris Derrick left the field early on demolishing the competition once again this season. His time of 14:54 beat runner-up Kevin Havel (Sr., Hersey) by 18 seconds. Neuqua placed three more in the top fifteen, beating runner-up York by a 73-111 margin. York earned their fourth straight trip to Portland using an amazing 1-2 combination up front. Senior Tom Achtein finished third in 15:20, while junior Steve Sulkin finished sixth in 15:38. What captured the berth for York were their work horse 3-6 runners, who ran strong together.
Despite a delay at the start of the day, the top two girls team from Indiana, Westfield and Lake Central, both accomplished their goal of a Nike Team Nationals berth. The roles reversed from two weeks prior where Westfield beat Lake Central for the Indiana State Championship.
This time Lake Central won 86-92 over Westfield. LC's 1-4 all finished within the top twenty team positions, while their fifth girl finished two points ahead of Westfield. Westfield's freshman Waverly Neer ran a solid race, but not as key as her Indiana race, becoming their fourth girl at the finish. Both squads represent Indiana, the powerhouse team in the Midwest this year. The top four teams all came from Indiana.
NTN Midwest Regional Champs. Meet Page
Results: Boys Championships / Girls Championships
NTN Heartland Regional Championships
Girls Qualifiers: Dowling Catholic (IA) & Yankton (SD)
Boys Qualifiers: Wayzata (MN) & Shawnee Mission NW (KS)
As expected in the boys race, the strongest two packs were the teams that would qualify for NTN. The race was close, with Wayzata (MN) winning the championship title scoring 100 points. Their strong first three runners, which included one runner in the top ten and two runners in the top twenty, beat the field by a solid margin. Second through sixth was a shoot out, with less than twenty-five points between the five teams. Shawnee Mission NW (KS), aka Team Swanson, earned the final team spot with 141 points, beating St. Louis University H.S. by ten points.
In the girls race, Dowling Catholic used a potent top two to capture their first ever birth to Nike Team Nationals. Dowling's top two runners were race champion Katie Flood and third place finisher Ashlie Decker. Flood won the rematch against '06 FL National third place finisher Emily Sisson (Millard North) by 38 seconds in 17:35.
Yankton won the second qualifying spot for their fourth NTN berth. Yankton's (SD) pack proved strong, beating in-state rival Sioux Falls Roosevelt (SD) 90-95, mostly off the performance of their fifth runner Krista Creager. Creager beat Roosevelt's fifth runner 36 seconds.
NTN Heartland Regional Champs. Meet Page
Results: Boys Championships / Girls Championships
NTN Northwest Regional Championships
Girls Qualifiers: St. Mary's (OR) & Jesuit (OR)
Boys Qualifiers: North Central (WA) & Central Catholic (OR)
US #3 North Central (WA) entered Saturday's NTN Northwest Regional boys race on a mission to dominate the field and qualify for the national meet. As done so many times this year, North Central used an incredibly strong pack to beat the field, winning the team title by an 87-95 margin over Central Catholic (OR). North Central's leader, Andrew Kimpel, finished second overall, while fellow junior Leon Dean finished tenth. Placing two runners in the top ten helped North Central win despite a sub-par showing from their fifth runner.
Central Catholic meanwhile took the second team spot over Maple Valley by 27 points. Senior front man Taylor Morgan finished a strong sixth place, leading the strongest pack of the day, as their top five split 39 seconds. Jonathon Lafler (Maple Valley) won the overall individual title with a grilling kick over Kimpel, both athletes finishing in 15:48. Kodiak's (AK) Trevor Dunbar finished a strong third, a half second back from the other two.
The girls race was equally competitive on the dreary Northwest morning. St. Mary's (OR) and Jesuit (OR) swept the top two places for Oregon, giving them a short trip to Portland in a few weeks time for the national competition. St. Mary's beat Jesuit 87-94 behind a very strong fourth and fifth runner. A 49 second split kept the squad on top.
Jesuit beat out a strong Bozeman (MT) squad by eight points for the final team spot. Behind their top two runners, both finishing in the top six, the squad proved that their high US ranking was justified. Behind Bozeman were fourth place Gig Harbor (WA) and ififth place Boise (ID). The individual title was won by Leah Francis (Juneau Douglas, AK) in 18:20, outkicking second place Nicole Nielsen by one second.
NTN Northwest Regional Champs. Meet Page
Results: Boys Championships / Girls Championships
Saturday's NTN Regional action highlights the first round of qualifying for the main event in a few weeks in Portland. This week, NTN Heartland, NTN Midwest and NTN Northwest all race their qualifying races.