Where: Bear Branch Sports Park, The Woodlands, TX
When: 10:15 AM CT
States: AR - LA - OK - TX - MS
Saucony Flo50 Teams: U.S.#9 Texas #1 Keller (TX), U.S. #10 Texas #2 Southlake Carroll (TX)
Team Challengers: The Woodlands (TX), Canyon Randall (TX), Marcus (TX), Prosper (TX), and Cinco Ranch (TX)
Saucony Flo50 Individuals: #12 Ashton Endsley (TX), and bubble individual London Culbreath
2015 Team Qualifiers: Southlake (TX), Kingwood (TX)
Top Individual Returners: 1. Ashton Endsley (TX), 6. Cheyenne Walden (OK), 8. Abbey Santoro (TX), 9. Kaytlynn Welsch (TX), 10. Julia Black (TX), 11. Karyss Betzen TX, 13. Quinn Owen (TX), 15. Lourdes Vivas, 16. Gillian Mortimer (TX), and 20. Abby Riordan (TX)
Analysis: This will be an all-state clash in the heart of Texas. Coming in hot off the state meet this past weekend, several teams are going to be primed and ready to go. Two of the lead candidates to claim spots at NXN this year are Keller and Southlake. The two have battled back and forth all year, with Keller having the majority of the wins. Most recently, Keller finished second behind Southlake at the Texas Region 1 qualifying meet but came back to go beast mode and pull out a 40-point win. Keller scored 44 points to Southlake's 84 points. Some lead runners for Keller who will be in the top pack come race day are Abbey Santoro, Julia Black, and Isabel Van Camp. Some runners to watch for in the front from Southlake are Gillian Mortimer and Ali White. All of these girls finished in the top 20 at the Texas UIL 6A state meet. Keller will be looking to make its first appearance at the big dance since 2007, while Southlake will be looking to make its second straight appearance on the girls side and 10th overall.
Other teams looking to clinch one of those auto qualifying spots are The Woodlands, Marcus, Canyon Randall, and Prosper. The Woodlands finished third at the Texas state meet in Class 6A behind Keller and Southlake Carroll, scoring 127 points. The Woodlands' lead runner is Lourdes Vivas, who placed sixth at the UIL state meet and will definitely be in the running for an individual qualifying spot if her team doesn't make it. Heading up the Marcus squad are juniors Allison Green and Quinn Owen. The duo has led the Marcus squad the past two races. Owen is recently getting back into the swing of things after battling sickness for the first part of the season, but she is one of the girls in the chase for a qualifying spot. The ladies from Canyon Randall were the 5A girls state champions, barely edging out 5A rivals Prosper by four points. Based on a Texas state meet team scores merge, Randall and Prosper are both looking to beat Marcus in this one.
On the individual side, there are two individuals not on teams who we really need to keep any eye on. Those two individuals are senior and returning NXN South region champion Ashton Endsley and 2016 5A state champion London Culbreath. Endsley was the runner-up in this year's state meet, but it was Culbreath, a freshman, who ran away with the fastest time of the day in 17:06.72. Her time beat those of Endsley and Heyamch, who were most likely in more of a strategical battle. Still hats off to Culbreath for running the fastest time of the day solo. We also can't forget the fact that Endsley was an All-American at last year's NXN championship with a sixth-place finish. It's safe to say that these two are going to be in a class of their own for first.
Some girls looking to be in the mix for qualifying who are not listed as part of the team breakdown are top Texas 5A state meet runners Lauren Edwards, Abby Williams, Madison Acosta, Carrie Fish, and Grace Plain, and top 6A runners Briana Robles, Abby Riordan, Allison Wilson, and Brooke Gilmore. All of these ladies finished in the top 20 or better in a Texas state meet result merge. It's hard to say any girls from other classifications (other than 5A/6A)/state governing bodies in Texas will have a shot to win or qualify as a team being that they are making a big jump from running two mile/3200m all year to a 5K. One runner we do know for sure who can mix things up after several solid 5Ks this season is Elizabeth Reneau. The junior from Argyle Liberty Christian finished third in two of Texas' biggest meets, Marcus I and McNeil.
Another girl with a shot from a state other than Texas is Cheyenne Walden from Oklahoma. Walden was a qualifier this past year as a sophomore when she finished sixth. She went on to finish 59th at NXN. This year, she was the Oklahoma 5A/6A state champion and will be in the mix for another trip to Portland.
Team Prediction: 1. Keller 2. Southlake
Individual Prediction: 1. Ashton Endsley 2. London Culbreath 3. Abbey Santoro 4. Gillian Mortimer 5. Lourdes Vivas
Southlake Carroll Girls react after beating 6A state champs Marcus to win NXN South: