Summary
More photos and videos coming throughout Sunday.
Our Footlocker South Meet Page has coverage and complete results.
It rained all throughout the early AM hours and then started to pour again during the Girls Seeded race. The conditions turned McAlpine Park, which is traditionally notoriously fast, into a sloppy mud pit which created full-contact races, falls, trips, elbows, and spiking injuries.
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Full Coverage and Results...
Girls Seeded Race
Megan Marsico of Virginia did the work for most of the race. She lead for almost the entire race, with Kathy Kroeger tucked in behind her. At about the half way point it was Ashley Brasovan leading a chase pack a second or two behind Marisco and Kroeger when coming off a downhill she was tripped or slipped and took a tumble. Coming up muddied and a little scraped up she bounced back up and only lost a few slots.
During the last mile Kathy and Megan really started battling it out. Late in the race coming around the lake they hammered each other hard before Kroeger began to pull away a little bit with 400 meters to go. She would win the race again as she's made a habit of doing, with Marisco holding on for second. The reigning national champ, Ashley Brasovan, pulled through for fourth place to ensure her chance at a repeat national title.
The South girls will be in good position headed to San Diego, as they will have six veterans on the team. Kroeger, Chelsy Sviensson (3rd), Brasovan, Lauren Smith (5th), and Kayla Hale (7th) all know Balboa Park well. Newcomers will be Marisco, Amanda Russell, Kim Spano, Ashley Isham, and Adrianne Soo.
Seeded Girls 5000 Meter Run
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Name Year Team Finals Points
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1 Kroeger, Kathy 12 Tennessee 17:13 1
2 Marsico, Megan 11 Virginia 17:15 2
3 Sveinsson, Chelsey 10 Texas 17:19 3
4 Brasovan, Ashley 12 Florida 17:20 4
5 Smith, Lauren 12 Texas 17:27 5
6 Russell, Amanda 11 Texas 17:27 6
7 Hale, Kayla 12 Florida 17:33 7
8 Spano, Kimberly 12 North Carolina 17:36 8
9 Isham, Ashley 11 Texas 17:38 9
10 Soo, Adrianne 12 North Carolina 17:39 10
Complete Results
Boys Seeded Race
The boys race was an all out war, nothing like the relatively defined top ten like the girls race. Through the mile the pack was tight and large and even through the second mile there were well over ten guys putting themselves in the mix.
During the last mile the leaders, Bill Matthews and Matthew Sonnenfeldt, started to get some separation ont he rest of the pack CJ Brown, Thomas Porter, and Leoule Degafe also got a little breathing room. But back further in the back it was a different story.
The battle for the last five qualifying spots was hot and heavy. Coming around the last loop around the lake, the positions were being shuffled like mad as everyone was trying to punch their ticket to the big dance. Dreams were won and lost here!
In the end it was largely a story of surprises. Some of the favorites headed into the race will be watching the Nationals action from the PC at home. While some people who were not given much of any chance even by their home state will be making the trip. Leoule Degafe was perhaps the biggest surprise, finishing in 5th place in 15:04.
The South boys, unlike the girls, are mainly first-time national qualifiers. The exceptions being Thomas Porter, who becomes a three-time national qualifier, and CJ Brown who qualified last year (and was the top returner from Footlocker South 2007).
Seeded Boys 5000 Meter Run
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Name Year Team Finals Points
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1 Matthews, Bill 12 Alabama 14:48 1
2 Sonnenfeldt, Matthew 12 Tennessee 14:50 2
3 Brown, CJ 12 Texas 14:59 3
4 Porter, Thomas 12 Virginia 15:01 4
5 Degfae, Leoule 12 Virginia 15:04 5
6 Ott, Alex 12 Virginia 15:08 6
7 Satterwhite, Kyle 12 Virginia 15:10 7
8 Mckelvey, Clint 10 Tennessee 15:10 8
9 Rathke, Chase 12 Texas 15:11 9
10 Hibbs, Evan 12 Texas 15:12 10
Complete Results
