The field is beginning to come together for the 38th annual Foot Locker Cross Country Championships National Finals after three of the four regional event were held this weekend.
The top 10 boys and top 10 girls in seeded races qualify for nationals on Dec. 10 in Balboa Park in San Diego. The West Regional is Dec. 3 in Walnut, Calif.
Samuel Worley cross the finish line at the South Regional
(Photo: KevinMorris@PhotoRun)
SOUTH REGIONAL
In Charlotte, N.C., senior Nevada Mareno of Raleigh, N.C., won the girls race in 17:22 to return to the national finals. Junior Heather Holt, from Fairfax, Va., was second in 17:24, and Niamh Schumacher of Seymour, Tenn., was third in 17:25. Julia Heymach from Houston finished in eighth place to earn a return trip to the nationals.
In the boys race, Samuel Worley of New Braunfels, Texas, picked up the pace in the final 200 meters to win in 14:58. Connor Lane of Raleigh, N.C., came in second in 15:00, and Alexander Maier of Flower Mound, Texas, was third in 15:04.
Waleed Suliman of Henrico, Va. was fifth and Reed Brown of Grapevine, Texas, was six to qualify for the nationals for the second time.
Anne Forsyth cross the line as the winner of the Midwest Regional (Photo: Bruce Wodder@PhotoRun)
MIDWEST REGIONAL
On a 36-degree day in Kenosha, Wis., Anne Forsyth of Ann Arbor, Mich., won the girls race in 17:18. India Johnson of Hilliard, Ohio, came in second in 17:37, and Kayla Young from Denver, placed third in 17:38. Young will return to nationals for the second time.
On the boys side, Dylan Jacobs of Orland Park, Ill., won the title in 14:59. Jack Aho of Boulder, Colo., placed second in 15:01, with Gabe Fendel of Carmel, Ind., finishing third in 15:08. Matt Aho, Jack Aho’s brother, finished sixth in 15:11.
Three runners qualified for a second trip to the finals: Seth Hirsch from Omaha (fifth), Matthew Pereira from Killdeer, Ill., (seventh place), and Finn Gessner from Madison, Wis. (ninth).
Alyssa Aldridge wins the Northeast Regional (Photo: Victah Sailer@PhotoRun)
NORTHEAST REGIONAL
At historic Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, Alyssa Aldridge of Linwood, N.J., won the girls race in 17:41. She placed sixth last year in nationals. Jacqueline Gaughan of Exeter, N.H., was second in 17:56, and Maria Coffin of Annapolis, Md., finishing third in 18:00. Coffin was also third in the regional last year.
Noah Affolder, from Carlisle (Pa.), repeated as regional champion with a time of 15:29 and his younger brother, Samuel Affolder, placed second in 15:37. Patrick O’Brien of Durham, N.H., finished third in 15:38. Matt Grossman from Millburn, N.J., finished seventh to join Noah Affolder as returnees to nationals from the region.