Race to San Diego: Foot Locker South Preview

Colby Lowe of Texas enters as the top ranked man

Race to San Diego: Foot Locker South Preview

While other regions are dealing with the early winter weather that rocks the states above the Mason-Dixon Line, McAlpine XC Course in North Carolina usually hosts a strong field of competition on its lightning fast course.  As the contestants line up Saturday, the best of the best will emerge and represent the South at Foot Locker Nationals.

Colby Lowe (Sr., Southlake Carroll, TX) enters the competition as the pre-race favorite.  His decisive wins this season have stamped him as a national favorite.  Not only is he beating all, he is helping his team too, as Southlake Carroll qualified for Nike Team Nationals.

The girls race has a favorite too.  Ashley Brasovan (Jr., Wellington, FL) tries to break her two year curse at McAlpine.  The past two years Brasovan broke down on race day and did not qualify for Foot Locker Nationals.  The junior sensation has run so well this year it seems nearly impossible for her to not qualify.  If she can break her curse, be prepared to see her vie for the national title in San Diego.

The competition is intense, the course is fast and the competitors are ready to roll.  McAlpine's course will be set a blaze Saturday as Foot Locker qualifying spots are earned.

Boys

1. Colby Lowe (Sr., Southlake Carroll, TX) - The "King of the South" continued his dominance all season long, winning Nike South, Texas State and NTN South.  Those three wins were by large margins, marking Lowe as the man to beat at Foot Locker South.

2. Sean Keveren (Sr., Brentwood, TN) - Keveren won Great American earlier in the season and continued to roll the rest of the way.  While he has not pushed the pace as much as some competitors this season Keveren still ran well enough to be considered one of the favorites at McAlpine this Saturday.

3. Jason Witt (Sr., Midlothian, VA) - Witt's state meet performance was the third fastest of all time at the Virginia State Meet a few weeks back.  Since then the senior has prepared for Foot Locker Regionals and best he could and looks to be ready to roll.

4. Griff Graves (Sr., Abingdon, VA) - A couple bad races don't seem to ever hold down Graves.  The star senior ran well early in the season beating two Foot Locker hopefuls in Illinois, came back home to run well against his home state competition, and has a lot of experience with his Foot Locker qualifying of last year to work from.

5. Peter Dorrell (Sr., Blacksburg, VA) - Dorrell scored a big win over Graves at the Virginia State Meet.  However, Graves obviously had an off day.  Regardless, Dorrell ran the second fastest time of the day and has earned the right to be mentioned in the top five here.

6. Ryan Hill (Sr., Hickory, NC) - The winner of last year's regional returns this season as a favorite, but not THE favorite.  Hill had a very good season, capped with a large earlier season win over Foot Locker Finalist Luke Lovelace (SC) and an impressive state win.  Another season of getting faster could prove the key to another big regional victory.

7. C.J. Brown (Jr., Southlake Carroll, TX) - While Brown ran well all season, he ran in the shadow of teammate Lowe.  Brown runs as the best junior in the region however, proving each week that he can run with anyone outside of Lowe.  With his team qualifying to NTN, Brown has an individual goal he needs to accomplish now.

8. Luke Lovelace (Sr., Chapin, SC) - Just like last year when he qualified for Foot Locker Nationals, Lovelace will be overlooked a bit heading into the competition.  While many label him an odds-on-contender to make nationals, few expect him to challenge for the win.  His lack of challengers through the season may be part of this, but Lovelace is strong and can handle of fast McAlpine course.

9. Thomas Porter (Jr., Mountain View, VA) - Porter qualified for Foot Locker Nationals last year and ran well enough this year to be considered a favorite once again.  While he didn't run as well as some expected at his state meet, the Virginia senior knows what it takes to make nationals.

10. Rory Tunningley (Sr. Lockhart, TX) - One of the most consistent performers in the South Region, Tunningley ran well all season long in the Lone Star State.  His senior experience should help him challenge, especially after solid finishes at Texas State (won the 4A race) and NTN South (third behind Lowe and Brown).

Best of the Rest: Gordy Dooley (St. Henry, KY) is the eleventh athlete.  He returns as the number twelve returnee and is a strong contender after an incredibly strong season in Kentucky.  Dooley is easily the darkhorse in the field.

McAlpine is in North Carolina and one athlete from the home state with potential impact is Patrick Campbell (Sr., Mooresville).  Campbell ran well at state, finishing second to Hill, which should provide a shot of confidence at Foot Locker Regionals.

Virginia has four athletes ranked in the top ten, however there are others that have an outside shot to make it if they run their perfect race.  Andrew Colley (Jamestown) is one of those athletes after running very well at his state meet.

Further south, Florida has a trio of individuals with enough talent to make a run at qualifying.  Joseph Fraklin (Sr., Godby) won his state meet in impressive fashion.  His speed definitely is something to keep an eye on.  Eric Larson (Sr., Pensacola Booker T. Washington) and Matt Mizereck (So., Leon) are two more athletes who could work together to push to a high placing.  Mizereck is one of the young talents in the region, while Larson is an established individual.

Girls

Ashley Brasovan and Emilie Amaro represent Florida this weekend

1. Ashley Brasovan (Jr., Wellington, FL) - Brasovan has been in this spot before.  The Florida star entered Foot Locker Regionals the past two years, only to have the worst luck possible and not qualify for nationals.  She looks to break the curse this weekend, shooting for a big victory and a statement towards the rest of the top girls in the land.

2. Kathy Kroeger (Jr., Independence, TN) - It's strange to rank a Foot Locker National Champion at the number two spot.  Considering her challenges since winning last year, many would say climbing the ladder to this position is impressive enough.  Kroeger surprised the nation last year in winning the national title.  She sat out the track season with some health concerns and took her time getting back into the proper shape.  She is fit and ready to roll now.

3. Emilie Amaro (Sr., Cypress Bay, FL) - Amaro has a nice advantage when compared to many of the competitors Saturday.  She has raced Brasovan and knows what to expect to a degree from her competition.  Last season she qualified for Foot Locker Nationals and all her results this season point to another qualifying berth.

4. Cory McGee (So., Pass Christian, MS) - Last season McGee qualified for Foot Locker Nationals as a mere freshman.  She finished fifth in the regional in '06 and looks to improve on that performance this time.  McGee easily beat the competition in Mississippi all season.

5. Kayla Hale (Jr., Holy Trinity, FL) - Hale's experience, like many of the top girls in the region, should help her qualify yet again for Foot Locker Nationals.  While seemingly gapped from the same dominance Brasovan and Amaro showed through the season in Florida, Hale still has enough speed to earn a high spot.

6. Aurora Scott (Sr., Home Schooled, VA) - Questions arise everywhere when talking about Scott.  Her lack of racing during the season creates confusion as to what type of shape she is actually in.  While you can't doubt Scott's past results, she is one of those athletes who could hit or miss on the day.

7. Lauren Smith (Jr., Freeport Bazoswood, TX) - The best of Texas, Smith ran the best time by quite a bit at the Texas State Meet.  Challenged very little through the season, Smith is one of those athletes who could surprise and finish in the top three.

8. Emily Reese (Sr., Chamblee, GA) - The speedster on the track seems to be running well enough to push for a Foot Locker National berth.  Last season ran a horrible race at Foot Locker Regionals.  Redemption is in the air for her.

9. Jennifer Dunn (Sr., Austin, AL) - Dominance.  That is the word best to describe Dunn's results from this season in Alabama.  She won her state meet race by 23 seconds.  Once pushed, how much faster can Dunn run?

10. Tara Upshaw (Jr., Southlake Carroll, TX) - Upshaw ran so well last week at the NTN South Regional, she helped her team qualify for Nike Team Nationals.  That same up front running ability needs to be utilized if she hopes to qualify for a berth to Foot Locker Nationals.

Best of the Rest: So many athletes dominated the landscape this cross country season in the South.  While our list can only name ten Foot Locker favorites, there are another ten athletes who have a shot to qualify as well as nearly anyone.  Katlyn Will (Jr., Corinth, MS), Brittany Koziara (So., Boone, FL) and Heather Beichner (Cardinal Gibbons, NC) are three of those athletes that will be overlooked.  Will ran in the shadows of McGee all season in Mississippi, yet finished rather close behind the sophomore at their state meet. 

Koziara is considered fourth best in Florida, and while her credentials are not as strong as Brasovan, Amaro and Hale, her strong state performance really stood out.  Meanwhile, Beichner is running well in North Carolina.  She is the top runner in the state and led a strong team all season long.

Virginia's Kathleen Lautzenheiser (So., Midlothian) and Lia DiValentin (Jr., Chantilly) ran well all season, proving they are easily the top two contestants from the state Saturday outside of Aurora Scott.  Lautzenheiser won her state race in grand fashion, while helping her team throughout the season.  DiValentin performed well often this season.  Both athletes need to run a smart races to qualify.

Sinead Haughey (Daniel, SC) and Virginia Hine (Sr., White Station, TN) are two other darkhorse runners in the race.  Haughey ran well in South Carolina this season, only losing to Mary Kate DuBard (Northwestern).  Hine ran strong as well, only losing to Kroeger at state.  Both athletes know how to run with the best.

Scott Bush is the national editor of MileSplit US