Girls Preview
(Highlights of the 2015 Foot Locker South Girls Seeded Race)
On the girl's side, Florida will send 3A Cross Country Finals state champion Alyson Churchill and 2x 4A champion Bailey Hertenstein as well as 2x NXN finalist Rafaella Gibbons to headline the Sunshine State contingent. Churchill is coming off of her first sub 18 minute performance, running 17:55 to with the 3A state title.
For Riverview junior Bailey Hertenstein, the meet is a chance to once again prove she alongs with the best in the southeast let alone the nation. She steamrolled Florida competition this season including her second straight 4A crown. At the Flrunners.com Race Of Champions, she clocked a blistering 17:32.14.It would be the fifth time this fall she broke 18 minutes. Last year, she DNF'ed at this meet, one of only two meets in her high school career she didn't finish. The only other time besides those two she didn't finish first at a cross country meet was in 2014 was when she was 15th at the state meet. That's 20+ wins in the last two years. She is ranked 13th in the field and if she's on her "A" game which her training log suggests, she should crack the top ten.
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Unfortunately for Kayley Delay, she has had to run in 4A against Bailey Hertenstein the past two seasons. Delay, a Yale University signee was the runner-up in both 2015 and 2016. Her 17:37.40 at 4A Region 1 is the second fastest time in the state and ranks her inside the top twenty times returning in the Foot Locker South Regional. This will be her fourth year in the meet after finishing 71st, 78th, and 55th.
The next name that has a viable shot of making Foot Locker Nationals is Rafaella Gibbons. The Winter Park junior finished behind Delay and Hertenstein in both 2015 and 2016 after winning the title as a freshman. However, Gibbons is a winner. She was 6th at NXNSE in 2014 and 3rd in 2015 and finished 27th and 40th against the best runners in the nation in Portland. This will be Gibbons first time running at the McAlpine course, but she seems to fare well in North Carolina.
Other Floridians with a chance to make it to San Diego include Duke signee Amanda Beach of Melbourne Central Catholic who was 5th at the 2A Cross Country Finals and owns a personal best of 17:47.60, 3A runner-up Valerie Lastra (18:00.64), and Daniela Urzua of Lake Mary who was 21st at last year's meet.