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| Northeast Region
Van Cortlandt Park, New York City
Nov. 24, 2007
SteveU's Favorites |
Girls Seymour and Spence - Spence and Seymour - either way, PA rules
Boys Is it Sintayehu Taye's year? If not, Donn Cabral and Brian Leung are ready.
by Steve Underwood, DyeStat News Editor
GIRLS
Top 10 picks:
1. Neely Spence PA
2. Carly Seymour PA
3. Emily Jones MA
4. Jillian Smith NJ
5. Kacey Gibson PA
6. Emily Lipari NY
7. Keely Maguire MA
8. Chelsea Ley NJ
9. Jeanne Mack RI
10. Shelby Greany NY
LOOK OUT FOR
Kristen Kasper MA, Sam Roecker NY, Mary Kate Champagne NY, Kathleen McCafferty NJ, Heather Stephens CT
THE RETURNEES
Neely Spence PA, 1st
(Hannah Davidson NY, 2nd, running NTN)
Carly Seymour PA, 3rd
Shelby Greany NY, 6th
Emily Jones MA, 9th
WHO’S MISSING
(all at NTN NE)
Georgia Griffin NH (was 2nd in Eastern States, New England champ)
Melanie Thompson NJ (Jersey MOC winner and Group X champ)
Juliet Bottorff, DE (Delaware champ)
THE BREAKDOWN
Seymour and Spence. Spence and Seymour. What order are they going to finish in? Does it really matter?
Well, maybe it does. These two PA standouts, Central Cambria sr Carly Seymour and Shippensburg sr Neely Spence haven’t raced each other in XC since Foot Locker last year, as they were in different classes and ran none of the same invitationals. They were fast friends in San Diego as they finished 8th (Spence) and 9th, but surely there will be a little competitive spirit when they clash Saturday, won’t there?
Seymour established that she was going to be gangbusters this season when she cracked the 2.5-mile record at Vanny at Eastern States. Then she had the better mark in the two races at the PA State Meet. But Spence didn’t need to run fast to win in PA and waited til the next week, at a NYRRC race at Vanny she likes to use as a Foot Locker tuneup, to give a hint at what she has. 17:18. Gulp! Yeah, it’s gonna be a great race between these two.
In both her races at Vanny (last year’s FL NE and Eastern States this year), Seymour has gotten out slow and rallied strong at the end. She does that well, but it probably won’t work if she wants to beat Spence. Neither of them is a super elite miler, but Spence should win a kick if it comes to that. Seymour has to put her away before the stretch if she wants to win. With still a little more big meet experience than Carly, look for defending champ Neely to take it.
big fight for the other 8 qualifying slots
It’s extremely hard to imagine anyone besides those two going 1-2. If “everyone” was here, the next two would probably be Georgia Griffin NH and Melanie Thompson NJ, the respective New Englands/New Hampshire and New Jersey champs who will be leading their teams at NTN NE. Hannah Davidson, Saratoga’s 3-time FL Finalist, will also be at Bowdoin. So for the next 8 spots here at Vanny, it should be quite a fight for the rest of NJ’s and PA’s best, along with NY and a surprising trio from MA.
Massachusetts in the picture now
Though Massachusetts is certainly a major state, they have been a bit underrepresented at Foot Locker Finals in recent years, due to the great NY and NJ runners. But that could change a bit this year with Emily Jones, Keely Maguire, and Kristen Kasper. Jones, an 06 Finalist, was beaten by Maguire at the Brown Invite. But she came back and beat her rival at D2 State. Look for experience, again, as Jones takes third.
The remaining top New Jersey runners will make an impact, led by Jillian Smith, who was 2nd to Thompson in the MOC and won her Group race. Many still feel Smith is the best runner in Jersey, though she lacks experience here. Kathleen McCafferty, who has the best time in Groups but was 4th in MOC, and Chelsea Ley, the soph who was 2nd to Thompson in her Group race and 3rd at MOC, are the two to watch.
From New York, Emily Lipari – again, inexperienced here – has proven the best with her Feds win following her best-of-the-day performance at the public schools champs. Although her form looked better at Manhattan than it has the last two weeks at Feds and the state class meets, 2-time finalist Shelby Greany should make the team again. Also look out for Sam Roecker and Mary Kate Champagne.
The other top contender from PA is a very good one, Kacey Gipson. 2nd to Seymour at 2A State, she isn’t that far from the Big Two. If she’s really motivated, she could make it a PA 1-2-3.
From the other New England States, the best candidate looks to be Rhode Island champ and New Englands runner-up Jeanne Mack.
RETURNING FROM TOP 100
1 Spence, Neely 11 Shippensburg PA 17:41.1
2 Davidson, Hannah 11 SARATOGA SPRINGS NY 17:42.1
3 Seymour, Carly 11 EBENSBURG PA 17:44.0
6 Greany, Shelby 10 Suffern NY 17:58.8
9 Jones, Emily 10 Harvard MA 18:03.9
12 Gibson, Kacey 11 New Castle PA 18:18.8
13 Thompson, Melanie 10 High Bridge NJ 18:20.8
15 Champagne, Mary Kate 11 PLATTSBURGH NY 18:23.9
19 Jackucewicz, Briana 10 Farmingdale NJ 18:34.2
20 Bottorff, Juliet 10 NEWARK DE 18:37.6
22 Maguire, Keely 11 GEORGETOWN MA 18:40.9
24 Lusardi, Catherine 11 SOUTH WALES NY 18:44.7
25 Hulton, Jenna 11 EAST AURORA NY 18:45.9
26 Griffin, Georgia 11 Norwich VT 18:46.2
29 Gregory, Meaghan 10 SCOTIA NY 18:48.8
33 Roecher, Samantha 10 CHARLTON NY 18:50.3
35 Spratford, Katrina 11 Califon NJ 18:56.2
36 Schuman, Amy 11 LEE NH 18:59.3
37 Walsh, Marie 10 Aberdeen NJ 18:59.8
39 Pennings, Tori 11 WARWICK NY 19:00.6
40 Hartung, Genna 10 Morrisville NY 19:01.2
41 MacK, Jeanne 11 BRISTOL RI 19:01.7
44 Black, Bridgette 11 Hanover NH 19:02.9
45 Lanois, Emily 10 HAMILTON MA 19:03.2
47 Kinney, Dale 9 MORRISTOWN NJ 19:04.8
48 Wallace, Jaime 9 ALDEN NY 19:05.4
50 Gilmartin Donohue, Kaylin 11 WHITE PLAINS NY 19:06.5
51 Zarger, Lauren 10 ERIE PA 19:06.7
52 Dinnan, Courtney 11 Hamden CT 19:07.9
53 Ross, Kathryn 11 Doylestown PA 19:08.3
54 Goutos, Cassandra 9 SARATOGA SPRINGS NY 19:09.1
55 Jenkins, Jordan 10 McSherrystown PA 19:11.4
56 Kellner, Katie 10 West Windsor NJ 19:13.5
57 Stephens, Heather 11 RIDGEFIELD CT 19:14.3
58 Malloy, Kristen 10 Phoenix MD 19:15.0
61 Vogel, Christine 11 GLASTONBURY CT 19:17.3
63 Cawley, Erin 10 Newark Valley NY 19:17.6
64 Gay, Morgane 11 Bethesda MD 19:19.2
65 Berard, Tori 10 DENVILLE NJ 19:19.7
67 Stasakova, Erika 11 BELAIR MD 19:20.3
69 Millhouse, Karaleigh 11 Boiling Springs PA 19:22.1
70 Rosettie, Kate 10 Corning NY 19:22.6
74 Van Houten, Meghan 11 LIMA NY 19:27.1
76 Hines, Erica 10 ENFIELD CT 19:29.7
81 Clark, Sydney 11 LANCASTER PA 19:33.9
83 Busby, Natalie 11 New Paltz NY 19:35.2
84 Jamieson, Dana 11 BOSTON MA 19:36.5
85 Downing, Jennifer 11 Stow MA 19:36.9
91 Bower, Natalie 10 Pleasant Unity PA 19:43.3
94 Mullins, Paige 11 Binghamton NY 19:44.4
95 Schneider, Rachel 10 SANFORD ME 19:45.5
96 Simonetti, Sarah 11 PERKASIE PA 19:46.4
100 Webber, Eliza 11 STODDARD NH 19:51.0
BOYS
THE PICKS
1. Sintayehu Taye MA
2. Brian Leung NJ
3. Donn Cabral CT
4. Brandon Jarrett NJ
5. Vince McNally PA
6. Matt Kane CT
7. Alex McGrath NH
8. Doug Smith PA
9. Mark Dennin PA
10. Pat DuPont NY
LOOK OUT FOR
Look out for: Chris Aldrich PA, Kyle Merber NY, Gabe Pacione MA, Kyle Powers VT, Ken Bunnell VT
THE RETURNEES
Sintayehu Taye MA, 2nd
Donn Cabral CT, 6th
Brandon Jarrett NJ, 8th
WHO’S MISSING
(all at NTN NE)
Robert Gibson (MIAA D1 and Brown Invite Champ)
Matt Terry and Willie Ahearn (Danbury CT top duo)
THE BREAKDOWN
Will this finally be Sintayehu Taye’s year? If not, Donn Cabral and Brian Leung are ready.
At the beginning of the fall, there was no clue. Taye had missed almost all of track with injuries. At the beginning of his prep season at Cushing, his times were very average. But they have gotten better each week, capped by a crushing 15:16 victory at the NEPSTA meet. The 2-time FL NE runner-up should win … if he’s entered. There is not an entry list published on the Foot Locker site, but the buzz is that Taye had not entered as of earlier this week. Stay tuned.
Sans Taye, the battle for the tape Saturday at Vanny should be between unbeaten Donn Cabral CT, an 06 Finalist, and unbeaten Brian Leung, who has won everything in Jersey, as well as being the fastest winner in the Manhattan races. Cabral hasn’t really been able to race anyone fast outside of his home state, so although his performances have looked good, there’s a slight question mark. The buzz for Leung has been building since he broke 12:20 at Manhattan, and he has hammered out victory after victory. Cabral has the better kick, so Leung needs to get some space earlier.
The biggest question marks, however, are New Jersey’s Brandon Jarrett and Doug Smith, who have both suffered major DNFs. Jarrett’s (via injury) came in his showdown with Smith in the Manhattan ‘A’ race; he has since picked up some solid wins, but not with the flash he showed before. Still, he was 12th in the nation last year after qualifying from the NE. Smith suffered dizziness and dropped out last weekend at MOC as Leung won. His coach called him “probable” for Saturday earlier in the week.
Put the talented Vince McNally in the question mark category, too. He dropped out at state with flu symptoms, but has 4:08 mile speed and as much talent as anyone in the region with the possible exception of Taye. Many figured he was going to be the region champ this year. If he’s close to top form, he gets in.
While he’s not in the DNF category, NH state champ Alex McGrath NH has the talent to get in, but will have to overcome a 12th at New Englands.
Other qualifiers should be PA 3A state champ Mark Dennin, NY Feds champ Pat Dupont, and New Englands runner-up Matt Kane CT. But look out for Chris Aldrich PA, Kyle Merber NY, and Ken Bunnell VT. The major missing talent is Robert Gibson, the Brookline MA sr who will be leading his team at NTN NE.
RETURNING FROM TOP 100
2 Taye, Sintayehu 11 Ashburnham MA 15:18.5
6 Cabral, Donn 11 Glastonbury CT 15:23.6
8 Jarrett, Brandon 11 Hillsborough NJ 15:29.9
12 Berube, Lee 11 Putnam Station NY 15:40.7
13 McNally, Vincent 11 Brownstown PA 15:41.9
25 Kaulbach, Max 11 Philadelphia PA 15:54.5
27 Dupont, Patrick 11 Fairport NY 15:56.4
31 Izewski, Joshua 11 Doylestown PA 16:01.9
32 Bax, Nick 11 BETHESDA MD 16:02.8
37 Coles, Raymond 11 Lakewood NJ 16:06.3
38 Leung, Brian 11 WEST WINDSOR NJ 16:07.4
40 Aldrich, Christopher 11 WESTCHESTER PA 16:08.5
41 Signoretti, Giovanni 11 SMITHTOWN NY 16:10.8
43 Judd, Andrew 11 West Hartford CT 16:12.5
45 Pacione, Gabe 11 WEHJAM MA 16:13.7
47 Flint, Matt 11 QUEENSBURY NY 16:15.0
52 Dennin, Mark 11 Gilbertsville PA 16:22.1
56 Stogsdill, Chris 10 Camillus NY 16:24.7
58 Sheinbaum, Julian 11 Scarsdale NY 16:25.3
59 Bazell, Graham 10 Columbia MD 16:25.5
63 Hausherr, David 11 TOWNSEND MA 16:27.0
65 Merber, Kyle 11 DIX HILLS NY 16:28.3
66 Yersak, Alexander 11 Marlton NJ 16:28.6
68 Shaw, Ethan 11 Falmouth ME 16:29.3
69 Hoyt, Ricky 10 Lee NH 16:29.9
70 Stachecki, Tyler 11 FAIRPORT NY 16:30.1
72 Smith, Doug 10 Succasunna NJ 16:30.6
77 Corcoran, Andrew 11 Syracuse NY 16:33.1
79 Summers, Dylan 11 WOLFEBORO NH 16:33.8
80 McDonnell, Kevin 11 MOORESTOWN NJ 16:34.5
81 Galebach, Phil 10 MEDFORD MA 16:36.0
82 Hickey, Michael 10 Pearl River NY 16:37.2
83 Terry, Matt 11 DANBURY CT 16:37.7
84 Lacolla, John 11 WESTCHESTER PA 16:37.9
87 Perkins, Jerome 11 FRANKLIN LAKES NJ 16:39.9
92 Hackett, Everett 11 West Hartford CT 16:42.3
94 Bodary, Chris 11 Dowingtown PA 16:43.2
95 Carlin, David 11 Scarsdale NY 16:43.8
97 Hoagland, Zachary 11 Hatfield PA 16:44.5
100 McDonald, Eric 11 Groveland MA 16:45.3
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