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Great American
Cross Country Festival


Veterans Park, Hoover AL - Saturday, October 13, 2007

DyeStat Onsite with SteveU and Pat Davey

Girls Nike Race of Champions

Ashley Brasovan on a new level; Kroeger keeps progressing; Mtn. Brook overcomes adversity

Story by SteveU - Photos by Pat Davey

 

Results Below


In the first mile, Emily Reese led Ashley Brasovan with Stephanie Morgan, Kathy Kroeger and Emilie Amaro chasing.

Neither Ashley Brasovan or Kathy Kroeger like to put a lot of pressure on themselves, so neither came into Saturday’s Nike Race of Champions with a lot of high expectations, including the expectation of winning.

Kroeger was the defending champ here, having beaten Brasovan 17:29-17:49, as well as the 2006 Foot Locker champ. But the Franklin (Independence HS) TN jr was also on the comeback trail from a long layoff and injury. Brasovan, meanwhile, has run so well since missing Foot Locker Finals last fall – including her great races last winter and spring, and so far this fall – that the commonly held opinion among fans of the sport was that she was favored to take the title and continue her ascension toward the top of the national rankings.

Boy, did she ever.

Brasovan sat on a blazing early pace from Chamblee GA sr Emily Reese, which yielded a 5:23 first mile, and threw in a move off that at 2k that no one could even dream of responding to.

“I stayed with Emily Reese the first mile,” said Brasovan. “I expected her to keep going, but she slowed a little bit. So I went for it.”

It was a gear that few, if any, runners in the nation can switch into right now. That sent the best field in the country this year careening into her rear view mirror, further and further back as she zipped through the woods (10:52 2-mile), up and down the humps and hills in the middle of the race.

“I was kind of worried about the hills,” the Wellington FL junior said. “Obviously, I don’t do a lot of hills where I live. But after I got up that big hill (at 4k), and I was fine, then I had a lot more confidence.”

When she came out of the woods, Brasovan led by more than 35 seconds and by the time the final straight was broached, it was clear Kroeger’s impressive course record from last year was going to be seriously revised. She crossed the line in 17:06. There have been a few faster times around the country in recent years, but not really on a course of this difficulty. To add some perspective, boys winner Sean Keveren, who has impressed as a candidate for at least the top five nationally, set a boys CR in 15:37. Brasovan was just 1:29 behind him. Usually gaps between comparable national class boys and girls times on a 5k course are 2:00-2:30.

As mentioned earlier, though, the winner didn’t approach the starting line thinking about winning, setting course records, and surely not about staying within 1:29 of the boys winner. “I really just go in hoping for the best, and whatever happens, happens,” she explained. “I don’t like to put extra stress on myself.

“But this really boosts my confidence and gives me a lot of motivation for the rest of the season.”

Kathy Kroeger finishing

Meanwhile, Kroeger was able to take plenty of positives from the race as she continues her comeback from taking the winter and spring off to gain weight, and missing most of the summer due to a stress fracture incurred when starting back. “I wanted to break 18 today and I did,” she said (she ran 18:08 at the Jesse Owens last week). I’ve only been off crutches since the middle of August. Each week, I’ve had a tougher race with stronger competition. Each week we evaluate how it goes.”

Kroeger won here last year and in San Diego last December by making mid/late-race moves that were just unanswerable. She knows she isn’t ready for that against the toughest competition yet. “The first mile was really fast,” she said. “That was the fastest I’ve run a mile at all in over a year. I kept telling myself, ‘You don’t have to win this. Just run the best you can.’”

With another seven weeks until Foot Locker Finals, Kroeger could get a whole lot better and be in as good a position as last fall by December. On the other hand, even her best fitness level may not be enough to catch Brasovan, who has hit a new level herself. With these two, plus Jordan Hasay and Christine Babcock from CA, Neely Spence and Carly Seymour from PA, and Katie Flood from IA (for starters, at least), the crowd of megastars at the top is getting very, very strong.

The top five, which really battled for the title, all looked impressive. Cypress Bay FL sr Emilie Amaro had the best finish of the next three, closing to hit 18:01, a good 24 seconds faster than she ran last year here. Reese held on for 3rd in 18:05, while Barnesville OH jr Stephanie Morgan was 5th in 18:09.


Girls ROC Team

On the surface, it looked like another big invitational win for the SE#2/US#7 Mountain Brook AL girls, as they beat the 16-team ROC field with 75 points, 24 up on 2nd-place Collins Hill GA.

However, it was anything but.

The Spartans got past a variety of ailments, afflictions and anxiety, including the loss of a top-three talent, and used a breakout race from a freshman to spark their victory. Leslie Boozer had to watch from the sidelines, thanks to a stress fracture that was diagnosed a few days ago. #1 Madeline Morgan started strong, just behind the Big Five lead pack, but both she and Catherine Diethelm were off their usual game, one due to a virus and the other to an unspecified ailment.

Emilie Amaro and Stephanie Morgan finishing 3rd and 5th

But Marie Demedicus moved up strong throughout the race and powered all the way into 2nd (2nd in team scoring, 7th overall) the end in 18:33, just four seconds back of 2006 Foot Locker Finalist Kayla Hale of Holy Trinity FL.

After Demedicus, it was Morgan (4th in team scoring, 18:46), Diethelm (5th, 18:50), Brigid Carey (21st, 19:40), and Reed Ellis (43rd, 20:17) for the top five.

SE#9 Collins Hill HS of Suwannee GA was 2nd with 99, getting a 3-8 (team scoring) finish from Amanda Winslow and Nicky Akande. SE#7 Oak Ridge TN was 3rd at 124, SE honorable mention Assumption HS of Louisville KY 4th at 133, and SE#3/US#17 Episcopal of Jacksonville FL 5th at 154. Episcopal had beaten Eleanor Roosevelt at the flrunners.com meet, but could not put it all together again Saturday.

“The great thing about these girls is that they truly don’t care who beats who,” said Mountain Brook coach Greg Echols. “They’ve hit the point where it’s all about the team. It’s been a stressful week. Marie knew what she had to do today.”

 

Marie Demedicus and Madeline Morgan of Mountain Brook

 

 Flash Results, Inc.                                        Hy-Tek's Meet Manager
Great American Cross Country Festival - 10/13/2007
Veterans Park at Valleydale Road, Hoover, AL
Last Completed Event

Event 8 Girls 5k Run CC Nike ROC
=======================================================================
Name Year School Finals Points
=======================================================================
1 Ashley Brasovan 09 Wellington HS, Well 17:05.6
2 Kathy Kroeger 09 Independence HS, Th 17:47.6
3 Emilie Amaro 08 Cypress Bay HS, Wes 18:00.7
4 Emily Reese 08 Chamblee HS, Chambl 18:04.3
5 Stephanie Morgan 09 Barnesville HS, Bar 18:08.2
6 Kayla Hale 09 Holy Trinity Aca, M 18:28.7 1
7 Marie Demedicis 12 Mountain Brook H, B 18:32.4 2
8 Katlyn Will 09 Corinth HS, Corinth 18:37.6
9 Amanda Winslow 09 Collins Hill HS, Su 18:40.0 3
10 Kacey Nobert 12 St. Agnes Academ, M 18:42.2
11 Madeline Morgan 09 Mountain Brook H, B 18:45.2 4
12 Catherine Diethelm 12 Mountain Brook H, B 18:49.4 5
13 Katie Hutson 10 Sparkman HS, Harves 18:51.0 6
14 Kathleen Traylor 10 Episcopal Hs-Gir, J 18:59.5 7
15 Kate Borowicz 09 JL Mann HS, Greenvi 18:59.6
16 Nicky Akande 10 Collins Hill HS, Su 19:02.4 8
17 Alyssa Kulik 08 Mauldin HS, Mauldin 19:03.7 9
18 Jennifer Dunn 08 Austin HS 19:05.2
19 Maddison Garcia 09 Crested Butte Ac, M 19:10.3
20 Adriana Poole 09 Sparkman HS, Harves 19:12.2 10
21 Carissa Bowman 08 Martin Luther Ki, R 19:13.2 11
22 Melanie Kulesz 09 Oak Ridge HS, Oak R 19:16.9 12
23 Caroline Kirby 08 TC Roberson HS, Ash 19:20.2 13
24 Adrienne Curtis 08 Assumption HS, Loui 19:22.5 14
25 Autumn Gipson 10 Oak Ridge HS, Oak R 19:24.3 15
26 Nicole Muldowney 08 Hoover HS, Hoover, 19:26.8 16
27 Ashley Shiver 09 Satellite HS, Satel 19:28.7 17
28 Kelsey Kane 08 Knoxville West H, K 19:31.4
29 Allyson McGinty 09 Collins Hill HS, Su 19:32.3 18
30 Hillary Raidt 09 Assumption HS, Loui 19:32.9 19
31 Laura Steel 08 Episcopal Hs-Gir, J 19:36.7 20
32 Brigid Carey 08 Mountain Brook H, B 19:39.9 21
33 Kimberly Muldowney 12 Hoover HS, Hoover, 19:41.0 22
34 Briana Crawford 09 Collins Hill HS, Su 19:41.5 23
35 Kelsi Tippets 10 Martin Luther Ki, R 19:51.0 24
36 Elsbeth Denton 09 Vestavia Hills H, V 19:53.4 25
37 Adrian Etheridge 12 Oak Ridge HS, Oak R 19:54.7 26
38 Leslie Blackshear 10 Episcopal Hs-Gir, J 19:55.4 27
39 Ellen Daly 09 Assumption HS, Loui 19:57.0 28
40 Caroline Ward 08 Parkview Hs-Girl, L 19:57.3 29
41 Markie Voyles 09 White County HS, Sp 19:57.9
42 Corinne Lariviere 09 Oak Ridge HS, Oak R 19:59.4 30
43 Lindsey Ebert 08 Parkview Hs-Girl, L 19:59.7 31
44 Zoe Dubin 10 TC Roberson HS, Ash 19:59.8 32
45 Juliana Stern 09 Satellite HS, Satel 20:00.0 33
46 Sara Davis 10 Assumption HS, Loui 20:01.7 34
47 Hannah Morgan 08 Mauldin HS, Mauldin 20:03.1 35
48 Alexa Neiling 10 Mauldin HS, Mauldin 20:05.4 36
49 Stephanie Chapman 08 TC Roberson HS, Ash 20:06.1 37
50 Allison Riedling 10 Assumption HS, Loui 20:07.5 38
51 Abbie Robinson 08 Chapel Hill HS, Dou 20:08.5 39
52 MaryGrace Pellegrini 08 duPont Manual HS, L 20:11.4
53 Ashley Stovall 09 Chapel Hill HS, Dou 20:11.9 40
54 Leslie Jenkins 10 Oak Ridge HS, Oak R 20:13.5 41
55 Marie Mauhar 12 TC Roberson HS, Ash 20:14.8 42
56 Reed Ellis 08 Mountain Brook H, B 20:17.2 43
57 Jill Cowart 12 Hoover HS, Hoover, 20:17.7 44
58 Caroline McDonough 10 Mauldin HS, Mauldin 20:18.4 45
59 Melissa Jones 10 Holy Trinity Aca, M 20:21.1 46
60 Lizzie Lohmar 10 Collins Hill HS, Su 20:23.7 47
61 Kylie Smith 09 TC Roberson HS, Ash 20:26.0 48
62 Mariah Loop 10 Episcopal Hs-Gir, J 20:27.0 49
63 Savannah McKendree 10 Holy Trinity Aca, M 20:30.7 52
63 Margaret Traylor 08 Episcopal Hs-Gir, J 20:30.7 51
63 Shea Spicher 10 Parkview Hs-Girl, L 20:30.7 50
66 Rebecca Asplund 10 Martin Luther Ki, R 20:37.4 53
67 Danielle Fillmore 10 Martin Luther Ki, R 20:47.4 54
68 Teresa Ristow 12 Holy Trinity Aca, M 20:48.9 55
69 Alexa Maring 08 Collins Hill HS, Su x20:52.4 56
70 Lisa Saari 10 Parkview Hs-Girl, L 20:54.9 57
71 Katie Gezon 08 Collins Hill HS, Su x20:58.3 58
72 Whitney Irby 08 Oak Ridge HS, Oak R x21:02.4 59
73 Laura Hoer 10 TC Roberson HS, Ash x21:03.3 60
74 Rachel Neiling 09 Mauldin HS, Mauldin 21:03.5 61
75 Brooke Hardington 09 Episcopal Hs-Gir, J x21:04.5 62
76 Nicole Shiver 12 Satellite HS, Satel 21:04.7 63
77 Julie Gottfried 08 Auburn Hs-Girls, Au 21:06.2 64
78 Jocelyn Hamel 09 Parkview Hs-Girl, L 21:08.1 65
79 Katelyn George 08 Hoover HS, Hoover, 21:09.2 66
80 Kathleen Jacob 10 Mauldin HS, Mauldin x21:12.2 67
81 Katelyn Gentry 10 Hoover HS, Hoover, 21:14.6 68
82 Heather Farthing 09 Holy Trinity Aca, M 21:17.0 69
83 Kasey Tippets 12 Martin Luther Ki, R 21:20.0 70
84 Haley Drosky 12 Chapel Hill HS, Dou 21:28.4 71
85 Devin Waldron 09 Chapel Hill HS, Dou 21:33.7 72
86 Amy Stamon 09 Assumption HS, Loui x21:34.4 73
87 Alisa Kowaleski 08 Satellite HS, Satel 21:38.5 74
88 Katie Ladd 12 Episcopal Hs-Gir, J x21:40.1 75
89 Renee Kulik 10 Mauldin HS, Mauldin x21:41.5 76
90 Ashley Kirkman 10 Parkview Hs-Girl, L x21:42.3 77
91 Stephanie Bird 08 Holy Trinity Aca, M x21:43.6 78
92 Nicole Melilli 08 Chapel Hill HS, Dou 21:45.5 79
93 Courtney Ruggles 10 Auburn Hs-Girls, Au 21:50.5 80
94 Mollie Hibbard 10 Satellite HS, Satel 21:51.8 81
95 Brandi Rosenau 09 Martin Luther Ki, R x21:54.0 82
96 Laura Smith 12 Hoover HS, Hoover, x21:54.4 83
97 Grace Kucera 10 Holy Trinity Aca, M x21:57.5 84
98 Sara Allison 12 Parkview Hs-Girl, L x21:58.0 85
99 Lauren Irby 08 Oak Ridge HS, Oak R x21:59.1 86
100 Stacy Yarbrough 09 Martin Luther Ki, R x22:00.2 87
101 Haley Davies 10 Auburn Hs-Girls, Au 22:04.7 88
102 Emily Burroughs 09 Chapel Hill HS, Dou x22:06.5 89
103 Lucy Newton 09 Mountain Brook H, B x22:09.1 90
104 Madison Enebak 10 Auburn Hs-Girls, Au 22:10.4 91
105 Megan O'Brien 08 Hoover HS, Hoover, x22:14.7 92
106 Brittany Lay 08 Assumption HS, Loui x22:23.6 93
107 Jessica Thornton 09 Sparkman HS, Harves 22:48.2 94
108 Kayln Wolfe 10 Chapel Hill HS, Dou x22:51.0 95
109 Jessica Hartline 09 Auburn Hs-Girls, Au 22:53.2 96
110 Kate Pearce 09 Vestavia Hills H, V 22:56.7 97
111 Ariel Cecil 09 Vestavia Hills H, V 23:02.5 98
112 Jessy Downey 10 TC Roberson HS, Ash x23:06.4 99
113 Sharlea Robbins 09 Satellite HS, Satel x23:14.6 100
114 Olivia Glasscock 10 Auburn Hs-Girls, Au x23:17.8 101
115 Kathryn Lee 09 Vestavia Hills H, V 23:21.7 102
116 Bethany Kuhn 10 Vestavia Hills H, V 23:39.3 103
117 Kathryn Crenshaw 10 Vestavia Hills H, V x23:47.0 104
118 Grace Pritchard 09 Vestavia Hills H, V x25:02.5 105
119 Anna Brainerd 13 Sparkman HS, Harves 25:05.8 106
120 Katie Parry 10 Satellite HS, Satel x25:29.6 107
121 Nina Heilman 10 Sparkman HS, Harves 27:13.7 108
122 Jessica Woods 09 Sparkman HS, Harves x27:20.9 109

Team Scores
=================================================================================
Rank Team Total 1 2 3 4 5 *6 *7 *8 *9
=================================================================================
1 Mountain Brook HS, Birmin 75 2 4 5 21 43 90
Total Time: 1:36:04.10
Average: 19:12.82
2 Collins Hill HS, Suwanee, 99 3 8 18 23 47 56 58
Total Time: 1:37:19.90
Average: 19:27.98
3 Oak Ridge HS, Oak Ridge, 124 12 15 26 30 41 59 86
Total Time: 1:38:48.80
Average: 19:45.76
4 Assumption HS, Louisville 133 14 19 28 34 38 73 93
Total Time: 1:39:01.60
Average: 19:48.32
5 Episcopal Hs-Girls, Jacks 154 7 20 27 49 51 62 75
Total Time: 1:39:29.30
Average: 19:53.86
6 TC Roberson HS, Asheville 172 13 32 37 42 48 60 99
Total Time: 1:40:06.90
Average: 20:01.38
7 Mauldin HS, Mauldin, SC 186 9 35 36 45 61 67 76
Total Time: 1:40:34.10
Average: 20:06.82
8 Martin Luther King HS, Ri 212 11 24 53 54 70 82 87
Total Time: 1:41:49.00
Average: 20:21.80
9 Hoover HS, Hoover, AL 216 16 22 44 66 68 83 92
Total Time: 1:41:49.30
Average: 20:21.86
10 Holy Trinity Academy, Mel 223 1 46 52 55 69 78 84
Total Time: 1:41:26.40
Average: 20:17.28
11 Parkview Hs-Girls, Lilbur 232 29 31 50 57 65 77 85
Total Time: 1:42:30.70
Average: 20:30.14
12 Satellite HS, Satellite B 268 17 33 63 74 81 100 107
Total Time: 1:44:03.70
Average: 20:48.74
13 Chapel Hill HS, Douglasvi 301 39 40 71 72 79 89 95
Total Time: 1:45:08.00
Average: 21:01.60
14 Sparkman HS, Harvest, AL 324 6 10 94 106 108 109
Total Time: 1:53:10.90
Average: 22:38.18
15 Auburn Hs-Girls, Auburn, 419 64 80 88 91 96 101
Total Time: 1:50:05.00
Average: 22:01.00
16 Vestavia Hills HS, Vestav 425 25 97 98 102 103 104 105
Total Time: 1:52:53.60
Average: 22:34.72

 




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