Preview
Surprises and Showdowns in Kenosha
By Stephen (SteveU) Underwood
Girls Preview
Foot Locker Midwest Boys Preview
Long before any of this year’s prep running phenoms were born,
there was a popular TV sitcom called “Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.” that
starred Jim Nabors. The signature expression that anyone who saw the
show remembers came when Gomer would lay a major revelation on someone
and trumpet, with his goofy Southern accent, “Surprise! Surprise!
Surprise!”
Gomer would be right at home in Kenosha, Wisconsin Saturday.
This year’s
Foot Locker Midwest Region meet (FLMW) is full of outstanding runners
who have pulled major stunners of one kind or another over the past 12
months.
Surprise! At the 2002 Foot Locker nationals, Garrett
Heath of Winona
(Minn.) HS took 6th-place after finishing 4th at FLMW.
Surprise! After
making cross-country nationals (5th FLMW), but taking just 27th, Christian
Wagner of Columbus (Ind.) North HS, improved his 2-mile from 9:30 (3200)
all the way down to 8:53.91 last spring to take the Adidas Outdoor Championships
2-mile over a star-studded field.
Surprise! This past summer, Florida
star Ryan Deak and his family pulled up roots and moved to Colorado,
where he enrolled and quickly continued his outstanding career at Smoky
Hill HS (Aurora), repeating at Great American among other victories (the
move, not good racing, was the surprise).
Surprise! But the top performer
at the Colorado state meet four weeks ago was not Deak, but mercurial
Bradley Harkrader (Thornton HS), who rocked the prep
harrier world with a meet-record 14:50 (breaking Adam Goucher's record)
that made him an instant national force.
But now,
none of this senior foursome will be greeted by any dropping jaws if
he crosses the finish line first on Saturday. The biggest surprise would
be if one of these four doesn’t win in Kenosha - though other
speedsters like Michigan Division I champ Dustin
Voss could see it differently.
Who is the best of these four horses anyway and who will be most ready
to roll Saturday in 35-40 degree weather on a tough course? Could it
be Garret Heath? The 2-time 2-A Minnesota champ still isn’t high
on a lot of radar screens, but guess what (surprise)? That 6th in San
Diego last year makes him the highest returning finisher. The Stanford
signee, who has been pleased with the way 2003 has gone so far, knows
he’ll
be watched and has no problem with it. “I‘m
happy with my season; everything’s gone well,’ he said. “I’ll
just go out there and run as hard as I can.” Of course, it will
also help him that he’s more familiar with his
competition, as they are with him. “I know some of these guys are
a lot better (than last year). I know who’s been running really
well.”
Christian Wagner might not have the respect he deserves, either - some
devalued his Adidas win because national leader Chris Solinsky opted
for the mile - but he has confirmed the revelation of last spring by
running through the fall unbeaten with times as fast as 14:35. The Indiana
state champ also counts the Midwest Meet of Champions and the recent
Mid East Meet of Champions among his triumphs. Wagner doesn’t see
his ascendance on the national scene as too surprising. “I don't
think either has exactly been a jump. It's just a logical progression,” he
said. “I think I have gotten
mentally stronger.” As far as what it will require to duplicate
his track success, the senior is very straightforward. “It will
take a lot of training and really good races at the right time.”
With
great success since his junior high days, Ryan
Deak hasn’t
snuck up on anyone. Last year he was 3rd in FL South and 12th in nationals.
But, to his credit, he has continued to excel through the Colorado move
and the kind of attention that might overwhelm a lesser runner. The idea
of running an open 3200 on the track in November raised eyebrows, but
everything was on the up and up - including Deak’s performance,
a sterling 8:51.65 that included a 59.7 closer.
“The 3200 last weekend told me a lot,” he said. “Basically,
all I have to do it trust my fitness and I will run great. It also showed
me that I can run with anyone if I just stay mentally tough.” Deak
has been very pleased with the move, his training and his season as a whole
-- and seems able to put aside the state meet loss, giving credit to Harkrader.
He leaves no question about his readiness. “Compared
to last year I feel like I'm on a whole different level. I'm in the best
shape of my life right now.”
One of the biggest improvements in
the nation this fall has come from Bradley Harkrader.
He was one of Colorado’s
best as a junior, but toiled under the shadow of Brent Vaughn and Ian
Burrell. He was 36th in FLMW and had track bests of 4:25/9:40 in the
spring. But he opened eyes big-time when he ran 15:10 at the Liberty
Bell Invite on Sept. 12, pushing Deak hard before losing by 12 seconds.
But no one was prepared what happened October 25 at Colorado Springs.
So how has Harkrader done it? “Throughout the season I kept the
mileage a little higher than I had the other years,” he said. “This
year my coaches and I have also focused more on the state meet than other
years where the goal was mainly to only get into the state meet.” As
far as getting to the next level, the senior knows what he’ll
have to do. “I think that I will really have to stay focused and
race hard,” he said. “I have to continue to run my races
and not someone else's if I hope to do well at regionals and, hopefully,
nationals.”
Don’t be surprised if any of these runners, however,
chooses to play it close to the vest and just runs to qualify. Some won’t
play their entire hand until San Diego.
Others who are key contenders:
Dustin Voss (Mich.) - Michigan’s
finest won state Div. I with a monster 14:54. Just 38th here last year,
but improved greatly. The senior ran 9:08 3200 last spring and anchored
AOC DMR champions from Saline.
Jeff See (Ohio) - Didn’t run here
last year, but ran incredible 4:06 mile as a soph last year. Showed his
CC chops by winning Div. I state, Portage Invite in Mich. and 4th in
Midwest MOC.
John Ealy (Ohio) - Leading returning non-qualifier
from FLMW (12th in 2002). The senior was 2nd behind See in Div. I meet.
Mike Krisch (Minn.) - 13th in FLMW last year while
a sophomore. The junior was 2nd to Heath at Roy Griak and 4th in the
2A state meet.
Matt Withrow (Ill.) - 14th in FLMW last year. The senior
took 2A state meet and the Notre Dame Invite.
Frank Tinney (Mich.) - 15th
in FLMW last year. The senior had 2nds behind Voss (Div. I state), See
(Portage Invite) and Wagner (Mid East).
Also look for Nebraska’s
Colby Wissel (9:06 last spring), Wisconsin state champ Chris
Rombough,
Kansas’s Paul Hefferon, Minnesota’s
Yahya Iman and Jake Watson, and Colorado’s Mohamud
Ige and Aden
Ahmed.--- among others!
Foot Locker Midwest Girls Preview
For “Midwest” towns, they could hardly be more different
- Ishpeming, Mich.; Aurora, Colo.; Dayton, Ohio and Carmel, Ind. - but
four of the nation’s top female runners will come from those parts
to clash with others from their home states and 10 others for the eight
spots to San Diego, Calif. next month.
With their competitive records
- as national qualifiers last year and champions everywhere they ran
this year - Michigan’s Amber Smith,
Colorado’s Katelyn Kaltenbach, Ohio’s Sunni Olding and Indiana’s
Katie Harrington probably have to be considered prohibitive favorites
to make the team. Amazingly, yet two more of the eight finalists from
the Midwest (Indiana’s Katie Harrington, Michigan’s Nikki
Bohnsack and North Dakota’s Staci Honeyman) return as well, but
neither has dominated her own state as much this year.
So, the girls race
may not have quite the buzz and bluster of the boys, but it should be
no less titanic, with 18 of the top 30 finishers returning - plus a few
others who didn’t run in the seeded race last year.
Besides Amber Smith, only defending champ Zoe Nelson
from Montana is as good a bet to make her third straight FL finals. From
the mining country of the western Upper Peninsula of Michigan - where
she has now racked up a whopping 14 state CC and track titles - Smith
raced to a 5th in San Diego last year after finishing a mere second behind
now-graduated Megan Kaltenbach in Kenosha. Smith (Ishpeming Westwood
HS) realizes being the highest returning finisher means she‘s no
longer just a contender at the FLMW. “It’s
kinda strange, after the last two years of just hoping to qualify,” the
senior said. “I’m hoping to win, of course, but I’m
just going to try and run my best. I feel like I’m a lot stronger
this year and better prepared.”
Ohio’s Sunni Olding also has something
in common with Nelson: A national title. The Minster HS standout won
the AOC 2-mile last spring in 10:25, after taking 6th in FLMW and 10th
in the country. Then she sped through this fall without a loss, finishing
with the Div. 3 state title. “The Adidas race last summer, along
with the Foot Locker regional and national races last year, gave me the
confidence that I could race with the top girls in the country,” Olding
said. “I feel like
I have accomplished all of the goals that I set at the beginning of this
season. However, my final goal is to qualify again for nationals.” Not
one to sit back on her laurels, the senior has pushed the envelope to keep
improving. “I gradually increased my mileage this summer
after the track season, and then held my peak mileage for a much longer
time than I had in the past,” she said. “I also continued
to lift consistently and began focusing a lot on core strength.”
Midwest
runners may have all followed Megan Kaltenbach to the tape last year,
but now it’s the younger Katelyn Kaltenbach they
have to worry about. Katelyn shadowed her sister for most of 2002, taking
5th in Kenosha, then 7th in San Diego, and now has emerged as a force
herself this fall. The Smoky Hill HS junior swept through the state without
a loss, including the 4A title, but it was probably her Great American
seeded race victory that opened the most eyes.
If you’re going to
mention Harrington, you may have to also mention fellow senior Alissa
McKaig, who has battled her for Indiana supremacy all year. McKaig (22nd
in FLMW last year) beat Harrington by 3 seconds for the state title.
But Harrington was 3rd to McKaig’s 5th at
the Mid East meet (with Indiana’s Julie Eckerly 4th). McKaig also
won the Midwest MOC meet early in the year.
Katie Harrington can certainly boast
better creds from last fall, though, as she was 4th at FLMW and 17th
in the nation. She also popped track times of 4:51 and 10:26 last spring.
Eckerly was 11th at FLMW last year.
Nikki Bohnsack, a senior and two-time national
qualifier who has been a leading light for her Rockford HS program her
whole career, may have difficulty making it a 3-peat after an 8th in
the Michigan Div. 1 state meet. But if she doesn’t make it, her
freshman teammate, state champ Rachel Wittum, may do
it. Another leading contender from the Great Lakes state is Nicole
Bush, who was a just-miss
9th at FLMW last year and won 3 straight Div. 3 state titles before dehydrating
this year.
The final returning national qualifier from the Midwest is
Staci Honeywell of North Dakota. But after dominating her state most
of her career, her Class B state-meet 3rd cast doubts on her ability
to repeat here.
Other leading contenders:
Angela Bizzarri (Ohio) - Won the freshman/sophomore race at FLMW last
year in a time that would have qualified for nationals. Now a soph, she
blitzed through most of the Ohio season before a disappointing 25th at
state.
Shannon Bergstedt (Minn.) - Senior was 14th at FLMW last year. Also
ran 4:51 mile last spring.
Morgan Schulz (Colo.) - Junior 2nd at 5A state behind teammate Kaltenbach;
17th in FLMW last year.
Meredith Snow (Mo.) - Sophomore was 18th at FLMW last year. Won 4A state
title and 2nd in Southern Stampede.
Lisa Waanenen (Minn.) - Senior won 2A state title; ran 10:33 last spring.
Katelyn Bastert (Ill.) - Freshman won 1A state meet.
Lisa Bonistelli (Ill.) - Senior was 2nd in 2A state (beat old course
record), 1st Notre Dame.
Sarah Fassbinder (Iowa) - Senior won state 3A meet with best time in
all classes.
Paulina Garcia (Ill.) - Sophomore won 2A state in course record.
Jennifer Harper (Mo.) - Junior was 1st in Southern Stampede, 2nd at
4A state.
Ramsey Kavan (S.D.) - Junior was 1st in state, 34th at FLMW last year.
Nelle Trefz (Iowa) - Senior was 3rd at Roy Griak, 2nd 4A state and 25th
at FLMW last year.
Sarah Wickman (Iowa) - Won 4A state.
Bethany McCoy (Ill.) - Senior was 2nd in Mid East meet, 3rd in state
2A.
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