Jordan Hasay leads the way on the girls side
With the fields finally set for the Foot Locker National Championships this coming weekend, the MileSplit Foot Locker National Power Rankings has very little movement this week. California athletes top the rankings with German Fernandez and Jordan Hasay leading the way.
MileSplit Foot Locker National Power Rankings (Nov. 4)
Boys
1. German Fernandez (Sr., Riverbank, CA) - A 15 second win was the closest Fernandez has been to second place all season long. The senior finally had some competition, but used a blazing third mile to crush the field. Through two miles Fernandez ran stride for stride with Utah's Luke Puskedra. However, he gapped Puskedra by 15 seconds in the final 800 meters to solidify his pre-race favorite status heading into Foot Locker Nationals. Fernandez won in 14:53.
2. Chris Derrick (Sr., Neuqua Valley, IL) - Derrick ran his third post-season competition and came out with a strong win heading into Foot Locker Nationals next weekend. The senior took the race from the gun and charged home with an impressive win at Nike Team Nationals. Derrick's mark set a course record, winning by three seconds in 15:39 on the challenging 5k course.
3. Colby Lowe (Sr., Southlake Carroll, TX) - After finishing fourth at Nike Team Nationals last year, Lowe placed an even better second overall, only losing in the final straight to Derrick. Lowe ran stride for stride with Derrick much of the way, losing by three seconds in 15:42.
4. Donn Cabral (Sr., Glastonbury, CT) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
5. Mike Fout (Sr., La Porte, IN) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
6. Luke Puskedra (Sr., Judge Memorial, UT) - Puskedra made Foot Locker West a fast race early on, controlling the pace by leading the race for the first two miles. Wearing a yellow jersey, the senior tried to hang with Fernandez in the last part of the race, but did not have enough in his legs to respond. He placed secod overall in 15:08.
7. Ryan Hill (Sr., Hickory, NC) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
8. Brian Leung (Sr., WW-PS, NJ) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
9. Maverick Darling (Sr., Ovid-Elise, MI) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
10. Ben Johnson (Sr., Albuquerque Academy, NM) - Running at altitude and then coming down to sea level for a fast paced race definitely did not help Johnson early on at Nike Team Nationals. Johnson tried to go with Derrick and Lowe early on but did not have enough in his legs to carry through at that pace the whole race. He placed third in 16:20, but helped his team to third place.
11. Stephen Clark (Sr., Skyline, UT) - Clark ran the best race of his season to place third at the Foot Locker West Regional. All season Clark ran in the shadow of Puskedra, but broke out this past Saturday with a fine 15:14 performance to beat the rest of a very strong field.
12. Jason Witt (Sr., Midlothian, VA) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
Girls
1. Jorday Hasay (Jr., Mission Prep, CA) - Hasay won her third straight Foot Locker West Regional title, beating a competitive field by over ten seconds. She executed her normal mid-race surge to break open a nice gap between herself and the rest of the field. Hasay won in 17:17 over the 5k road course.
2. Claire Durkin (Sr., Worthington, OH) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
3. Neely Spence (Sr., Shippensburg, PA) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
4. Carly Seymour (Sr., Central Cambria, PA) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
5. Ashley Brasovan (Jr., Wellington, FL) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
6. Christine Babcock (Sr., Woodbridge, CA) - Idle. Did not compete at the Foot Locker West Regional.
7. Kathy Kroeger (Jr., Independence, TN) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
8. Emily Infeld (Sr., Clev. Heights Beaumont, OH) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
9. Laurynne Chetelat (Sr., Davis, CA) - Using a great last mile to shore up a second place effort at the Foot Locker West Regional, Chetelat ran 17:28, finishing only eleven seconds behind race winner Hasay. The California senior looked strong the entire way.
10. Kayla Hale (Jr., Holy Trinity, FL) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.
11. Katie Flood (So., Dowling Catholic, IA) - Flood placed second in her first trip to Nike Team Nationals. Flood tailed leader Madeline Morgan (Sr., Mountain Brook, AL) much of the way, but did not have enough to outpace the senior, losing by ten seconds on the muddy 5k course.
12. Emily Jones (Jr., Bromfield, MA) - Idle. Next up Foot Locker Nationals.