Showdown for girls’ supremacy should again come down to showcase of Midwest, Northeast stars

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

The following are five female athletes who have the potential to challenge for the individual title, along with one contender who could be flying under the radar in the girls race at the 41st Foot Locker National Championships at Balboa Park’s Morley Field in San Diego, Calif.

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Zofia Dudek, Ann Arbor Pioneer MI, Senior

Following an exceptional fifth-place effort in a 4-kilometer race Dec. 7 representing Poland at the European U-20 Championships in Portugal, Dudek returns to the United States in search of her biggest achievement in a high school competition.

Prior to competing for Poland, Dudek won the Nike Midwest regional title with a 5-kilometer record 16:49.3 to edge Katelynne Hart (16:49.9) at the LaVern Gibson Course in Terre Haute, Ind.

She also placed second Nov. 30 behind fellow Michigan standout Abby VanderKooi at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional in Kenosha, Wis.

The Stanford signee would be the first female athlete representing a country other than the U.S. to capture the girls individual title since Weini Kelati of Heritage VA, who has competed internationally for Eritrea, won the championship in 2015.

Megan Goethals of Rochester High is the last Michigan female athlete to secure a national crown in 2009 in the closest girls’ finish in meet history by 0.2 seconds.

Taylor Ewert, Beavercreek OH, Senior

The past three national championship cross country races in Ewert’s career have produced finishes of second, third and fourth place.

She was less than a second away from capturing a national title Dec. 7 at Nike Cross Nationals in Portland, being edged by three-time winner Katelyn Tuohy of North Rockland NY by 0.7, but Ewert is hoping to save her best for last by becoming the first female athlete from Ohio since Connie Jo Robinson in 1981 to secure a championship.

A national cross country title would add to Ewert’s legacy as one of the most versatile prep distance athletes in U.S. history, with the Arkansas signee already capturing championships in both the race walk and steeplechase at New Balance Nationals, along with three USATF U-20 crowns in the race walk.

If Ewert can secure a national crown, the two-time Ohio Division 1 state champion would join Rachel Johnson of Plano Senior TX (2010) as the only female athletes in prep history to place in the top two of both national championship races in the same year.

Katelynne Hart, Glenbard West IL, Senior

When it comes to Foot Locker competition, Hart has been one of the most consistent performers from any state in recent years, never placing lower than fourth in regional or national competition.

But despite being the dominant female athlete in Illinois throughout her career, Hart is also searching for her first career victory at a Foot Locker event, her last chance coming in the championship race.

Hart has been national runner-up the past two years, finishing 19 seconds behind two-time winner Claudia Lane of Malibu CA in 2017, before being edged by 0.7 seconds last season by Sydney Masciarelli in the second-closest girls’ finish in meet history.

Although Illinois has had four male athletes combine to win five individual Foot Locker national titles in the past four decades, the state is still looking to crown its first girls champion.

The Michigan signee will look for a big rebound effort after a 50th-place finish Dec. 7 at Nike Cross Nationals.

Sydney Masciarelli, Marianapolis Prep CT, Junior

Although basketball season has already started for Masciarelli, her path to back-to-back national championships is far from a slam dunk.

Masciarelli became the 18th female athlete to capture a Foot Locker national crown before her senior year, but only four of those athletes were able to repeat the following season.

Masciarelli is hoping to join Claudia Lane of Malibu CA (2016-17), Erin Sullivan of Mount Mansfield VT (1997-98), Melody Fairchild of Boulder CO (1989-90) and Erin Keogh of Langley VA (1985-86) with a second straight title, but will do so after placing runner-up at the Northeast Regional behind Marlee Starliper of Northern PA.

Masciarelli is the first defending champion looking to repeat after not winning her regional title the following season since Sullivan in 1998.

She also endured a setback Oct. 27 with a fourth-place finish at the Boston Mayor’s Cup, won by fellow Northeast qualifier Margot Appleton of Portsmouth Abbey MA.

But Masciarelli became the sixth sophomore in meet history to capture a girls national championship last season by surging ahead of Katelynne Hart in the final 100 meters, demonstrating her composure in high-pressure situations, which she’ll need to showcase again in the final.

Marlee Starliper, Northern PA, Senior

The number 13 hasn’t just been unlucky, but unwanted for Starliper in her first two trips to San Diego.

Despite winning the Northeast Regional in 2017 and placing second last year, Starliper has finished 13th the past two seasons at Foot Locker nationals, a trend she doesn’t intend to continue in her final appearance at Balboa Park’s Morley Field.

Starliper won the regional title for the second time in her career Nov. 30 at Van Cortlandt Park in New York, running the second-fastest 5-kilometer time in regional history by clocking 17:03.6.

Starliper prevailed by 15 seconds over reigning national champion Sydney Masciarelli, but their last high school cross country matchup is the one that matters most, with the North Carolina State commit looking to become the first Pennsylvania female athlete to capture a national title since Tessa Barrett of Abington Heights in 2013.

Starliper enters the Foot Locker final for the first time in her career after competing at Nike Cross Nationals, placing fifth Dec. 7 in Portland.

Sleeper: Abby VanderKooi, Muskegon Western Michigan Christian, Sophomore

Last year’s third-place finisher also ran the third-fastest time in meet history as a freshman, covering the 5-kilometer course in 17:14, trailing only the winning effort of 17:05 produced by Jordan Hasay of Mission Prep CA in 2005 and the championship performance of 17:11.8 by Erin Davis of Saratoga Springs NY in 1993.

She has won 13 of 14 races this season, with a third-place finish Sept. 13 at the MSU Spartan Invite the only setback.

VanderKooi finished behind Zofia Dudek and Taylor Ewert in that race, but prevailed against both athletes by clocking 17:17.8 at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional in Kenosha, Wis.

VanderKooi, a two-time Michigan Division 4 champion, finished fourth at the regional meet last year in 18:15.1.

She didn’t compete last week at Nike Cross Nationals, which could benefit her against several leading contenders who are racing for the second time in eight days and the fourth time in a month. VanderKooi is looking to become the seventh female athlete in meet history to capture a national crown.