NXN Southwest chocked full of headliners
By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor
ENTRIES
It's been a month since the Utah state meet and on Saturday some of the top runners in that state will find out whether the time in between races at Sugar House State Park and Toka Sticks (Mesa, Ariz.) has been well spent.
The NXN Southwest is shaping up as a blockbuster with superstar individuals from Colorado and super teams from Utah leading the charge.
But that extra month has already wiped out one team's hopes. The US#9 Park City girls won't be competing as a team, though they will have three individuals in the race. Three of the team's top performers aren't able to make it, which caused plans to change.
"Last year, we were leading NXN-SW through four runners and failed to make it," Park City coach Steve Cuttitta said. "This year, we were even better, and couldn't put it together. (I) guess we'll just keep working at it."
Even without Park City, the girls team competition is stacked with US#2 Davis UT, US#10 Fort Collins CO, US#15 Monarch CO and US#19 Desert Vista at the top of the list. This is a region that should see a third team added through an at-large selection, but that determination will come later.
Individually, this would seem to be Elise Cranny's show. The US#3 individual won here last year in 16:59 and has been virtually untouched all season. The Niwot (Colorado) senior will go up against Utah 5A champion Lucy Biles, Colorado 5A champion Lauren Gregory, 4A runner-up Katie Rainsberger, Arizona champion Danielle Jones and Nevada champion Sydney Badger -- among others.
On the boys side, US#6 American Fork of Utah will get a chance to re-establish itself in the national pecking order after a sensational state meet. US#14 Arizona champ Corona del Sol will have a short commute but could be pressed for that second berth by US#25 Lone Peak UT, US#38 Orem UT, always-tough Davis UT and Mountain Vista of Colorado.
After a disappointing experience at Foot Locker Midwest last year, Denver East star and US#1 individual Cerake Geberkidane decided to give NXN Southwest a try. It will be his first race outside of Colorado this season and should provide a legitimate gauge of his national championship potential. He will see Connor McMillan, who won the Utah state race, Conner Mantz of Utah, who was 12th at Foot Locker last year, Kramer Morton of Alta, 16th at Foot Locker last year, Clayson Shumway, who was eighth at NXN SW last year, and Arizona state champ Nate Rodriguez.
