Desert Vista star Ping attempting to become first Arizona female athlete to capture West Regional crown, following Nike Southwest victory; Lehi standout McMullin tries to join Orman in winning both regional titles in same year

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Lauren Ping hasn’t competed in a national cross country meet yet this fall and she has already accomplished a great deal, with the Desert Vista High junior looking to achieve more history Saturday at the Eastbay West Regional at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif.

Ping, a three-time Division 1 state champion, has the potential to become the first female athlete from Arizona to win the West Regional in the history of the Kinney, Foot Locker and Eastbay sponsored event.

The best finish by an Arizona girls competitor at the West Regional is Millicent Anderson of Canyon del Oro placing second at the 1980 Kinney meet.

She also has the opportunity to become the first female athlete to win both the West Regional and Nike Southwest Regional individual championships, having won the latter Nov. 20 by clocking 17 minutes, 15.29 seconds on the 5-kilometer course at Shalimar Country Club in Tempe, Ariz.

And she could join older sister Grace Ping, now a freshman at Oklahoma State, in qualifying for both Nike Cross Nationals as well as any version of the Kinney, Foot Locker and Eastbay national championship meet during their careers.

Lauren Ping prevailed in 2019 on the 2.93-mile layout in the Division 1-2 team sweepstakes race at the Mt. SAC Invitational, but will return to Walnut to compete on the 5-kilometer course for the first time.

She will face significant challenges from Oregon 6A champion Kate Peters, a junior from Lake Oswego High, who is pursuing the first West Regional victory by a female athlete from her state since Mariel Ettinger of La Grande High in 1997.

Mateo Althouse of Lincoln High in Oregon won the West Regional boys title in 2019.

A trio of competitors will be looking to extend the streak of California female winners to five in a row.

Sophia Nordenholz of Albany, a Washington commit, is looking to follow her Division 4 state title Nov. 27 at Woodward Park in Fresno with a regional championship, along with McClatchy junior Anna McNatt – the Division 1 winner – and Ventura freshman Sadie Engelhardt, the Division 2 runner-up, also capable of emerging victorious.

Two returning finalists from the 2019 national championship meet, Ella Borsheim from Bellarmine Prep in Washington, and Cate Joaquin of St. Francis Sacramento, are also scheduled to compete Saturday.

Borsheim, a Washington signee, was sixth at the regional two years ago and the Georgetown-bound Joaquin finished 10th at Mt. SAC.

Idaho 5A state champion Allie Bruce of Boise is entered, along with Utah 6A winner Addi Bruening of Herriman, Arizona Division 2 champ Mia Hall of Flagstaff and Kaiya Robertson of Franklin High in Oregon – the third-place finisher in the 6A state final and runner-up at the Pacific Northwest Regional Showcase – are also top contenders to advance to nationals.

Carissa Hofeling of Cedar City, the Utah 4A champion, is also expected to participate, as well as Oregon 5A title holder Emily Wisniewski of Crescent Valley, Washington 2A winner Jessica Frydenlund of Anacortes High and Arizona Division 3 champ Kylie Wild of Salpointe Catholic.

Montana AA champion Kensey May of Hellgate, in addition to New Mexico 5A winner Ellary Battle of Alamogordo, Nevada 5A title holder Eleanor Raker of Galena and Idaho 4A champ Nelah Roberts of Skyline are also scheduled to compete.

Other California competitors with the potential to qualify include Stormy Wallace of Sage Creek, Jacey Farmer of Rancho Bernardo, Aishling Callanan of Peninsula, Ashlyn Boothby of Scotts Valley, Elizabeth Fetter of Palo Alto, Brianne Smith of Quartz Hill, Katie Kopec of Whitney and Holly Barker of Laguna Hills.

Jefferson McMullin of Lehi High, the Utah 5A state champion, could also follow his Nike Southwest Regional victory Nov. 20 by winning the West Regional boys title. He would be the first Utah competitor to prevail since Talon Hull of Ogden in 2016.

McMullin, who ran 14:47.35 at Shalimar Country Club, is attempting to become the first male athlete to sweep both the West Regional and Nike Southwest titles since Billy Orman of Tuba City High in Arizona in 2010.

But one of the most intriguing storylines is a group of San Diego competitors looking to qualify for nationals, led by California Division 5 state champion and Yale commit Kenan Pala of Francis Parker.

Pala, along with Wake Forest-bound athletes Bryce Gilmore of Sage Creek and Mark Trammell of Santa Fe Christian, will look to advance to race in the national final Dec. 11 at the familiar venue of Balboa Park’s Morley Field.

After three male athletes from Oregon qualified in 2019, the state is looking to send another strong group to nationals this season with Crater teammates Tyrone Gorze – the 5A champion – and freshman Josiah Tostenson, the state runner-up, as well as Franklin senior Charlie North and Tualatin senior Caleb Lakeman, the second- and fifth-place finishers in the 6A final.

Ethan Coleman of Olympia High in Washington, the 4A state runner-up and Notre Dame commit, is looking to follow his victory Nov. 13 at the Nike Northwest Regional in Idaho by advancing to the national championship.

Ku Stevens, who captured the Nevada 1A-2A crown, in addition to 4A state champ of Danyom Yosief of Sierra Vista are also entered, as well as Bishop Blanchet junior William Schneider, the Washington 3A winner, Idaho 5A champion Luke Athay of Idaho Falls, Logan Peel of Cedar City – the Utah 4A title holder – and Montana AA first-place finisher Tanner Klumph of Sentinel.

Big Bear senior Max Sannes, the Division 4 state champion and an Air Force Academy commit, along with Zach Ayers of Davis Senior, Conor Gibson of West Torrance, Oscar Gomez of Concord De La Salle, Sean Morello of Albany, Jeremy Kain of Scotts Valley, Parker Simmons of Crescenta Valley, and Sonora teammates Adin Dibble and Broen Holman are additional strong contenders from California.

Jaron Hartshorn of Lone Peak, the Utah 6A runner-up and 12th-place finisher at Nike Southwest, also has the potential to advance, along with Noah Jenkins of Herriman – fifth in the Utah 6A final and 64th at Nike Southwest – and Michael Maiorano of South Medford, who placed eighth in the Oregon 6A final and took fourth at the Nike Northwest Regional.