By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

The 43rd edition of the Champs Sports Cross Country Championships, formerly the Kinney Nationals, Foot Locker Nationals and Eastbay Nationals, is scheduled for Saturday, December 10 at Balboa Park’s Morley Field in San Diego, Calif.

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Here are 10 storylines to follow at the final high school national championship cross country event of the year:

Pulling double duty

Nineteen athletes, 10 boys and nine girls, will be experiencing their second national race in an eight-day span after competing Dec. 3 in either Nike Cross Nationals at Glendoveer Golf Course in Oregon or the Garmin RunningLane Championships at John Hunt Park in Alabama.

That is in addition to the quick turnaround for the 20 competitors who qualified Dec. 3 at the West Regional at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif.

Eight boys and six girls who are entered in the Champs Sports championship races also competed at NXN, with 11 of the 14 athletes building momentum by securing All-America honors.

Kole Mathison from Carmel High in Indiana enjoyed the best finish in Oregon, placing fourth in the boys championship race.

Simeon Birnbaum of Rapid City Stevens High in South Dakota secured sixth, Noah Breker from Robbinsdale Armstrong in Minnesota was seventh, Benne Anderson of Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills in Michigan grabbed ninth, Hunter Jones from Benzie Central in Michigan took 10th and Connor Ackley of Hilliard Davidson in Ohio earned 18th.

Ayden Granados of McAllen Memorial and Marcelo Parra of TMI - The Episcopal School of Texas finished 59th and 89th, respectively, at NXN.

Isabel Conde de Frankenberg of Cedar Park High in Texas secured sixth in the girls championship race at Glendoveer Golf Course, followed by Sophia Kennedy from Park Tudor High in Indiana taking seventh.

Tatum David of Olney Richland County in Illinois earned eighth at NXN and won the Champs Sports Midwest Regional title Nov. 26 at the Wayne E. Dannehl course at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, but will not be competing Saturday as a result of illness.

Paityn Noe of Ballard Community in Iowa placed 10th and Nicole Humphries from Flower Mound in Texas achieved 13th to also earn All-America honors.

Helen Sachs of Holland West Ottawa in Michigan finished 60th at NXN and will be a race-day decision as to whether she competes in San Diego.

Four female athletes scheduled to compete Saturday at Balboa Park were All-Americans at the Garmin RunningLane Championships, highlighted by a runner-up effort from sophomore Zariel Macchia of William Floyd in New York, who was the top freshman competitor last year by taking 12th in San Diego.

Allie Zealand from Pacers Homeschool in Virginia finished fourth, with Katie Clute of Olmsted Falls in Ohio and Gretchen Farley of Park Tudor, Kennedy’s teammate, achieving 10th and 11th, respectively.

Brian DiCola of Hatboro Horsham High in Pennsylvania placed fourth in the boys gold race to achieve All-America recognition in Alabama, with Nathan Atchue from Franklin County High in Virginia finishing 34th overall.

Last season, with only the Garmin RunningLane Championships on the calendar, 10 athletes who competed in Alabama – five male and five female participants – also raced at the national final in San Diego, including Natalie Cook of Flower Mound, who swept both girls individual titles.

Baloga primed for big moment at Balboa Park

Karrie Baloga of Cornwall Central High in New York is the only three-time finalist among the 80 athletes competing Saturday at Balboa Park’s Morley Field, having participated in championship races sponsored by Foot Locker, Eastbay and Champs Sports during her career.

Not only does the Colorado commit have an opportunity to become just the fourth New York female competitor in meet history to earn All-America honors three times, but she could also match the other previous standouts by capturing a national championship.

Baloga grabbed 11th as a freshman in the 2019 national final, before the pandemic canceled the event her sophomore year.

She returned to San Diego last season to finish fourth and then qualified for a third time with a runner-up finish Nov. 26 at the Northeast Regional meet with a 17:24.9 effort on the 5-kilometer layout at Van Cortlandt Park in New York.

Aisling Cuffe, also from Cornwall Central, was the last New York girls national champion crowned in San Diego, securing victory in 2010.

Cuffe finished 12th as a sophomore in 2008, then elevated to fourth in 2009, before winning her senior year.

Aislinn Ryan of Warwick Valley secured the national title as a junior in 2004 after finishing 12th the year before in her championship debut. Ryan finished third as a senior in 2005.

Erin Davis of Saratoga Springs won the national championship as a freshman in 1993, followed by a fourth-place finish as a sophomore and seventh-place effort her senior year in 1996 after missing the final as a junior.

Christine Curtin of Mepham High won the 1982 national title in Orlando, Fla., to become the first New York female competitor to triumph at the event. Curtin also qualified in 1980 and 1981, but did not race either year at the national championship.

New York ranks second in meet history with four female national champions, trailing California with 10 girls winners, including two-time title holders Claudia Lane of Malibu in 2016-17 and Jordan Hasay of San Luis Obispo Mission Prep in 2005 and 2008.

Baloga is being joined in San Diego by returning All-Americans Sophia Kennedy from Park Tudor High in Indiana, Zariel Macchia of William Floyd in New York and Sadie Engelhardt from Ventura High in California.

Ellie Shea of Belmont High in Massachusetts, Gretchen Farley of Park Tudor, Ciara O’Shea from Madison Central in Kentucky, Abby Faith Cheeseman of The Webb School in Bell Buckle, Tenn., and Virginia standouts Thais Rolly of McLean, Maddie Gardiner from The Covenant School and Allie Zealand representing Pacers Homeschool are also scheduled to return. 

Mathison ready to leave his mark

Some of the most impressive national championship doubles since multiple postseason meets were first held in 2004 achieved in Oregon and San Diego have been produced by Indiana male competitors, and Kole Mathison of Carmel High is ready Saturday to add his name to the exceptional list.

Mathison finished fourth Dec. 3 at Nike Cross Nationals at Glendoveer Golf Course and is looking to achieve another top-five performance at Balboa Park, if not contend for the title.

Cole Hocker of Indianapolis Cathedral High was runner-up in 2018 at NXN, then won at Balboa Park the following week in a national championship meet then sponsored by Foot Locker to become the first Indiana male athlete to capture the title since Michael Fout of La Porte High in 2007.

Futsum Zeinasellassie of North Central High won NXN in 2011, then secured second behind Edward Cheserek of St. Benedict’s Prep in New Jersey at the national final in San Diego.

Ben Veatch remains the only Carmel athlete to place in the top five in both national championship races in the same year, finishing second at NXN and taking third at Balboa Park in 2015, with Mathison looking to join him Saturday.

Sarah Leinheiser of Carmel achieved seventh at NXN and earned eighth in San Diego, also in 2015.

Brian DiCola of Hatboro Horsham High in Pennsylvania, who finished fourth Dec. 3 at the Garmin RunningLane Championships at John Hunt Park in Huntsville, Ala., also has the opportunity to finish in the top five in a pair of national competitions.

Mathison is one of two returning All-Americans from the boys race last year in San Diego, along with Kevin Sanchez of Austin Vandegrift in Texas, but the Notre Dame commit will not be racing at Balboa Park as a result of injury.

Sam Burgess from Framingham High in Massachusetts and Hunter Jones of Benzie Central in Michigan are the other male competitors returning from the final last season at Balboa Park.

Shea seeks redemption run toward title

Ellie Shea was one of two female competitors who didn’t finish the championship race last season in San Diego.

But the junior from Belmont High in Massachusetts, representing Emerging Elites, has the unique opportunity to rebound in the most impressive fashion Saturday by becoming a national champion.

No competitor in meet history has gone from not finishing the race the previous season to winning a national title the following year.

Julia Stamps of Santa Rosa High in California won the girls title as a sophomore in 1994, but unfortunately she was unable to finish the championship race each of the next two years.

Galen Rupp from Central Catholic High in Oregon enjoyed a big rebound in 2003 by placing second as a senior in the boys championship race after not finishing the national final as a junior.

Shea is also looking to become the first female champion from a high school based in Massachusetts after winning the Northeast Regional crown Nov. 26 by covering the 5-kilometer course in 17:10.7 at Van Cortlandt Park in New York.

Sydney Masciarelli, the 2018 girls winner, represented the city of Northbridge in Massachusetts, but attended Marianapolis Prep in Connecticut.

Abdirizak Mohamud, the boys national champion in 1996-97, is the only male athlete from Massachusetts to capture a title in meet history.

Shea competed in a 3,000-meter indoor track race in her final national tuneup Dec. 3 at the Sharon Colyear Danville Season Opener and ran 9:10.85, just off her personal-best 9:08.54 on the same track Feb. 27 at the Boston University Last Chance meet.

Shea has also competed Oct. 8 in the Boston 10K for Women road race, placing 12th in 34:11, along with clocking 21:37 to finish fourth in a 6-kilometer cross country race Nov. 6 at the USATF New England Championships at Franklin Park in Boston.

Birnbaum, Breker could finally close the deal

Minnesota and South Dakota have come close to producing national champions in San Diego, but both states have been left to wonder when the next great opportunity could arise after each enduring long droughts without a title contender.

But optimism is high that championship breakthroughs could occur Saturday with Simeon Birnbaum of Rapid City Stevens High representing South Dakota and Noah Breker of Robbinsdale Armstrong competing for Minnesota.

Birnbaum secured sixth Dec. 3 at Nike Cross Nationals at Glendoveer Golf Course, with Breker right behind in seventh, both representing the Heartland Region. They will be part of the Midwest Regional lineup Saturday at Balboa Park.

Greg Jimmerson of Rapid City Stevens was second in the 1992 boys championship race at Balboa Park, enduring a four-second setback to Brendan Heffernan of North Hunterdon, N.J.

Kim Klaus came the closest of any Minnesota competitor to capturing a national crown in 1986, placing runner-up to two-time champion Erin Keogh of Langley High in Virginia.

Hassan Mead of Minneapolis South boasts the best finish by a Minnesota male competitor in meet history, taking fourth in 2006.

Minnesota hasn’t produced a boys All-American since 2008 and South Dakota hasn’t had a male athlete earn All-America honors since 2011.

Sophomores striving for spotlight

Six sophomores have won girls national titles in San Diego, with Sadie Engelhardt of Ventura High in California having an opportunity to add to that total Saturday after winning the West Regional crown Dec. 3 at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.

Engelhardt is one of three freshmen who competed last year at Balboa Park, placing 15th to earn All-America honors. Zariel Macchia of William Floyd High in New York, the top ninth-grader in the national final last season by finishing 12th, also returns along with Abby Faith Cheeseman of The Webb School in Bell Buckle, Tenn., who was 31st in her championship debut in San Diego.

There are 10 sophomores among the 80 finalists, including seven female competitors, including Holly Barker from Laguna Hills High in California, Alyssa Sauro from Williamstown High in West Virginia, in addition to Michigan standouts Jessica Jazwinski from Hart High and Helen Sachs of Holland West Ottawa.

Tam Gavenas of Phillips Academy Andover in Massachusetts, along with California athletes Trey Caldwell from Concord De La Salle High and Broen Holman of Sonora High are the three sophomore boys finalists. 

Engelhardt has the potential to become the third California female athlete to capture the national title, joining Claudia Lane of Malibu High in 2016 and Julia Stamps of Santa Rosa High in 1994.

Macchia would be the first New York girls competitor to triumph as a sophomore, with Cheeseman potentially matching the feat of Kathy Kroeger from Independence High in Tennessee, who prevailed as a 10th-grader in 2006 after finishing 16th overall as a freshman.

Sydney Masciarelli of Marianpolis Prep in Connecticut was the last sophomore to secure the girls championship in 2018 in her debut at a national final.

Stamps was successful in her first appearance in San Diego in 1994, with Anna Rohrer of Mishawaka High in Indiana achieving the same feat in 2012 and Lane emerging victorious in her national debut in 2016.

Zoe Nelson of Flathead High in Montana placed 20th as a freshman in 2001, before winning the national title in 2002.

More Michigan magic on the way

Riley Hough of Hartland High helped Michigan match California with the most boys individual winners in meet history last year, earning the eighth title for the state.

But Michigan’s championship success isn’t usually limited to one season, as the state has demonstrated the ability to secure back-to-back titles, if not three in a row, during the past 25 years.

Dathan Ritzenhein of Rockford High secured consecutive national championships in 1999 and 2000 in Orlando, Fla., followed by Timothy Moore from Novi High capturing the title in 2001, the only time one state has produced three straight boys winners in meet history.

Grant Fisher of Grand Blanc High took home two straight titles from Balboa Park in 2013 and 2014, the last national championships for Michigan before Hough prevailed last year.

Abdul Alzindani of Dearborn Fordson was another Michigan boys champion in 1995 and Brian Grosso of Western High secured the first title for the state in 1988.

Michigan has potential to produce another champion Saturday with four more qualifiers from Nov. 26 at the Midwest Regional at the Wayne E. Dannehl course at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha.

Hunter Jones of Benzie Central returns following a 33rd-place finish last year in San Diego, and is joined by Benne Anderson of Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills, Connell Alford from Chelsea and Seth Norder of Grand Haven.

California boasts the most male qualifiers of any state with six, but the host state hasn’t produced a national boys champion since Chad Hall of Big Bear in 2006.

The California girls hold the meet record with 10 individual champions, and have a leading contender Saturday in Ventura High sophomore and West Regional winner Sadie Engelhardt, but the Michigan boys could move closer to the all-time mark if Alford, Anderson, Jones or Norder can follow Hough’s success. 

O’Shea hopes to strike gold for Bluegrass State

It has been 20 years since the best performance by a Kentucky prep competitor in San Diego, but the state has still yet to produce a national champion in either gender in meet history.

Ciara O’Shea, a senior at Madison Central and the only five-time Class 3A state winner, could make history again by ascending to the top of the podium at Balboa Park following a 26th-place performance in 18:17.0 last year.

O’Shea won the South Regional crown by covering the 5-kilometer layout with a 16:58.9 effort Nov. 26 at McAlpine Greenway in Charlotte, N.C., becoming the first Kentucky female athlete to achieve the feat.

Michael Eaton of Greenwood High was the last male competitor from Kentucky to win the South Regional crown in 2005.

Former St. Xavier standouts Bobby Curtis (2002) and Joseph Beuchler (1980) also secured regional titles.

Curtis produced the best national finish at Balboa Park by any Kentucky athlete, taking third in 2002.

Donna Combs of Ballard High boasts the best female finish in San Diego by placing fourth in 1984.

Combs, who was also 13th in 1985, and Gabriella Karas of Martha Layne Collins – ninth in 2014 – are the only Kentucky female competitors to earn All-America honors in meet history.

Natalie Cook of Flower Mound High in Texas became the sixth female champion representing the South last year, which is the fewest girls individual winners among the four regions in meet history.

The last time the South produced back-to-back girls national champions in San Diego was 2006 and 2007, with Kathy Kroeger of Independence High in Tennessee and Ashley Brasovan from Wellington High in Florida.

Rocky looks to deliver knockout punch for North Carolina

Despite multiple near misses during the past decade, North Carolina has never crowned a national champion in meet history, but senior Rocky Hansen of Christ School could end the drought Saturday, one year after finishing 38th at the South Regional.

Hansen, who won the regional title Nov. 26 at McAlpine Greenway in Charlotte by covering the 5-kilometer layout in 14:40.1, is unbeaten in 10 races this season.

Hansen is the only North Carolina boys qualifier in the South Region lineup and the first male athlete from the state to compete in San Diego since Avery Cannon of Watauga finished 38th overall in 2019.

The best performance by a North Carolina male athlete at the national championship belongs to John Tatter of R.J. Reynolds, who placed fourth in 2017.

Matt DeBole of Mount Tabor boasts the fastest 5-kilometer performance by a North Carolina boys competitor at Balboa Park in San Diego, clocking 15:12 to finish fifth in 2002.

North Carolina female competitors produced three consecutive national top-three performances from 2014-16 in San Diego, including runner-up efforts from Ryen Frazier of Ravenscroft High and Nevada Mareno from Leesville Road to bookend the streak. Mareno also took third in 2015.

The South Region hasn’t crowned a boys individual champion since Reed Brown of Southlake Carroll High in Texas in 2016, which followed Drew Hunter of Loudoun Valley High in Virginia in 2015.

Only four South male athletes have captured national titles in meet history, the fewest of any region, regardless of gender.

Potential for regional scoring record

The meet record for all-time low score by a boys regional lineup has stood for more than 40 years, with the West placing five scorers in the top seven in 1980 to produce a 21-point performance.

The Midwest roster matched the effort by also accumulating 21 points in the 1987 final, sweeping the top three spots overall and having five athletes finish in the top eight.

And the West also achieved the top three individual performances and had five competitors place in the top eight in 1989 to also dominate with a 21-point effort.

All of those marks came in championship races with only 32 finalists, in comparison to the current format that features 40 national qualifiers, which could make the potential performance of the Midwest even more impressive.

Already the most successful boys region in meet history with 18 victories, the Midwest could even challenge the all-time championship record of 19 points produced in 2000 by the West girls lineup behind the depth of Kole Mathison of Carmel High in Indiana, Simeon Birnbaum of Rapid City Stevens High in South Dakota, Noah Breker from Robbinsdale Armstrong in Minnesota, Benne Anderson of Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills and fellow Michigan standout Hunter Jones from Benzie Central.

Connor Ackley of Hilliard Davidson High and another Ohio competitor in Tommy Rice from GlenOak, as well as Michigan qualifiers Connell Alford of Chelsea and Seth Norder from Grand Haven, plus Cameron Todd of Brebeuf Jesuit in Indiana could also contribute to another memorable Midwest effort and a second straight regional triumph after being edged by the Northeast in 2019 on a sixth-runner tiebreaker.

The Midwest girls roster will also look to add to its overall championship record of 20 victories after the Northeast lineup prevailed last year to achieve its first triumph since 2013. The Midwest girls had won three years in a row from 2017-19.