By Michael Newman

DyeStat Illinois Editor

[email protected]

Kenosha, Wisc – Two Foot Locker National Champions made their mark on the Wayne Dannehl National Cross Country Course but took different paths to win their races Saturday morning. Grant Fisher (Grand Blanc, MI) certified that he will defend his 2013 championship making his win look easy in the Boys Championship Race. 2012 Girls National Champion Anna Rohrer (Mishawaka, IN) never got a chance to defend her crown last year after a broken bone in her foot sidelined her for the season. She will get a chance to go after her second Foot Locker title with a convincing win in the Girls Championship race.

It was not and day on this course. Friday afternoon, more than 2 inches of snow had fallen on the course making the trails that the majority of the course is run on very icy. On Saturday morning, the temperature jumped to an unseasonable 45 degrees by the time the Girls Championship went off. If jumped another 5 degrees to 50 by the time the cannon went off for the Boys race. Replace the ice with slick turns with the ice defrosting making survival the key in both races.

The race for Rohrer, the Indiana State champion, was more celebration and redemption than survival. She charged to the lead at the top of the hill a kilometer into the race. By the time she passed the two mile point in 10:50, Rohrer had opened up a fifteen second lead over a surprising Amy Davis (Madison, WI). The Wisconsin D2 champion made the sacrifice to go after Rohrer early in the race. The final mile was a matter of holding off a talented pack led by Stephanie Jenks (Linn-Marr, IA).

Rohrer stormed to the finish line crossing in 16:57. That time was only three seconds off of her time two years ago. If you look at the conditions of the course on this day, the time is even more amazing. The time did not matter to Rohrer. It was the joy of running again that spirited her to the win.

“I have more motivation and more fun running,” Rohrer said describing her injury setbacks. “I mean I always loved it. I have been through so many injuries. I realize that every day is a true blessing.”

The chase pack crossed the line 30 seconds later led by the second place finish by Lauren Gregory (Fort Collins, CO). The Colorado 5A state champion finished second last week at the NXN Southwest Regional. She announced after the finish Saturday that she would just be concentrating on the Foot Locker National race forgoing the trip to Portland.

Maryjeanne Gilbert (Peoria, IL) was the lone Illinois qualifier in this race as she finished two seconds behind Gregory in third place. The place did not matter. The name of the game was placing in the top ten.

“I was just trying to compete out there. It has been very different because I have not had this kind of competition with me,” Gilbert said. Her average margin of victory this season was over one minute. “There were some great runners out there today. I was just happy I could compete with them.”

Audrey Belf (Birmingham, MI) followed up her second place finish at the NXN Midwest Regional two weeks ago with a fourth place finish in Kenosha. Stephanie Jenks repeated her San Diego trip of last year finishing fifth qualifying for Nationals. Hannah Long (Eureka, MO) also will make a repeat trip to San Diego after she finished sixth. Annie Frisbie (River Falls, WI) and NXN Midwest Champion Sarah Kettel (Brighton, MI) finished 7^th and 8^th. They qualified for both the NXN and Foot Locker Nationals along with Belf and Gregory. Amy Davis held on for ninth place just ahead of fellow Wisconsin runner Morgan Florsheim (Shorewood, WI) took the final qualifying spot. Wisconsin had the most qualifiers for San Diego in this race with three runners.

There was no charge to the front for Fisher in the Boys championship race. In fact, none of the runners up front were willing to make the move just waiting for the Michigan 1A champion to make his move. A pack of 20 runners were in the front as they passed the mile in 4:44. The slickness of the rails was staring to take effect on the runners as the pack tightened up in the middle portion of the race. No one was willing to make a move as the runners passed the two mile in 9:44.

Fisher made his move with more than a half mile to go. “It was not a straight up and go,” Jesse Reiser said. “It was just gradual moves where he pulled away.”

He crossed the line in 15:00 gliding through the tape. He ran the last mile in a comfortable 4:47 showing that he had much more left in the bank for his national race in two weeks.

“I felt great when I made the move,” Fisher said about his surge at the end of the race. “Two weeks is when I want to put it all on the line. That is what we are gunning for.”

Illinois 3A champion Jesse Reiser (McHenry, IL) and Michigan D4 champion Jesse Hersha (Concord, MI) came down to the line together with Hersha edging Reiser for second place. Reiser, who was a little under the weather this week, qualified for both the Nike and Foot Locker races for the second year in a row. For Reiser, it was all about punching his ticket back to San Diego.

“I kind of got sick this past week. I was not feeling too well. I was having trouble finishing workouts,” Reiser said afterwards. “I just wanted to finish in the top ten and get healthy for this week.”

Kansas 5A state champion Stuart McNutt (Overland Park, KS) was a second behind Reiser in fourth place. Right behind McNutt was Ben Veatch (Carmel IN). He will run with his teammates next weekend in Portland for the NXN Nationals, then journey to San Diego the following week. Thomas Pollard (Ames IA), the Iowa 3A champion), also run both races after finishing sixth in Kenosha. Seth Williams (Columbus IN) survived a poor start but worked his way to the front pack by the second mile. He held on to finish seventh. Perhaps a bigger surprise to some was the eighth place finish by Illinois 1A champion Jon Davis (Fithian, IL). A novice to the big regional meets, he ran controlled within the front pack and then kicked it in solidifying his San Diego trip.

Zach Snider (Indianapolis, IN) placed ninth crossing the line at the same time with Wisconsin D1 Champion Olin Hacker (Madison, WI). He had some work to do at the end of the race. With 400 meters to go, he was in 12^th.

There were six runners that qualified in both national races (Reiser, McNutt, Veatch, Pollard, Snider, and Hacker). Indiana had the most qualifiers in the Boys race with three runners.