A Look Back
A little bit new, a little bit old. That was the story for 2022, the first full year back in the swing of competition after COVID caused cancellations across the country. And while the faces may have been new, some of the stories seemed familiar.
Mirroring 2010, an individual from Cornwall took home the Foot Locker (Now Champs) National Title, while an upstate girls team dominated Nike Cross Nationals. Karrie Baloga (Cornwall) had a season for the ages, challenging course benchmarks set by recent legends such as Katelyn Tuohy and Kelsey Chmiel. Mainstay Saratoga Springs finally got to prove what we had known all along. Since their last win at NXN in 2019, they were continually the best female team in the Country. Robbed of a chance to prove it in 2020 and 2021, they won the National Title by thirty points with a nearly identical group of girls to their 2019 squad.
A Look Forward
The same mantra can be applied to 2023. Once again, and despite graduation of key members, Saratoga looks to be a national title contending team. Their front runner, Emily Bush is back for her senior year, committing to Providence in the Spring of her Junior campaign. Without a College search to distract, this Fall can all be about leading her Streaks back to the top of the podium at VVS. Individually, Zariel Macchia (Floyd), now a Junior, is coming off a stellar sophomore Season that culminated in a 6th place finish at the Champs National Championships. She's the third top returner at that meet, and recently was accepted into the inaugural class of the Nike Elite Program, as one of the top distance talents in the country. And not to forgotten is Lillie Bogdan (Frontier), who won the NXN-NY Regional, and put up a serious threat to Macchia at the State Championships. And if there wasn't drama there, the second slot for a bid to NXN as a team is up for grabs. Last year, both Bethlehem and Fayetteville-Manlius came off a State Meet with injuries and tweaks, sidelining runners, but both are back for another round in 2023. Unfortunately, only one team can advance from Section 2 to States, so the race for rankings begins at that Sectional Championship.
How will it all play out? Stay tuned right here on MileSplit NY!