| Footlocker South Alabama Runners traverse to Charlotte for regional prep meet | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Scott Fuqua was one of two All-South runners from Alabama in 2001 |
Several Alabama high school runners will wrap up the 2002 cross country season at the Footlocker South Cross Country Championships. The race will be this Saturday (11/30) at McAlpine Greenway Park in Charlotte, North Carolina. The South is one of four regions in the Footlocker Cross Country series. The region is comprised of runners from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Virginia, and West Virginia. The other regions are the Northeast, Midwest, and West. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The meet will include races in separate divisions for freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Competitors from any age group can enter the seeded race for a chance to qualify for the National Championships in San Diego on December 14. Last year, two Alabama seniors qualified for the national race, which was held in Orlando, FL, that year. Homewood's Ty Stanfield and Oak Mountain's Scott Fuqua each qualified by finishing fifth and seventh, respectively, in Charlotte. Stanfield now runs for the Alabama Crimson Tide; Fuqua is a member of the Stanford Cardinal team. Stanfield and Fuqua entered last year's race among the likely contenders for a national berth, based on their times from the regional race in 2000. This year, Alabama has no runners among the top ten returning times:
But Alabama's top five girl runners on the season have all run under or close to the times listed above. St. Paul's sophomore Tara Lenn ran 18:15 at the Jesse Owens Classic, and Tara Enebak (18:26), Joy Griffith (18:26), and Jennifer Thompson (18:37) are all under Amelia Slagle's tenth returning time. 1A-3A champion Tyler Mulkin is the next-ranked Alabama athlete at 18:45. No Alabama runner has ever qualified for the Footlocker national women's race. Good luck and safe travel wishes to everyone going to Charlotte! You make our state proud! | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||