After finishing 39th in last year's county championship, Johanna Gretschel cracking the top ten in the preseason cross country poll is a surprise. It was during indoor track that she became a completely different runner, dropping her 1600 meter time down to 5:22 and eventually down to 5:12 outdoors. After running with the best of them in the mile this spring, the county expects to see her in the front pack in the 5k this fall.
Aimee Moores was just outside the top 10 at last year's county and regional cross country championships, but after a spring where she dropped her 3200 meter time all the way down to 11:34, she is expected to easily crack the top ten and become a consistent sub 20:00 5k runner. Only a junior, she will be looked to for leadership on a team that has unloaded tremendous talent in the last two years.
Erin McManus had trouble breaking out of the 21's in the 5k last fall, but she broke the 12 minute barrier in the 3200 during indoor track. During outdoor season, she was a consistent top finisher in 3200 meter races and an important leg of a record breaking 4x800 meter relay. The county began to see her as more than just the blonde girl from Churchill and now expects her to be a crucial member of a strong Churchill team.
Becca Stinner placed 8th at last year's cross country county championship meet and this year the county has her penciled in at 7th. During outdoor season, she never placed lower than 5th in ten 3200 meter races, including a 4th place finish at the state championship in a personal best time of 11:35. She has long been a vital member to the team that has not lost the county title since she has been there.
After placing 8th in the 4A West regional cross country championship her freshman year, Maryam Fikri proved to be even more valuable on the track. She scored points for her team in the 800 and 1600 at the indoor county championship, helping them win the team title. During outdoor she lowered her 1600 meter time to 5:14 in a race that qualified her individually for the state championship meet. With a 6th place overall ranking, Montgomery County is expecting big things out of last year's super frosh.
Although Veronica Salcido fell out of the top ten at last year's county championship, she bounced back with a 9th place finish at regionals and 15th place finish at the state meet. She shows flashes of excellence such as her 2nd place performance at the Bull Run Invitational, her world record in the burrito mile, and her consistent top finishes in the 800 and 1600 during indoor and outdoor. Montgomery County knows that she is always capable of running in the front on any given day.
Emma Eckerstrom won the 3200 meter state title in 11:05 in the spring of 2006, but by the end of cross country season, she was sidelined with a serious back injury that knocked her out for the entirety of indoor season and most of outdoor season. Montgomery County knows what she is capable of when she is healthy and predicts her to repeat last year's 4th place performance at the Montgomery County Championship Meet.
With uncertainty surrounding the health of Emma Eckerstrom, a surprising number of people voted for Kathy Aherne to take over the top spot on the Northwest team. She is better known for her 800 meter speed during track season, but she has also run multiple 5000 meter races under 19 minutes. Now in her senior year, Montgomery County expects her to step up and be a cross country star in her own right. She will be heavily counted on this season to continue the team's tradition of excellence in the county.
Louise Hannallah knows how hard it is to go from being good, to being great. She has always been good, but over the past year, she has become great and Montgomery County recognizes that. Last year she placed 5th in Montgomery County and 4th at the state meet. She won the indoor 3200 meter county title and was the top Montgomery County finisher in the 3200 at the outdoor state meet. With personal bests of 5:09, 11:06 and multiple 5k's under 19 minutes, Montgomery County sees her as a leader in a county loaded with stars.
With an overwhelming majority of first place votes in the poll, Morgane Gay is the unquestioned favorite to win the Montgomery County individual title this year. She surprised nearly everyone when she won the last year's county cross country title in a time of 18:14, but never lost a cross country or 1600 meter race to a Montgomery County athlete after that. With a 1600 meter PR of 4:55 and a Penn Relays split of 4:50, Montgomery County fans stand in awe of her rapid improvement and amazing ability.
The Best of the Rest (In No Particular Order)
Britt Eckerstrom - Northwest High School '11
Don't look now, but it is true. There is another Eckerstrom and she is good. Very good. Britt Eckerstrom runs stride for stride with her older sister Emma and is expected to immediately be in the top 5 on their team, giving them a deadly varsity squad.
Taylor Colbert is a returning member from last year's county top ten. While her track times are less than spectacular, she was very much in the mix with the top athletes last cross country season with a 9th place finish at counties, 12th place finish at regionals, and 13th place finish at states. With the reclassification, watch out 3A!
There aren't many people working harder than Debbie Isen. This spring she lowered her 3200 time to 11:45. She placed 12th at last year's county championship and state championship, which makes her the 5th returning MoCo athlete to this year's state meet.
Addie Tousley was overshadowed this spring, but not by any girls on her team. With her brother Elias having an amazing season, it was easy to miss Addie dropping her PR's down to 5:25 and 11:46 as a sophomore. Expect her to greatly improve on last year's 25th place finish at counties.
Sarah Britton was right outside of the top ten in the county, region, and state last year. She is in great shape and ready to lead her team in her senior year. She should be a consistent sub 20 minute runner this season.
Jessie Rubin has never run cross country, but any freshman girl that runs a 5:11 1600 meters, is going to be pretty good in any distance. When she builds up her endurance, she will be right in the mix at the end of the season. And then watch out for her during indoors.
Although she didn't run indoor track and did not make much noise during outdoor, Abby Spitler was 10th at last year's 4A West Regional Meet. She also won the Boonsboro Invitational and the freshman race at the Glory Days Invitational. With a full summer of training, she should be right in the mix with the top ten athletes in the county in her sophomore year.
