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National High School Girls Team Rankings - 12/7 FinalPublished by
Air Academy achieves breakthrough to become first Colorado girls program to capture national title, leading podium sweep in Oregon along with Niwot and Mountain Vista, as well as potential shift in high school landscape in coming years By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor After Smoky Hill High of Colorado took second to Saratoga Springs from New York at the inaugural Nike Team Nationals in 2004, it had been an uphill climb ever since for the most prominent girls programs in the Centennial State to find a way to overcome the exceptional efforts of the Empire State at both NTN and Nike Cross Nationals. Saratoga Springs, Hilton and Fayetteville-Manlius have combined to win 15 national team titles. Colorado had just four additional combined podium finishes from Battle Mountain, Fort Collins and Niwot entering this year’s championship race. But this season showcased a different landscape, from August to December, with not just one but multiple Colorado programs in contention for a national championship. And what the state, and by extension the Southwest Region, showcased Dec. 2 at Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland, was the most remarkable representation of depth in the meet’s 18-year history. Air Academy became the first program from Colorado, regardless of gender, to win a national title. The Kadets regrouped following a 14-point setback Nov. 18 to Niwot at the Southwest Regional championship race in Arizona, relying on a second-place finish from senior Bethany Michalak and six athletes in the top 60 to achieve a 61-72 victory in the rematch in Oregon. The Southwest Region became the first to sweep either podium, with Niwot and Mountain Vista, taking second and third. Lone Peak of Utah, also representing the Southwest, was fourth for the third consecutive time at NXN. Fossil Ridge of Colorado also prevailed on the same day in the girls gold race at the Garmin RunningLane Championships, with the state producing the champion for the fourth consecutive year in Alabama, along with Mountain Vista twice and Niwot. The state finished with five programs in the top 30, matching California for the most depth, with Illinois next at four entries. But with Air Academy scheduled to return six athletes, Mountain Vista expected to have all seven athletes back next fall, Lone Peak having five competitors from its NXN lineup available next year and Niwot relying on national champion Addison Ritzenhein to remain in contention, it could only be the beginning of a significant stretch of Southwest success in the coming years. Saratoga Springs, winner of the past two NXN titles, secured sixth place in its record 16th appearance in Oregon. Perhaps the most pleasant surprise in the girls championship race was the effort of North Allegheny, which placed fifth overall to match the best performance in Pennsylvania prep history, achieved by Pennsbury in 2015. North Allegheny, which finished 15th in its debut in Portland a year ago, rebounded from a 28-point setback Nov. 25 at the Northeast Regional to prevail against ninth-place Union Catholic from New Jersey. Union Catholic produced the biggest improvement from NXN last season, elevating from 22nd place to finish in the top 10. Although Buchanan was able to achieve top honors for California by earning eighth place at NXN, JSerra demonstrated one of the most significant improvements by ascending from 21st last season to finish 13th this year at Glendoveer Golf Course. The long-awaited returns to NXN for Southeast Region representatives Assumption of Kentucky and Tatnall School from Delaware were memorable ones, with both programs delivering top-10 performances. Assumption, which hadn’t qualified since 2013, produced its best finish in program history by securing seventh. Tatnall, making its eighth overall trip to Oregon but the first since 2012, finished in the top 10 for the fifth time by taking ninth. Bethlehem Central from New York, which was 13th in the inaugural Nike Team Nationals girls race in 2004, enjoyed its best effort in program history by taking 11th. Trabuco Hills, which was third in the California Division 1 state final behind Corona Santiago and Buchanan, is the highest-ranked program that was not selected for Nike Cross Nationals. Champlain Valley Union of Vermont, the third-place finisher at the Northeast Regional, was only 16 points behind North Allegheny in the Nov. 25 at Bowdoin Park and is recognized in the top 25. Fossil Ridge and Chaparral, which finished second and third behind Air Academy in the Colorado 5A state final and then flipped the order to secure sixth and seventh place behind American Fork from Utah and the top four national programs at the Southwest Regional, are also represented in the top 30. Despite a sixth-place finish in the girls gold race at the Garmin RunningLane Championships, three-time Texas 5A state champion Lucas Lovejoy was third at the Nike South Regional, in addition to producing an 85-point victory Sept. 30 against Olathe West of Kansas at the Chile Pepper Festival in Arkansas.
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