With the Thanksgiving Day meal complete, a few Rhode Island teams will try and feast on the competition at the Nike Cross Nationals Regionals this weekend.
MileSplit RI will be on site for Saturday's meet, held at Bowdoin Park in New York. It only makes sense. Judging by the entry list, more than 80 athletes from the Ocean State will be competing in several different races at NXN-NE.
In the Championship Race, La Salle Academy will be looking to send both its boys' and girls' squads to the nationals on Dec.5 in Portland, Oregon for the second straight year. The top two teams earn an automatic bid with the third- and fourth-place schools eligible for an at-large selection.
At the 2014 meet, the La Salle boys captured the team title with a 63-102 victory over perennial New Jersey powerhouse, Christian Brothers Academy. The Rams secured their triumph with DJ Principe, Matt Bouthillette and Jack Salisbury finishing among the top 13. The talented trio are back with a slightly different supporting cast. But as the Rams proved this month with key wins at the state and New England meet their current supporting cast, which includes fast-improving senior Alex Campagna, could make it happen this weekend. The all-important fifth man will make a difference.Right now some of the top teams La Salle will have to contend with are CBA and fellow N.J. rival, Don Bosco Prep, Pennsylvania's Downington West and New Hampshire's Pinkerton Academy.
Individually, D.J. Principe is one the favorites to take the crown. The La Salle junior, who was eighth last year, captured his second straight state title and two weeks ago broke the tape at the New England Championship. His winning time of 15:45 at the Bowdoin Classic earlier this season on the challenging 5K terrain ranks No. 13 on the all-time list. Some of the top runners he'll face are CBA's Blaise Ferro, who was second last year, and Cherry Hill East's Aaron Groff of New Jersey, a sixth-place finisher in 2014.
The La Salle girls are the No. 1 squad entering Saturday's race with four of their runners ranked among the top 20 in the field - senior Eliza Rego, sophomore Grace Connolly, senior Karina Tavares and sophomore Emily Kane. Last year the Rams earned an at-large bid after taking third overall, a solid placement considering Tavares suffered a concussion after a fall during the race and eventually finished 107th overall. This is a team that is just as strong, if not stronger, than last year. A completely-healthy La Salle team may be tough to beat. Pennslyvania team's Pennsbury and Unionville, last year's winner, and New Hampshire state champion and 2014 runner-up Pinkerton Academy are the top contenders.
Lawler at Foot Locker
A year after finishing fourth at NXN-NE and punching her ticket to Oregon for the nationals, South Kingstown sophomore has the opportunity again to head out west for the nationals, only this time it will be in California. Lawler will toe the line with some of the best regional runners at Saturday's Foot Locker Northeast, which will take place at New York's Van Cortlandt Park.The Rebel standout captured her first state title at the beginning of the month and was second to Connecticut's Hannah DeBalsi of Staples at the New England meet. She's capable of a sub 18-minute effort on Van Cortlandt's up-and-down landscape, a time that would secure the necessary top-10 placement for a berth to the nationals in sunny San Diego.