What a girl's 3200! Nordenholz ran one gutsy race but was run down by the freshman. McDonnell 3rd.
Nordenholz is amazing but just watching her run stresses me out. she runs with kind of a plodding lurch like shes about to collapse at any moment which is fitting because her race strategy always seems to be to run her opponents into the ground even if it kills her. she seems to have a special ability to go to a place of pain beyond anything most other high school runners are capable of. her pain threshold seems to be off the sale. so thats her approach when she runs. a brutal unrelenting pace at 99% effort for the entire race. maybe she does this because she doesnt feel like she has a sufficient kick? not sure.
it certainly worked for her for most of her career and worked on every girl in this race except Thomsen. and there was a moment when even Thomsen seemed broken around the 2600 mark when she started to drift back behind McDonnell and her face looked like she was done. But she snapped out of it somehow and found another gear to pull past Nordenholz at the bell lap and get the win. excited to see what she does over the next three years. is the future of California running Engelhardt and Thomsen? Unlike Engelhardt she still has a lot of physical growing to do so hopefully she gets through that ok.
What a girl's 3200! Nordenholz ran one gutsy race but was run down by the freshman. McDonnell 3rd.
Nordenholz is amazing but just watching her run stresses me out. she runs with kind of a plodding lurch like shes about to collapse at any moment which is fitting because her race strategy always seems to be to run her opponents into the ground even if it kills her. she seems to have a special ability to go to a place of pain beyond anything most other high school runners are capable of. her pain threshold seems to be off the sale. so thats her approach when she runs. a brutal unrelenting pace at 99% effort for the entire race. maybe she does this because she doesnt feel like she has a sufficient kick? not sure.
it certainly worked for her for most of her career and worked on every girl in this race except Thomsen. and there was a moment when even Thomsen seemed broken around the 2600 mark when she started to drift back behind McDonnell and her face looked like she was done. But she snapped out of it somehow and found another gear to pull past Nordenholz at the bell lap and get the win. excited to see what she does over the next three years. is the future of California running Engelhardt and Thomsen? Unlike Engelhardt she still has a lot of physical growing to do so hopefully she gets through that ok.
Yeah, just watching Nordenholz run is painful because of her awkward style. But I still don't necessarily think her strategy was bad for this race. She knew McDonnell would be running on tired legs and Thomsen, who had already beaten her twice on the track, would be her main competition. Maybe from their previous meetings she didn't think she could outkick her. At any rate, she leaves everything out there and I wish her the best at Washington.
Regarding Thomsen, she is definitely a major talent and it will be interesting to see how she develops as she matures physically. Whoever is coaching her was smart to have her focus only on the 3200 even though coming in she had the 5th fastest time in the state at 1600 (4:45). So that bodes well.
But there are quite a few fast freshmen girls in CA besides Engelhardt and Thomsen so the next 3 years look bright for CA girls distance. Much more so than for the boys at this point. Buchanan alone has 4 freshmen under 5:12 (4:48, 4:58, 5:06 and 5:11).
Buchanan alone has 4 freshmen under 5:12 (4:48, 4:58, 5:06 and 5:11).
Yeah Cornett really impresses me. Buchanan just keeps reloading. And wait till Kynzlee Buckley comes up from Alta Sierra next year. was running 5:05/10:58 as an eighth grader.
Yeah Cornett really impresses me. Buchanan just keeps reloading. And wait till Kynzlee Buckley comes up from Alta Sierra next year. was running 5:05/10:58 as an eighth grader.
It’s insane how many amazing runners Buchanan gets from Alta Sierra year after year. No wonder they do so well in cross country - rediculous depth.
is the future of California running Engelhardt and Thomsen?
But there are quite a few fast freshmen girls in CA besides Engelhardt and Thomsen so the next 3 years look bright for CA girls distance.
There are lots of really good freshman and sophomore girls in California right now. Some of them will fade by their senior year, and others will come out of the woodwork as juniors and seniors.
Mia Chavez wasn't a star her freshman or sophomore years and only ran 4:55 as a junior, but she ran 4:41 yesterday. There is a lot of talent in California.
I haven’t examined every single state but from what I have seen, CA might be the top State in HS distance events right now for both boys and girls.
California is definitely the top state for distance events in spring 2022, and will also be the top in spring 2023. After that, who knows. But California has more people than any other state, so it wouldn't be a surprise for California to remain on top even after 2023.
What other state can touch these top 3 in the 800 - 5k in 2023?
Boys - Lex and Leo Young, Aaron Sahlman
Girls - Sadie Engelhardt, Hanne Thomsen, Cate Peters (only great in the 800, but could be US#1 or 2)
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