Tessa MF Barrett

jkhggjh wrote:

!!!!!

Northeast!!!! Maybe they should have two regions in the Northeast.

She ran a gutsy race and earned that victory. Wow! Congrats to her.

She's headed to Penn State in the fall, btw.

Congratulations Tessa! Great run!

I just posted this on the other thread but that was an awesome race. Way more interesting than 99% of distance races.

PA senior and NE champ Tessa Barret (state champ, NE champ) pushed it hard from the get go. Really tried to get away around 7 minute mark. Jenks tried to go with her and it looked to be a 2 girl race.

But at the 15:30 mark, another NE girl, 10th grader Hannah DeBalsi (3rd at NE), who probably had been like 4-5 for most of the race came right up on Barrett and I was like, "Oh man, all that work for nothing."

But no Barrett fought back and got the win.

"Really my tactic was just to go out and run. I really wanted to enjoy the weather where I'm from it's pretty cold," said Barrett.

"It's surreal. I can't really believe it happened," said Barrett who revealed the trip to California was not only her first trip to the West Coast but also her first trip on a plane.

Deja vu all over again. Saw the NE regional, Tessa took off at the start, Hannah caught up to her near the end but Tessa sped away at the finish. Hannah finished 3rd only because she gave up everything in trying for the win.

I like the free running, all out spirit of Tessa and the focused, purposeful look of Hannah.

Both girls are gutsy. Bravo to both.

I didn't even notice Barrett the first part of the race, but when she charged to the front at 6 minutes, I said here we go, this girl is serious!

She ran an awesome race, and I'm very impressed!

She is tiny and strong so it looks like she was sprinting the entire second loop. Not as smooth and relaxed as Wilmot last week, but gutsy for sure. I look forward to seeing what she can do on the track.

Nice interview:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pd_s9jBFc0Q&list=UUnc8AO-1cQzMhRvrZek4XFg

For those not familiar with her deal she had very difficult 10/11th grade seasons. There were both physical and immunological problems to deal with.

While I'm not surprised with her success --obviously talented-- staying healthy is likely going to be her greatest challange going forward.

bronxite wrote:

I like the free running, all out spirit of Tessa and the focused, purposeful look of Hannah.

Both girls are gutsy. Bravo to both.

Tessa's hard front-running reminded me of a young Ritz. Not as dramatic like Dathan passing out at the finish line, but she appeared to be just about red-lining from the 7:00 mark to the finish.

That's the way a strength runner does it. Congrats on a fine effort and really earning that win.

Good thing there were no Fluorescent Lights in San Diego.

Anyone notice how smartly the girls from the Northeast ran? None in the very lead for the first half mile, only Tessa in the top 10 for the longest time, and yet they placed 4 of the top 6 spots. Very nice.