By Erik Boal, DyeStatCAL Editor

The 38th annual Foot Locker West Regionals were held Dec. 3 at Mt. SAC in Walnut.

Here are the 10 biggest takeaways from the fourth and final regional qualifying meet for the Foot Locker national championships Dec. 10 at Balboa Park's Morley Field in San Diego:

Record survives another year

The 5-kilometer girls record of 17:14 at Mt. SAC was set in 2001 by Ukiah graduate Amber Trotter and equaled in 2005 by four-time regional champion Jordan Hasay of Mission Prep (2005-08), but it might not be the standard of excellence for West Regional athletes much longer after the performance delivered by Malibu sophomore Claudia Lane. In addition to setting the sophomore record of 17:20.1, Lane became the No. 3 performer in meet history and produced a 35-second victory over Kearan Nelson of Central Valley (Washington), the largest regional winning margin since Trotter prevailed by 43 seconds over Felicia Guliford of Gallup (New Mexico) 15 years ago. Lane set the sophomore record of 16:32.6 on the 2.93-mile Mt. SAC course Oct. 22, but was clocked at 16:27.2 at the 3-mile split when she transitioned from the gauntlet to the track, another indication she can challenge the mark by Trotter and Hasay if she chooses to return to the West Regional in either of her final two seasons.

Experience counts

The only two returning Foot Locker national boys finalists from last year’s regional race were Talon Hull of Weber (Utah) and Tibebu Proctor of Northwest (Washington), so it was no surprise they not only qualified again, but took the top two spots after placing third and fifth last season. Proctor held a three-second advantage at the midway point and maintained that lead at the 3-mile mark, before Hull produced an impressive surge on the track to secure the victory by a 15:28.3 to 15:31.7 margin. Hull became the 14^th male runner to break 15:30 on the 5-kilometer Mt. SAC course – including the 10^th in the past eight years – since the meet was moved there from Woodward Park in 1998. Hull improved from 15:33 last season to rank 11^th on the Mt. SAC regional layout and Proctor lowered his time from 15:41.3 last year.

Back to back is a big deal

Five returning girls national finalists competed in this year’s regional – Glennis Murphy of Redwood Larkspur and Annie Hill of Glacier (Montana) were also eligible, but instead placed 28^th and 41^st at Nike Cross Nationals – and only Kate Hunter of Provo (Utah) and Jordan Oakes of Holy Names Academy (Washington) managed to qualify again for San Diego. Hunter was fourth this season after taking second behind Hill last year at Mt. SAC, but lowered her time 10 seconds to run 18:03.9. Oakes, who was 15^th at the midway point of the race, relied on her regional experience to finish fifth in 18:06, a 23-second improvement from last year. Kristen Garcia of Sedro-Woolley (Washington), fifth last year, placed 17^th in 18:41.5. McKenna Lee of Weber (Utah), ninth last season, took 50^th in 19:20.4 and Burroughs’ Emily Virtue – eighth as a sophomore – finished 95th in 19:59.6.

Risks result in big rewards

Along with Malibu's Claudia Lane, California state champions Luis Grijalva of Armijo and Callum Bolger of San Luis Obispo had the opportunities to race at Nike Cross Nationals based on their performances at Woodward Park, but instead decided to compete in the regionals with the goal of qualifying for the Foot Locker national championship in their home state. Grijalva placed fourth in 15:42.5, improving from 39^th last season, and Bolger moved up from 33^rd last year to sixth in 15:45.9. A total of four California state champions advanced to the national finals, with St. Joseph Notre Dame senior Kiera Marshall ascending from 26^th in the regionals last season to place seventh in the girls race in 18:13.

Stellar streaks continue

With Tibebu Proctor of Northwest, Amir Ado of Ferris and Matthew Watkins of Henry Jackson all placing in the top five, Washington extended its run of having at least one male runner advance to the Foot Locker national championships to 14 consecutive years. The three boys finalists are the most produced by the state since having four qualifiers in 2012. In 11 of the 14 seasons, Washington has had multiple finalists and has never gone back-to-back years with just one qualifier. Proctor followed former Mt. Spokane standout John Dressel, a three-time national finalist, by advancing to San Diego in consecutive years. Oregon also increased its streak to four years with at least one male runner advancing with Jesuit’s Joshua Schumacher finishing eighth in 15:47.2, following Sheldon’s Jackson Mestler last season and Summit’s Matthew Maton in 2013-14.

Musselman gets career double

Of the 20 West Regional qualifiers, only American Fork senior Sara Musselman competed last year at the national level. Musselman finished 54^th at Nike Cross Nationals in Oregon, helping American Fork finish sixth. After American Fork finished fourth at NXR Southwest in Arizona and didn’t secure an at-large team berth to return to NXN, Musselman rebounded from a ninth-place finish in Arizona – only the top six qualified individually – to take advantage of her second chance by placing eighth at Mt. SAC in 18:13.2 to achieve the impressive career feat of racing at both national championship meets.

Keeping it in the family

Following a 10^th-place finish at NXR Southwest, Ogden (Utah) senior Travis Feeny made the most of his final opportunity to advance to a national championship by securing seventh in 15:46, adding another impressive chapter to the family success at Mt. SAC. Older sister Sarah Feeny also represented Ogden at the national finals after finishing ninth in the regionals in 2012 and second in 2013 behind two-time champion and four-time finalist Makena Morley of Bigfork (Montana). For the third year in a row, Utah has three boys national finalists with Weber’s Talon Hull and Orem’s Jiraa Riding qualifying along with Feeny.

Bries brings Arizona back

Sandra Day O’Connor junior Jesselyn Bries became the first Arizona female runner to advance to the Foot Locker national championship since former Xavier College Prep star Jessica Tonn in 2009, moving up from 24^th at the midway point to take ninth in 18:16.6. Bries, the Division 1 state champion, rebounded from placing 11^th at NXR Southwest in Arizona to secure her first appearance in a national final. Bries is also the first qualifier from Arizona, regardless of gender, since Tuba City’s Billy Orman won the regional boys race in 2010.

Significant resurgence

For only the fourth time in the past 25 years, Washington has multiple Foot Locker national girls finalists, having three runners qualify from the regional for the first time in state history. Kearan Nelson of Central Valley placed second in 17:55.9 and Katie Thronson of Lewis and Clark took 10^th in 18:19.9, joining two-time national finalist Jordan Oakes of Holy Names Academy after she placed fifth in 18:06. Oakes was joined last year by Kristen Garcia of Sedro-Woolley, which marked the first time since 2010 that Washington sent two girls to San Diego after being shut out in 2013-14, the third occasion in the past two decades the state went consecutive seasons without having a female runner advance past the regionals.

Divisional dominance

Granite Bay senior Alexandra Beitia, 17^th at the midway point, made one of the biggest improvements in the second half of the girls race and finished third in 18:02.4. Even more impressive was that Beitia placed fourth in the Division 2 final at the California state meet behind Mira Costa’s Melia Chittenden, Northwood’s Erika Adler and Anaheim Canyon’s Sara Leonard, all of which placed in the top 75 at Nike Cross Nationals. Saugus’ Mariah Castillo and Channel Islands’ Valerie Almanza, fifth and sixth in the Division 2 state final, were both in the top 15 at the regionals, with Oakmont’s Alize Hartke – 15^th at the state championship – moving up well in the final mile to place 16^th in the regionals. Aptos junior Marea Zlatunich, sixth in the regionals in 18:09.2, was the second Division 3 female runner to advance to a national final individually following champion Glennis Murphy of Redwood Larkspur placing 28^th at NXN.