Girls Regional Preview

After a tremendous buildup, regionals at Pickerington North are finally here. Following an electrifying district weekend and one of the fastest 4x800 races in regional history, Friday’s meet is shaping up to be one for the ages. With two of the top runners in the state toeing the line in the 800m, an incredibly deep 1600m field with no clear favorite, and a 3200 that could go any number of ways, spectators should have their popcorn ready. In this article, we’ll break down each of the distance events and share our predicted qualifiers and potential wildcard finishers.

1600:Predicted Qualifiers: Brooke Chapman, Natalie Fouts, Minori Hudson, Erica Kaulen

Predicted Potential Wildcards: Bella Conforti, Lucy Rush

This is going to be a fun one. While we won’t get the Chapman vs. Schulte matchup we were hoping for, the race is still shaping up to be incredibly tight after several breakout performances. The heavy favorite is Olentangy Orange’s Brooke Chapman, but with her and several other top contenders doubling back, the race could turn tactical—meaning she might not simply run away with it.

The chase pack will likely be led by Davidson’s Erica Kaulen, Chapman’s teammate Bella Conforti, and the Dublin duo of Minori Hudson and Natalie Fouts. Joining them will be much of the field, which is exactly what will make this race so exciting for spectators. While we’ll likely see a few stragglers fall off by laps 2 or 3, we’re predicting at least 12 runners to be in contention for a top-six finish heading into the bell lap. Behind Chapman, we expect Kaulen and Fouts to rely on their experience to secure auto-qualifying spots. With a tactical race anticipated, we’re taking Hudson to use her 800m speed to snag a top-four finish.

Picking our top four was tough—and spots five and six were no easier. We’ve given the edge to Orange’s Bella Conforti, thanks to her 5:00 flat PR, and awarded the final qualifying spot to Lucy Rush, who’s coming off a breakout performance. Also in strong contention are Sophia Poling, Ashley Alsko, Elsa Tonnessen, and Aubrey Smith. All of them have a legitimate shot at finishing in the top six—or even cracking the top four—if they’re on their game.

800

Predicted Qualifiers: Celia Schulte, Sydney Stevenson, Brooke Chapman, Brooke Snider

Predicted Potential Wildcards: Abbie McBrearty, Minori Hudson

Here, we’ll finally get our Schulte vs. Chapman matchup—but it likely won’t be as entertaining as the 1600m would’ve been. Not only is this Schulte’s main event, where she ranks in the top 10 nationally, but Chapman will also be doubling back from the 1600m. That said, we still expect Chapman to comfortably finish in the top four, with Schulte running away with a new regional record.

Joining Chapman and Schulte as a clear-cut qualifier (barring any surprises) is Dover’s Sydney Stevensen. If the name doesn’t sound familiar, it’s because she competes outside the Central Ohio region in cross country—but don’t forget it, as she’s one of the state’s most dominant runners with a blistering PR of 2:13. After this front-running trio, predicting the next three spots was a headache—but it’s a great problem to have.

Earning our final auto-qualifying spot is Brooke Snider of Olentangy Liberty, who finished less than a second behind Chapman at districts last weekend. Taking the fifth and sixth spots in our predictions are Abbie McBrearty of Dublin Jerome and Minori Hudson of Dublin Coffman. Although Hudson will be doubling back, we expect her to secure her second state qualification of the day through smart racing and elite footspeed. McBrearty was also a district runner-up—like Snider—finishing behind Schulte and beating Gemma Pusateri by nearly a full second. Pusateri, along with much of the rest of the field, will still be in the mix for a top-six finish. Keep an eye on Megan Packard of Mount Vernon, who has been in excellent form lately. This is going to be an electric final 100 meters.

3200

Predicted Qualifiers: Elena Aldrink, Natalie Fouts, Bella Conforti, Erica Kaulen

Predicted Potential Wildcards: Maggie Foust, Bailey Gross

The final race of the day feels much more clear-cut than the two before it. The top five appears extremely strong, and there aren’t likely to be many challengers for the sixth spot. Up front is reigning state champion Elena Aldrink, who should comfortably take home the victory, especially with her top challengers all doubling back from the 1600m. Aldrink has consistently shown her strength in postseason races, and we’d be shocked if she isn’t standing at the top of the podium.

Following Aldrink will be fellow 1600m competitors Fouts, Conforti, and Kaulen, all of whom we expect to earn their second state qualification of the day. Maggie Foust will look to challenge for a top-four finish and will have the advantage of fresh legs compared to the others. For now, we’re projecting the 1600m group to claim second, third, and fourth.

Joining Foust as a potential wildcard qualifier is her teammate Bailey Gross. The duo will aim to work together and secure their spots at Jesse Owens. Also in the mix will be Coffman’s Emma Donovan, Mount Vernon’s Lucy Rush (also on the double), and Watterson’s Kaitlyn Van Zandt. The key factor to watch will be whether the race turns tactical—if it does, the fifth and sixth finishers may be in serious danger of missing out on wildcard positions.

With all three distance events loaded with talent, uncertainty, and high stakes, Friday’s regional meet at Pickerington North promises to deliver drama from start to finish. Whether it’s tactical battles, breakout performances, or a race against the clock, each event has the potential to shape the state meet picture in major ways. Buckle up—it’s going to be a thrilling ride.