The Summit High School cross-country team knows how to perform in the elements. 

Several Summit cross-country athletes recently got the opportunity to show off their ability to race in the cold at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional meet in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Saturday, Nov. 30. 

In a stark contrast to the warm weather at the Nike Southwest regional meet in Arizona, Summit was met with temperatures in the low 20s and a brisk wind the morning of the race.

Girls championships

Unbothered by the cold, senior Ella Hagen and sophomore Lily Benbow took to the start line of the girls championship race. Wanting to place within the top 10 to qualify for her second national meet this season, Hagen put herself at the front of the field. 

Through the mile mark, Forest Lake senior Norah Hushagen of Minnesota led the race, splitting a time of 5 minutes, 41 seconds. Hagen split a time of 5:46 through the mile and sat within the top 10.

Hushagen maintained her lead over the second mile of the 5-kilometer race. Running a time of 11:19 through the 2-mile mark, Hushagen was quickly followed by Victoria Garces of Midland, Minnesota, and Jessie Jazwinski of Shelby, Minnesota, who both split a time of 11:21. Sitting a little off the front pack, Hagen sat around eighth place at the 2-mile mark (11:29). With a little over a mile to go, Hagen opened up her stride and responded to the quickened pace as athletes began gearing up for the final kick. 

Making a huge move over the final mile, Garces cruised past Hushagen to take the lead and cross the line as the 2024 Foot Locker Midwest Regional champ in a time of 17:14.6. Jazwinski took second (17:25.1) and Hushagen finished in third (17:27.0). Hagen finished the race in 17:51.4 to place 11th overall, one spot short of qualifying. Westerville, Ohio’s Brooke Chapman took the final Foot Locker National qualifying spot, finishing in 17:48.4.

Knowing it would be her final cross-country race of her sophomore season, Benbow put together a solid performance at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional race. Benbow went through the mile in 6:32 before slightly slowing down over the second mile.

Benbow finished the race in 20:22.0 to place within the top 70 by taking 68th overall. Facing harsh conditions and a challenging course, Benbow ran only 20 seconds slower than she did at the state cross-country meet at the beginning of November.

Boys championships

Instead of racing in long sleeve shirts and tights, the Summit boys tried a different strategy to stay warm. 

Utilizing a technique used by the Brigham Young University men’s cross-country team at the Division I national cross-country meet, the Summit boys coated their limbs in olive oil in hopes of staying warm in the cold, windy conditions.

The “old school” technique seemed to work for the three Tigers in the boys championship race as the trio of athletes all placed within the top 100 of the 157-man field.

Leading Summit was senior Josh Shriver. Fresh off his first-place finish in the medium school race at Nike Southwest, Shriver ran with confidence in his fitness at Foot Locker. 

Through the first mile, Shriver split a time of 5:02 before maintaining that pace over the second mile. With fatigue beginning to set in, Shriver displayed how far he has come as a runner, refusing to give in to the pain and finishing the race out strong. Shriver crossed the finish line in 21st place overall in a time of 15:40.2.

After working alongside Shriver for most of the race, sophomore Jay McDonald crossed the line in 15:48.6 for 29th place. The sub-16 performances from Shriver and McDonald were within 30 seconds of their season-best times, showing how hard the two runners pushed themselves on the challenging course.

Sophomore Carter Niemkiewicz rounded out the results for Summit, placing 94th overall in a time of 16:45.2. 

Prior to the championship races, sophomore John McDonald braved the brisk conditions in the freshman/sophomore boys race. McDonald finished in 40th place overall in a time of 18:29.2.

The Foot Locker Midwest Regional marks the end of the cross-country season for most Summit runners. While many athletes will now shift their focus to winter sports, Hagen will continue to focus primarily on running, competing in her third Nike Cross National meet in Portland on Saturday, Dec. 7.

Hagen will compete in the girls championship race at 11:05 Mountain Standard Time. To watch a livestream of the event, visit NXN.RunnerSpace.com.