FOOT LOCKER WEST REGIONAL: FLACKS, MATUSAK RUN INTO NATIONALS PAIR QUALIFIES WITH STRONG FOOT LOCKER REGIONAL.Byline: Ross Siler Staff Writer WALNUT - A year ago, Loyola High of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. junior Mark Matusak spent his morning at the Foot Locker Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE: FL) is a major American sportswear and footwear retailer, with its headquarters in New York City, and operating in approximately 20 countries worldwide. It is the successor corporation to the F.W. Woolworth Company (“Woolworth’s”). West Regional working as volunteer, helping direct runners to the starting line starting line n. Sports The point or line at which a race begins. Noun 1. starting line - a line indicating the location of the start of a race or a game scratch line, scratch, start . As for Harvard-Westlake of Studio City senior Lindsay Flacks, she didn't even enter the season-ending all-star cross country race after suffering a groin injury playing soccer on her club team. But those stories are what made Saturday so much more special for the two, who now are unofficial royalty in the sport. Matusak and Flacks qualified for the Foot Locker national championships at Balboa Park Balboa Park is the name of several municipal parks, including the following:
Mt. . ``It's just awesome,'' Matusak said. ``I don't think it's really sunk in yet. But I'm sure by the time we drive home, I'll be thinking about it the whole way back. It's just great to be able to go on and run against so many high-caliber runners.'' Added Flacks: ``It's really exciting. I knew that I wasn't even expected to make the top eight, so I came out here with no pressure. I just wanted to relax and run my own race. And I'm so excited.'' Only 32 runners from across the country qualify for next Saturday's national championships, which will be televised on tape delay by Fox Sports Net. They receive a four-night stay at the Hotel del Coronado The Hotel del Coronado is a luxury hotel in the City of Coronado, just across the San Diego Bay from San Diego, California. It is one of the few surviving examples of an American architectural genre: the wooden Victorian beach resort. as well as hundreds of dollars of Nike gear. ``It was so funny, I feel like a god almost now,'' said Flacks, who had a race official following her with a towel afterward af·ter·ward also af·ter·wards adv. At a later time; subsequently. Adv. 1. afterward - happening at a time subsequent to a reference time; "he apologized subsequently"; "he's going to the store but he'll be back here . ``It's pretty cool.'' ``Are you kidding me?'' Matusak said after learning of the perks perk 1 v. perked, perk·ing, perks v.intr. 1. To stick up or jut out: dogs' ears that perk. 2. To carry oneself in a lively and jaunty manner. involved with qualifying. One of his friends then asked whether he could come along for the trip. Flacks ran the perfect race Saturday, moving up 15 places over the final mile with a late surge. She finished in a time of 18 minutes, 9 seconds, only two seconds behind defending national champion Zoe Nelson from Kalispell, Mont. It was especially sweet for Flacks after she took third by more than 20 seconds at last week's Div. III state championship in Fresno. She suffered a mild hip injury before that race and came into the West Regional not even ranked in the top 10. ``I got moved down,'' said Flacks, who won the Southern Section title. ``State wasn't the greatest. So I came in with no expectations. I was nice and relaxed.'' Flacks stayed back for the first mile, sitting in 30th place, then moved into the top 20 and started her kick. The girls' race was a fight to the finish, with Claire Rethmeier of Escondido and Rachel Bryan of Elk Grove Elk Grove can refer to:
The boys' race, meanwhile, was the exact opposite, with the top eight runners opening up a modest gap and checking over their shoulders to make sure they remained in qualifying position. The top eight finishers in both races advanced to nationals. Shadrack Kiptoo of Albuquerque, N.M., won in a time of 15:32. Matusak finished in sixth 12 seconds later, realizing a season-long dream. Matusak was sixth from the first mile to the finish. Neither Matusak nor Flacks was able to run at the West Regional last year. Matusak worked as a volunteer while nursing some nagging injuries after state. Flacks, meanwhile, gave up club soccer this season after her injury to focus strictly on running. Antelope Valley This article is about the Los Angeles County region. For the census-designated place in Wyoming, see Antelope Valley-Crestview, Wyoming. The Antelope Valley of Lancaster junior Jose Melena melena /me·le·na/ (me-le´nah) the passage of dark stools stained with altered blood. me·le·na n. narrowly missed making it a threesome of area qualifiers. Melena finished 11th in 15:09, 13 seconds out of the eighth and final qualifying spot. But Melena will be the No. 2 senior returning next season behind Matusak. Melena was 23rd at 1 1/2 miles but also moved up. The gap, however, was just too large for him to overcome. Still, Melena was happy, especially with earning second-team all-region honors. ``Definitely next year, I'll make it,'' said Melena, who was bothered by sore hamstrings during the week. ``(Three) places this year. Next year, I'm hoping for top three.'' Ross Siler, (818)713-3610 ross.siler(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- 2) Loyola's Mark Matusak finished sixth overall in the boys' race at the Foot Locker Western Regional on Saturday at Mt. SAC, and Harvard-Westlake's Lindsay Flacks (inset No. 17) was second in the girls' event. Both qualified for next weekend's national championship in San Diego. |
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