Taryn Parks (Greencastle-Antrim)
Regionals Performance: Few in the FLNE field know their way around Van Cortlandt more than Parks. For the third straight year, the junior secured a spot in Foot Locker Nationals with a top 10 regional finish. Parks ran 18:11 for seventh place overall. She was seventh as a freshman and 10th as a sophomore at FLNE.
Season Recap: Parks had the best XC season of her career this fall. Now a seasoned veteran on the trails, Parks started her junior campaign with three straight wins. The first came in dominating fashion at PTXC 10. She followed that up with a win at the Ben Bloser Bulldog Invite at Big Spring. At Carlisle, Parks dipped under 18 minutes for the first time in her career, running 17:59 and out-kicking freshman phenom and eventual NXN qualifier Jenna Mulhern for the win.
Parks then earned a trio of runner-up finishes to start the postseason, coming in behind usual rival Marlee Starliper in each race. She went 18:03 at Mid-Penns at Big Spring and then 18:02 at the District 3 Championships. At states, Parks went out quick and came home in second in 18:49 at Hershey.
Foot Locker Nationals Outlook: Parks will look to use her familiarity with the Balboa Park course to her advantage. She was 40th as the lone freshman in the field in 2016. Last year, she came home 36th. Speed rating projections from TullyRunners.com rank her at 31st coming into the meet.
With experience and a good kick at her disposal, Parks could make moves and place around the top 25 and maybe even the top half of the field with a strong race.