Starkey, Lee, Domurat Advance To Brooks XC National Champs

Leah Starkey moves on to the Brooks XC National Championship.

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Three New Jersey state champions showcased their distance running dominance when Leah Starkey, Allison Lee, and Molly Domurat all qualified for the Brooks XC National Championships with sensational performances at the Northeast Championships on Saturday at Franklin Park in Boston.

Ocean Township's Starkey, who was 12th in this race as a freshman last year, finished third in 17:02.6, which makes her the third fastest girl in course history! West Windsor-Plainsboro North senior Lee was fifth in 17:20.7 to advance to the XC National Championships for the second straight year, and Hunterdon Central senior Domurat finished ninth in 17:33.5. 

With three runners advancing to the Brooks XC National Championships, New Jersey had the most qualifiers of any state from the girls' race. New York had the second most from the girls' race with two. 

The Northeast Championships consisted of the top runners from New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington D.C.

The top 10 runners in the boys and girls championship races automatically qualified for the Brooks XC National Championships at Balboa Park in San Diego on Dec. 13. 

Cherokee sophomore Jack Tindall was the top NJ finisher in the boys race, placing a very strong 14th in 15:43.8. Tindall missed a berth in the national championships by four places.

In the girls' race, senior Abby Hennessy of Westford Academy, the Massachusetts State Champion, remained undefeated by running away from the field in the second mile on her way to a convincing win in 16:47.3, just missing her course record of 16:46.6 that she ran at the Dual County League Championships on Oct. 24.

Defending champion Virginia Kraus of Saucon Valley in Pa., a 4-time state champ, finished second in 17:01.1, which makes her the second fastest runner in course history.

Starkey, Lee, and Domurat all won NJSIAA state titles earlier this month. Starkey won the Group 2 championship for the second straight year, Lee won Group 3, and Domurat was the Group 4 champ!

Starkey, who came into the race undefeated and won the NJ Meet of Champions in 17:15 (No. 3 all-time at Holmdel Park), was a step behind Hennessy in second place when she hit the first mile in 5:24. Starkey was still in second when she went through two miles in 10:58, six seconds behind Hennessy.

The UPenn-bound Lee, 7th in this race as a junior and 29th at the XC National Championships last year, is just the 14th NJ girl since the inception of the meet to qualify for the XC National Championships twice.

The Rutgers-bound Domurat, who was 8th at the NJ Meet of Champions, executed her race plan flawlessly, staying just inside the top 10 the whole race to secure a spot on the starting line at the XC National  Championships!

In case you're wondering, only one NJ girl has ever won an XC National Championship - the late great Janet Smith of J.P. Stevens ran a then course record 16:44 at Balboa Park to win the 1983 title. 

Top XC Northeast Championship Results

Girls Top 15 Individual Finishers

Boys Top 15 Individual Finishers