Talia Dreicer returns the top 5K time for Los Alamos next fall, but it will be something of an accomplishment just to stay ahead of her own teammates. Photo by Alan Versaw.
Things have a way of changing over a period of several months, but if you had to pick a favorite for 5A girls going into 2014, you'd probably pick more of the same--as in Los Alamos. The green magic doesn't look to be running into short supply.
It was a young Hilltopper team that won state this fall, and most of those faces are back for next fall, including sub-19 types like Talia Dreicer, Madison Foley, Nica Vasquez, and Sophia Galvez. You probably don't need to be reminded of how unusual it is for a New Mexico girls team, any New Mexico girls team, to have four proven sub-19s heading into a season.
Closest to Los Alamos is Albuquerque Academy, and the Chargers are probably closer than the analysis below would suggest. What AA desperately needs, though, are a few girls to smash through the bound...