While many students took advantage of the long weekend to kick back and relax after a hectic month of school, junior Haley Stumvoll spent her Thanksgiving holiday training for the prestigious Foot Locker South Regional meet.

The Foot Locker South Regional meet, which was held on Nov. 30, is one of the four regional meets that allow athletes to qualify for the Foot Locker National Cross Country Championships. Each of the regional meets attracts the nation’s top runners from the associated states; the south region hosts strong competitors from 15 states.

Stumvoll ran in the seeded girls’ race, which included a total of 184 runners. The state of Virginia was well-represented in the race; Carolina Alcorta of West Springfield High School garnered first place, which Lake Braddock Secondary School’s Hannah Christen and Katy Kunc placed fifth and sixth, respectively.

Stumvoll’s goal for the race was to run a personal record (PR). Her finishing time of 19:44 was a mere six seconds away from her PR at the 5A State Championships, but Stumvoll was still proud of her accomplishment.

“Even though I didn’t run an all-time personal record like I was hoping to, I still felt I ran a good race,” she said. “I broke 20 again, and my time was a course PR.”

The day before the race, Stumvoll traveled with her family down to Charlotte, N.C. to preview the course at McAlpine Greenway Park. According to Stumvoll, the competitors were blessed with weather that was cold but not too windy, as well as a very flat, dry course.

“I was a little nervous because I had never run a major race without my team being there with me, but having my sister run pre-meet and warm-up with me helped,” Stumvoll said. “At the beginning of the race, I felt a little tired, probably because of the cold, but I must have warmed up by the end of the race because I felt as good as I could have, despite a small cramp in the third mile.”

Now that her final race of the 2013 cross country season is over, Stumvoll plans to spend one week recuperating before she begins training for the winter season.

“For winter track, my primary goal is to PR in my main event, which was the 1000 meter last year,” she said. “Also, our 4×800 meter relay has a good chance of doing well this year, so we aim to make it as far as we can.”