Wilson qualifies for Foot Locker Nationals, eying top 10

Posted on November 25, 2012 by Reuben Frank

It was a calculated risk, and it paid off.

Shawn Wilson knew after he won the state Group 4 cross country title with a 15:40 at Holmdel, he had a chance to win the Meet of Champions. Really, the race would likely come down to him and Tom O'Neill of Middletown North, who won the Group 3 race in 15:35.

But he also knew he didn't want to hurt his chances of making it to Foot Locker Nationals scheduled for just three days after M-of-C and a week after states. So he skipped the M-of-C on Wednesday, watched O'Neill win in 15:30, and then toed the line on the historic Van Cortland Park 5,000-meter course Saturday knowing that if he had an off day, he’d be left with nothing. No M-of-C title, no Foot Locker Nationals berth.

The pack went out slow on a windy day and a muddy track, but Wilson worked his way quickly toward the front and stayed there the whole race, winding up third in 15:42.5. The top 10 finishers in each of four regionals earn a berth in the prestigious Foot Locker Nationals in San Diego, so Wilson’s gamble paid off.

Edward Cheserek of St. Benedict’s High in Newark, the defending national champion, easily won in 15:21.8, and Jonathan Green of St. John’s High in Shrewsbury, Mass., was second in 15:36.8. Those two pulled away in the back woods, but Wilson led the second group for most of the final mile. Although Kyle Kroon from Toms River South at one point pulled in front of Wilson, he never gapped him, and Wilson wound up with the best finish by a South Jersey runner in 15 years — since Murad Campbell of Overbrook placed second in 1997, nine seconds behind two-time national winner Abdirizak Mohamed of Boston English.

Wilson is the third Cherokee runner to advance to Foot Locker nationals. Marc Pelerin, who’s now an assistant coach at Cherokee, qualified in 2001, and Megan Lacy, now a freshman at Stanford, went in 2010.

Cheserek, Wilson and Kroom will represent New Jersey at the 33rd annual Foot Locker Nationals on Dec. 8 at Balboa Park in San Diego.

Wilson is the 12th South Jersey boy to qualify for Foot Locker Nationals, including Paul VI’s Jason DiJoseph who went three times.

Of that group, only three have placed in the top 15 at nationals — DiJoseph ran second in 1988, seven seconds behind winner Brian Grosso of Western High School in Walled Lake, Mich.; Haddonfield's Jim Smith was fifth in 1979; and Campbell took ninth in the 1997 race in Orlando, Fla.

Based on his fitness level and his performance at Vanny on Saturday, top 10 in San Diego is a realistic goal for Wilson. That would place him in elite company among the best cross country runners in South Jersey history.

Even if he didn't run Meet of Champions.

Here is a complete list of every New Jersey boy who’s ever qualified for Foot Locker Nationals: