Athlete: Tessa Barrett
Year: Senior
School: Other Hearst Subscriptions
Location: Other Hearst Subscriptions
Mile PR: 4:49.16
2-Mile PR: 10:08.05
5,000m PR: 16:11.85
With breakthrough performances showering the New York Armory for three days at last weekend’s New Balance high school nationals, Tessa Barrett of Pennsylvania led all performers with a distance double for the ages. Barrett, an Abington Heights senior who captured the Foot Locker national cross country title in December, won the 2-mile on Sunday in 10:08.05 less than 48 hours after her breathtaking 16:11.85 national indoor 5,000m record on Friday.
Nationals Star: Never showing the slightest weakness of will, or anything less than a genuine humility afterwards, Barrett was enthralling. “There are athletes that come along once in a lifetime,” said Abington Heights coach Frank Passetti. “I would have to live multiple lifetimes to see another athlete like Tessa.”
Stunning Stats: Barrett, who turned 18 in February, won the 5,000m by 25 seconds while setting a national record by more than 6 seconds. The previous mark was 16:18.01, set last year by Wesley Frazier of Raleigh, now a Duke freshman. (Frazier’s sister, Ryen, a junior, placed fifth on Friday in 17:02.17.) The girls’ indoor 5,000m record has been broken four years in a row at indoor nationals and come down 32 seconds during that time. Adding to the growing constellation of young female stars, the runner-up to Barrett, Stephanie Jenks of Iowa, set a national sophomore record by 13 seconds (16:37.50) and in sixth place, Jessica Lawson of New York, set a freshman record by 7 seconds (17:08.45).
Lucky Break: Barrett said she caught a break recently when a local college near her home, Baptist Bible, unveiled a 150-meter indoor track with a Mondo surface. Barrett got onto the track a few times a week, doing repeat work at 38- to 39-second 200m pace, her goal for the 5,000m. Even though that pace worked out to close to 16:00 or better, realistically, she said at the Armory, “I was hoping for maybe 16:20.”
Fast Pace: Barrett went right out at 38 seconds per lap, hitting the mile in 5:03.4, with Jenks, a world-ranked junior triathlete, right behind. Then Barrett, slowing just a touch, started to gap Jenks midway. Hitting the 2-mile in 10:15, she was still on sub-16:00 pace. Well ahead in the last mile, Barrett held form to the finish, where she seemed overwhelmed by the coronation that awaited her. Barrett said of her race, “I can’t even explain it.”
Outrunning Illness: As she ran, Barrett’s cool demeanor belied lurking trouble. She said that in the last mile she felt a headache coming on, as well as an odd smell, like a bonfire. “Sometimes that means I’m going to get really sick,” she said, in reference to her rare neurological disorder, migralepsy, which can cause severe migraine headaches followed by epileptic seizure. Because her ailment can be triggered by prolonged exposure to fluorescent lights—and fire alarms went off at the Armory, causing the lights to flicker—Barrett warmed up outside on the streets. As she competed, Barrett would shut her eyes to try and avoid an episode. “I am able to control it to a degree,” she said.
Opponent’s Kinship: The widely publicized disorder of another 5,000m entrant, North Carolina’s Kayla Montgomery, who has multiple sclerosis, had drawn media attention after she was written up in Periodized Training Can Help You Hit Your Goals. As both Barrett and Montgomery were surrounded for post-race interviews, Barrett called to Montgomery (who’d placed eighth in 17:16.82 PR), “Kayla, you’re really, really inspiring.”
Double Victory: Barrett set out in Sunday’s 2-mile, “still feeling a little beat up from the 5,000.” She followed the front-running co-favorite, Hannah DeBalsi of Connecticut, the sophomore record-holder (10:12.95), who’d placed second to Barrett at Foot Locker and was keen on a rematch. With two laps to go, DeBalsi led Barrett, Michigan junior Audrey Belf and Annie Heffernan, a junior from Ohio, in a tight foursome. At the bell, Barrett bolted ahead with a sprint and ran away to a win in 10:08.05. As DeBalsi and Belf fought for position and made contact, DeBalsi fell but got up to place fourth. Belf held second in 10:10.90 with Heffernan third in 10:12.02. “My lungs felt good but my legs were tired,” Barrett said.
Active Rest: Before gearing up for the Penn Relays 3,000m on April 24 in Philadelphia, Barrett—who is going to Penn State in the fall and hoping to move up to the 10,000m—was planning some easy runs with her French Spaniel, Papillion. “She’s my only training partner,” said Barrett.
Marc Bloom’s high school cross-country rankings have played an influential role in the sport for more than 20 years and led to the creation of many major events, including Nike Cross Nationals and the Great American Cross Country Festival. He published his cross-country journal, Harrier, for more than two decades.
