Neipp Has Big Season After All

An asthma attack that caused her to drop out of the West regional cross-country championships Dec. 7 at Fresno’s Woodward Park put a damper on an otherwise sparkling season for Andrea Neipp of Highland High.

Yet it has had little, if any, effect on her reputation as a high-quality NCAA Division I recruit.

The Times’ all-region girls’ cross-country runner of the year is scheduled to take recruiting trips to Brigham Young and Utah next month, and schools such as Washington State, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, New Mexico State and Baylor have expressed interest in her.

“Right now, I’m pretty serious about the two Utah schools,” Neipp said. “I’m basically telling the other schools that BYU and Utah are the two schools I’m going to look at first.”

Neipp is particularly interested in BYU for two reasons.

First, she is a devout Mormon.

Second, the Cougars placed third in the NCAA cross-country championships last month.

Whatever school Neipp attends will get a runner who won state and Southern Section Division II titles, and who has displayed an ability to put a disappointing experience behind her.

Neipp missed the end of her junior track season because she was academically ineligible, but won nine of her first 11 cross-country races before a cold triggered an asthma attack at the West regional.

The disappointment of that race didn’t last long. Neipp was her usual bubbly self a few days later, saying she was looking forward to having--and finishing--a good track season.

“I was really disappointed when [the asthma attack] happened because I had been training for that meet all year,” she said. “But life goes on and I’m over it.”

Well, almost.

Neipp admits that the first thing she thought about when she awoke on Dec. 14 was that day’s national championships in San Diego, where she had envisioned running after a top-eight finish in the West regional.

“I hadn’t thought about [the national championships] all week,” she said, laughing. “And then the first thing I thought about [that morning] was San Diego.”

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All-Region Girls’ Cross-Country / First Team

Elaine Canchola

Nordhoff, Jr.

The 1995 state Division III champion started slowly but won the Southern Section Division IV title and placed second in the state Division IV final to end the season. She skipped the West regional after finishing second in 1994 and fourth in 1995.

Danielle Day

Quartz Hill, Jr.

The only runner from the region to defeat Neipp during the regular season, Day finished second and sixth in the Division I races of the Southern Section and state championships. She also placed 37th in the West regional.

Sarah Ellis

La Canada, Sr.

One of the region’s most improved runners, Ellis placed second behind Canchola in the Southern Section Division IV championships before surprisingly winning the state Division IV finals. She didn’t run in the West regional because of illness.

Lauren Fleshman

Canyon, So.

The top sophomore in the region won the Foothill League title before finishing fifth and sixth in the Division II races of the Southern Section and state championships. She was the region’s top finisher in the West regional, placing 19th.

Kim Garnic

La Canada, So.

The second half of La Canada’s superb 1-2 punch, Garnic placed eighth in the Southern Section Division IV championships and fourth in the state. She capped the season with a 48th-place in the West regional.

Breanne Schweitzer

Saugus, Sr.

The Foothill League runner-up placed 11th in the Southern Section Division II championships and was 35th in the West regional. She is the daughter of former Burbank High standout Scott Schweitzer.

All-Region Girls’ Cross-Country / Second Team

Amanda Armstrong, Thousand Oaks, So.

The Marmonte League champion placed second in the Ventura County championships, third in the Southern Section Division I finals and 20th in the state.

Terrah Chapin, Nordhoff, Sr.

Mononucleosis limited the Syracuse-bound Chapin to eighth in the Ventura County championships, but she recovered to place third and fifth in the Division IV races of the Southern Section and state championships.

Rachel Guerrero, Highland, Fr.

The top freshman in the region finished 29th in the Southern Section Division I championships but rebounded to win the freshman race of the West regional in 19:01, the third-fastest time by a runner from the region at any level.

Carly Harrill, Quartz Hill, So.

She and Day were one of the region’s top 1-2 combinations. Harrill placed fifth in the Southern Section Division I championships and 29th in the state.

Kelly Harrington, Louisville, Jr.

The Mission League champion finished sixth and eighth in the Division IV races of the Southern Section and the state.

Julie Harris, Canyon, Sr.

Although she was slowed by a foot injury toward the end of the year, Harris was one of the region’s top early season performers. She finished third in the Foothill League finals and 20th in the Southern Section Division II championships.

Alyson MacIntosh, Ventura, Sr.

The Ventura County and Channel League champion placed 12th and 33rd in the Division II races of the Southern Section and the state.