Hatcher Named Gatorade WV Female Cross Country Runner of the Year

Morgantown's Lea Hatcher has been named the 2019 Gatorade Female Cross Country Runner of the Year for West Virginia. Hatcher dominated in-state competition all year long, not losing a head-to-head matchup to a State rival during the regular season, and took the State Title by 10 seconds in a race where she led by 8 seconds less than 3/4 of a mile into the race and was never threatened. Her 17:24.66 is the 2nd best time ever ran on the State Meet Course.

Hatcher also clocked a 17:24 at the OVAC Championships, a dominating performance that saw her win by over 40 seconds. Hatcher then joined teammate Athena Young in advancing to Nike Team Nationals with a 3rd place finish at Nike Southeast. She would cap her season with a 32nd place finish in 18:24.6 on a cold and sloppy day at Nike Nationals.

A complete press release can be found at the Gatorade POY site.