As senior Abigail Hennessy broke the ribbon at the Brooks Northeast Regional cross country race, she didn’t just put another win under her belt, she secured her spot as one of the best runners in the country.

At the Brooks XC Regional Championships on Saturday, Nov. 29, Hennessy claimed her victory with a time of 16 minutes and 47.3 seconds, giving her a 14 second lead over the second-place finisher. This win enabled her to compete in the Brooks XC Championships on Saturday, Dec 13 in San Diego at the national level. Hennessy is currently ranked as the fifth female cross country runner in the nation.

“It [qualifying for nationals] was a dream come true, given that [this] was my goal last year,” Hennessy said.

Come race time, Hennessy didn’t disappoint. Running a 17:21.9 at Balboa Park, she placed fifth out of 52 qualifiers from all across the country.

“It was a great experience to get to race against such a talented group of girls from all across the country,” Hennessy said. “My biggest goal going into the race was to place in the top five, so I’m happy with fifth place considering all of the travel and change in routine.”

After her junior year season was cut short due to health reasons, Hennessy was not able to qualify for nationals in 2024. In addition to this being her last year running in high, her struggles have only pushed her goal of nationals further to the forefront of her mind.

“I feel like when you have one year left, […] you’re [always] stressing about [qualifying],” Hennessy said. “If I mess up, there’s no second chance to fall back.”

Those who have been able to observe Hennessy throughout her cross country career aren’t surprised that she was able to recover from her previous season and make nationals in less than a year.

“It was something that she was working towards, training for that. I was really excited for her, but also knowing the amount of work and training that she has put in, I was not too surprised,” track and field coach Ashley Smith said. “It was kind of like it was an expected goal.”

Getting to such a prestigious point in one’s career doesn’t just require practices at school. For Hennessy, it also entailed a strict regimen that the that enabled her to heal and perform at a competitive caliber.

“[Hennessy] was working with a team of doctors and outside strength and nutrition coaches to help her get into a training and strength and conditioning routine, [as well as] a fueling regimen that was allowing her body to continue taking on the workload,” Smith said.

In addition to these support systems, Hennessy’s team has remained by her side to support her in the upcoming race.

“[Hennessy] is such an amazing role model for the team, especially for some of our younger athletes who look up to her. We all admire how insanely hard she works and she is just a great leader and an incredible captain to work with,” senior cross country and track captain Grace Hajjar said. “We’re all so incredibly proud of how far she’s come, and we are excited to see Abby be able to showcase her talent and hard work at nationals this weekend.”

After about two more weeks of training after regionals, Hennessy was ready to take San Diego head on.

“I know I’m ranked pretty high and that people do have expectations of me, but I’m trying to lead to it with an open mind and have fun,” Hennessy said.

According to Smith, she has been able to see dedication Hennessy has put in to achieving her spot at nationals and was confident that she could compete as exceptionally as she has in her other races.

“There’s a lot of quality athletes that are going to be there. My expectations are, as are Abby’s I’m sure, pretty high, but I think she has the absolute capability to perform and place in the top three, if not win the whole thing,” Smith said.

Hennessy was the only runner going into the race undefeated for the entirety of her fall season. The race began with the runners setting a record pace of 5:09, and Hennessy in fourth place at the half mile break. She dropped only one place to fifth by the second mile split. According to the FloTrack livestream who broadcasted the race, despite some fog, the conditions for running and the temperature were perfect.

Unlike her qualifying race, this course at Balboa Park was completely new territory for Hennessy. While some girls have been able to practice on this track before, Hennessy went in without any experience on this terrain.

“It was one of the toughest courses I have ever raced on because of all of the elevation and change in footing [such as] grass, wood chips, sand, and mud, so I knew that put me in a but of a disadvantage compared to other girls who have raced Balboa Park before” Hennessy said.

Hennessy will be continuing her cross country journey at the University of Washington.

“I’m so grateful for the opportunity to meet so many girls and the whole experience in San Diego,” Hennessy said.