Open Women
Photo above: Lory Gray, 23, of Arlington, VA, 7th among open women

The open division was again competitive, with 33 runners qualifying. Ketema Atalelech of Washington, D.C. takes the top position, besting winter leader Naoko Ishibe of Silver Spring, Maryland. The Sallie Mae 10K was the biggest showdown race among the women, with Atalelech (34:53) defeating fifth-ranked Irina Suvorova (35:26) of Gaithersburg, Maryland (and Russia), Ishibe (36:05), fourth-ranked Casey Smith (36:13) of Arlington, Virginia, and four other top-10-ranked runners. Atalelech also took advantage of the aided Pike's Peek 10K course to record an outstanding 33:54.

The battle for spots two through five was extremely close. Ishibe gets the second spot, by virtue of a blazing 16:51 to defeat Heather Hanscom (in an uncharacteristically slow 18:44) of Alexandria, Virginia, at the O'Doul's 5K, as well as the defeat of Smith at Sallie Mae. Hanscom and Smith split, with Hanscom (58:34) faster than Smith (59:03) at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile, and Smith (35:42) better than Hanscom (35:59) at the St. Patrick's Day 10K. Hanscom gets the slight edge for third, based on beating Suvorova at both the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile and the George Washington Parkway 10-Mile (59:19). Smith and Suvorova split two meetings, with Suvorova coming out on top at Sallie Mae, and Smith better at Cherry Blossom.

Notable qualifiers include the youngest runner in the rankings, 13-year-old Aurora Scott of Portsmouth, Virginia, and the oldest open woman qualifier, 45-year-old Lee DiPietro of Towson, Maryland.

Photo below: Kristine Wilson, 29, of Newport News, VA, 19th in the open division

 Pl	Name             	Age	Hometown
  1	Ketema Atalelech	20	Washington, DC
  2	Naoko Ishibe      	34	Silver Spring, MD
  3	Heather Hanscom 	25	Alexandria, VA
  4	Casey Smith       	23	Arlington, VA
  5	Irina Suvorova    	32	Gaithersburg, MD
  6	Susannah Kvasnicka	30	Great Falls, VA
  7	Lory Gray         	23	Arlington, VA
  8	Denise Knickman 	34	Baltimore, MD
  9	Caroline Tynan    	30	Sterling, VA
 10	Megan McLaughlin	23	Alexandria, VA
 11	Sharon Servidio 	29	Washington, DC
 12	Patty Fulton     	37	Silver Spring, MD
 13	Tatyana Maslova 	36	Gaithersburg, MD
 14	Lee DiPietro      	45	Towson, MD
 15	Jennifer Concaugh	28	Alexandria, VA
 16	Cathy Pugsley     	33	Annandale, VA
 17	Maria Spinnler     	41	Hagerstown, MD
 18	Sharon Donovan    	28	Arlington, VA
 19	Kristine Wilson 	29	Newport News, VA
 20	Kristen Bremer    	31 	Timonium, MD
 21	Marjan Huizing    	35	Gaithersburg, MD
 22	Aurora Scott      	13	Portsmouth, VA
 23	Sherry Esposito 	24	Elkridge, MD
 24	Lisa Thomas       	27	Alexandria, VA
 25	Amanda Pagon     	27	Glenn Dale, MD
 26	Vicki Lang        	34	Columbia, MD
 27	Laura Freix       	41	Centreville, VA
 28	Diane Hevehan    	31	Alexandria, VA
 29	Vanessa Cox      	41	Laurel, MD
 30	Cheryl Twomey     	24	Charlottesville, VA
 31	Monica Grillo     	38	Arlington, VA
 32	Maria Kozloski    	38	Washington, DC
 33	Victoria McFarland	26	Washington, DC

Women 35 - 39
There were 21 qualifiers in the 35-39 age group. With the top two winter rankers, Danielle Russell and Alisa Harvey, not competing, winter third-ranker Patty Fulton of Silver Spring, Maryland moves up to the top spot, in a close decision over Tatyana Maslova of Gaithersburg, Maryland. The age group's most competitive race was the mostly downhill Pike's Peek 10K, where Fulton (35:37) beat third-ranked Marjan Huizing (36:13) of Gaithersburg, Maryland, fourth-ranked Monica Grillo (38:31) of Arlington, Virginia, and fifth-ranked Maria Kozloski (38:38) of Washington, D.C. The first five rankers also qualified in the open division.

Second-ranked Maslova recorded the best performance in the age group, a 27:51 at the Shamrock 8K, but did not race against the age group's other top competitors. A special mention also goes to sixth-ranked Linda Boring of Frederick, Maryland, who, although not recording two marks fast enough to qualify in the open rankings, did manage one outstanding race, running 38:19 at Pike's Peek, to beat both Grillo and Kozloski.

 Pl	Name     	Age	Hometown
  1	Patty Fulton	37	Silver Spring, MD
  2	Tatyana Maslova	 36	Gaithersburg, MD
  3	Marjan Huizing	35	Gaithersburg, MD
  4	Monica Grillo	38	Arlington, VA
  5	Maria Kozloski	38	Washington, DC
  6	Linda Boring	38	Frederick, MD
  7	Julie Thienel	39	Columbia, MD
  8	Kim McLaughlin	38	Herndon, VA
  9	Susan Maher	36	Arlington, VA
 10	Robin Humphrey	39	Ellicott City, MD
 11	Maureen Hall	38	Lavale, MD
 12	Suzanne Edgar	36	Leonardtown, MD
 13	Linda Sawvell	37	Newport News, VA
 14	Kelly Barton	37	Baltimore, MD
 15	Betsy Berry	38	Quinque, VA
 16	Helen Beven	36	Kensington, MD
 17	Elizabeth Feldman 35	Chevy Chase, MD
 18	Belinda Simmons  37	Monrovia, MD
 19	Terri Rath	39	Ashburn, VA
 20	Lise Willingham	 39	Earlysville, VA
 21	Theresa Conroy	38	Richmond, VA

Women 40 - 44
The 40-44 division was very competitive, with 31 runners qualifying. With Lee DiPietro having aged up to the 45-49 division partway through the rankings period, 2002 runner-up Maria Spinnler of Hagerstown, Maryland assumes the top spot, ahead of 2002 third-placer and winter ratings leader Laura Freix of Centreville, Virginia. The showdown was the Sallie Mae 10K where Spinnler's 37:20 defeated Freix (39:25). Spinnler also ran an excellent 28:54 at the Shamrock 8K. Freix's best race was a 1:03:31 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile.

Photo above: Julie Hayden, 43, of Ashburn, VA, 9th in the 40- 44 division

Third was Vanessa Cox of Laurel, Maryland who earned the spot on the basis of also qualifying in the open division. Fourth-ranked Leslie Minnix-Wolfe of Herndon, Virginia, did not qualify in the open division, but she did have one excellent race, running 1:04:07 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile, to beat Cox (1:04:39) and fifth-ranked Lisa Coleman-Warren (1:05:52) of Sykesville, Maryland.

Photo below: Ruth O'Hara, 40, of Alexandria, VA, 14th among women 40-44

 Pl	Name              	Age	Hometown
  1	Maria Spinnler   	41	Hagerstown, MD
  2	Laura Freix      	41	Centreville, VA
  3	Vanessa Cox       	41	Laurel, MD
  4	Leslie Minnix-Wolfe	41	Herndon, VA
  5	Lisa Coleman-Warren	42	Sykesville, MD
  6	Kendall Tata      	40	Virginia Beach, VA
  7	Pat Keating      	41	Dayton, MD
  8	Pat Wilkerson     	44	Columbia, MD
  9	Julie Hayden      	43	Ashburn, VA
 10	Debi Bernardes    	44	King George, VA
 11	Gloria Santarpia	41	Odenton, MD
 12	Sherry Volk      	41	Williamsburg, VA
 13	Tracy Dugdale     	42	Reston, VA
 14	Ruth O'Hara       	40	Alexandria, VA
 15	Donna Elder       	40	Forest, VA
 16	Cinda O'Dell      	42	Virginia Beach, VA
 17	Valerie Plyler    	43	Newport News, VA
 18	Laeticia Warring	40	Reston, VA
 19	Sandy Blasey      	41	Kensington, MD
 20	Jennifer Lundeen	43	Port Republic, MD
 21	Monica Allard     	42	Virginia Beach, VA
 22	Robin Goodwin     	44	Timonium, MD
 23	Sarah Buckheit    	42	Reston, VA
 24	Kim Harwig        	42	Yorktown, VA
 25	Lisa Fichman      	41	Columbia, MD
 26	Catherine Gallagher	42	Chevy Chase, MD
 27	Suzanne Barron    	42	Washington, DC
 28	Lynda Layson      	42	Severn, MD
 29	Maribeth Cowan    	41	Richmond, VA
 30	Rosa Keiser       	41	Kingsville, MD
 31	Theresa Kolish  	42	Alexandria, VA

Women 45 - 49
In a quirk, Lee DiPietro aged up to the 45-49 age group partway through the ratings period, and didn't have two qualifying times in either the 40-44 or 45-49 age groups, although her performances would have led either one.

The beneficiary in the 45-49 age group was Dorothy Winn of Norfolk, Virginia, who was the best of the 14 qualifiers. Winn's performances included a 32:59 at the Shamrock 8K, defeating third-ranked Carol Talley (34:29) of Toano, Virginia, and fifth- ranked Laura Ingleson (37:18) of Williamsburg, Virginia. Winn also ran a 41:48 at the Elizabeth River Run 10K, again defeating Tally (44:09) and Ingleson (45:16).

The second ranking goes to Sharon White of Langley AFB, Virginia, whose best performance was a 20:38 at the Queen's Lake 5K, and fourth was Debbie Flynn of Gaithersburg, Maryland, who ran a 41:34 at the aided Pike's Peek 10K.

 Pl	Name             	Age	Hometown
  1	Dorothy Winn      	47	Norfolk, VA
  2	Sharon White      	46	Langley AFB, VA
  3	Carol Talley      	48	Toano, VA
  4	Debbie Flynn      	46	Gaithersburg, MD
  5	Laura Ingleson    	46	Williamsburg, VA
  6	Stephanie Shipp 	49	Great Falls, VA
  7	Linda Kidder      	46	Williamsburg, VA
  8	Laura Dewald      	45	Baltimore, MD
  9	Merrilee Seidman	48	Alexandria, VA
 10	Bernadette Flynn	45	Fairfax, VA
 11	Rona Altschuler 	49	Newport News, VA
 12	Peggy Mowbray     	47	Charlottesville, VA
 13	Jean Lauzon     	49	Spotsylvania, VA
 14	Liza Recto        	47	Lexington Park, MD

Women 50 - 54
The 50-54 age group became more competitive in the spring, with 17 runners qualifying. Betty Blank of Falls Church, VA entered the age group in style, unseating second-ranked and 2002 ratings leader Sandra Adams of Winchester, Virginia. Five of the top six rated runners faced off in the St. Patrick's Day 10K, with Blank (42:31) getting the better of Adams (43:34), fourth-ranked Valerie Campbell (45:32) of Wheaton, Maryland, and fifth-ranked Barbara Lipska (47:06) of Annandale, Virginia.

The Cherry Blossom 10-Mile was another showdown, with Blank (1:09:25) again beating Adams (1:09:40) and Campbell (1:14:44). The third ranking goes to Barbara Mathewson of Virginia Beach, Virginia, who recorded four qualifying times, including an excellent 32:35 at the Shamrock 8K.

 Pl	Name              	Age	Hometown
  1	Betty Blank       	50	Falls Church, VA
  2	Sandra Adams      	53	Winchester, VA
  3	Barbara Mathewson	53	Virginia Beach, VA
  4	Valerie Campbell	52	Wheaton, MD
  5	Barbara Lipska    	51	Annandale, VA
  6	Marjorie Marque 	51	Kingstowne, VA
  7	Peggy Davis       	50	Falls Church, VA
  8	Maria Shields     	52	Davidsonville, MD
  9	Jane Godfrey      	54	Takoma Park, MD
 10	Sharon Lapkoff    	50	Jefferson, MD
 11	Dana Ann Scheurer	53	Reston, VA
 12	Judy Ferrier      	50	Alexandria, VA
 13	Christy St. Clair	54	Fork, MD
 14	Leslie Stanfield	53	Reston, VA
 15	Ellen Cooper      	52	Rockville, MD
 16	Judy Franks       	54	Fairfax Station, VA
 17	Brenda Mitchell 	52	Williamsburg, VA

Women 55 - 59
Remarkably, 23 runners qualified for the 55-59 age group. The division was led by Alice Franks of Rockville, Maryland, who aged up during the spring rating period. The Sallie Mae 10K was particularly competitive, with Franks (45:11) beating third- ranked Priscila Prunella (47:42) of Rockville and fifth-ranked Linda Kearney (46:57) of Herndon, Virginia.

Also very competitive was the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile, where second-ranked Hideko Pirie (1:16:20) of Leesburg, Virginia defeated Prunella (1:16:53), fourth-ranked B.J. King (1:19:07) of Crofton, Maryland, and Kearney (1:19:16).

 Pl	Name             	Age	Hometown
  1	Alice Franks      	55	Rockville, MD
  2	Hideko Pirie      	58	Leesburg, VA
  3	Priscila Prunella	58	Rockville, MD
  4	B.J. King        	58	Crofton, MD
  5	Linda Kearney     	56	Herndon, VA
  6	Danalee Henkart 	56	Annapolis, MD
  7	Lynne Hays        	57	Arlington, VA
  8	Dee Nelson        	59	Gaithersburg, MD
  9	Claudia Crawford	56	Stafford, VA
 10	Lucia Davidson    	57	Arlington, VA
 11	Cathy Van Brocklin	56	Gaithersburg, MD
 12	Barbara Ivey       	56	Hampton, VA
 13	Mary Kuta         	56	Rockville, MD
 14	Nancy Avitabile 	55	Bethesda, MD
 15	Jacqueline Rupp 	55	Lisbon, MD
 16	Mary Napoleon     	57	Batesville, VA
 17	Connie Friend     	57	Charlottesville, VA
 18	Andrea Hess       	58	Midlothian, VA
 19	Linda Peters      	56	New Kent, VA
 20	Kari Sprecher     	56	Fairfax, VA
 21	Muffet Chatterton	58	Crofton, MD
 22	Pat Welch         	58	Vienna, VA
 23	Barbara Biasi      	55	Yorktown, VA

Women 60 - 64
The 60-64 category had twelve qualifiers, led by 2002 and winter rankings leader Sharon Dolan (photo below) of Gaithersburg, Maryland, who continued her dominance. She would also have led the 55-59 category. Her performances included an aided 41:44 at the Pike's Peak 10K and an unaided 42:35 at the Sallie Mae 10K. Dolan would be well-advised to seek out national and world competition.

Ranked second is 2002 runner-up Joan Coven of Williamsburg, Virginia, whose best performance was a 37:34 at the Buckroe Beach Blast 8K. Nancy Linck of Alexandria, Virginia is ranked third. Her 1:27:08 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile bettered fourth- ranked Jane Metzler (1:28:17) of Falls Church, Virginia. Fifth- ranked is Lis Villadsen of Charlottesville, Virginia, who had a 1:28:50 at the Charlottesville 10-Mile.

 Pl	Name             	Age	Hometown
  1	Sharon Dolan      	60	Gaithersburg, MD
  2	Joan Coven        	61	Williamsburg, VA
  3	Nancy Linck       	61	Alexandria, VA
  4	Jane Metzler      	61	Falls Church, VA
  5	Lis Villadsen     	63	Charlottesville, VA
  6	Ellen Hocheder    	60	Mt. Airy, MD
  7	Mary Kate Berglund	61	Richmond, VA
  8	Arlowene Garland	64	Warsaw, VA
  9	Sylvia Boecker     	63	Williamsburg, VA
 10	Louise Dudley     	63	Charlottesville, VA
 11	Margaret Broaddus	60	Richmond, VA
 12	Betty Munden      	63	Norfolk, VA

Women 65 - 69
2002 ratings leader Tami Graf of Lusby, Maryland turned the tables on winter leader Nancy Patron of Williamsburg, Virginia. Graf earned the top ranking on the basis of her outstanding performances, including a 53:54 at the St. Patrick's Day 10K. Patron takes second, based on three qualifying performances, including a 45:08 at the Ford's Colony 8K, beating fourth-ranked Pat Ewell (51:52) of Williamsburg, and a 27:30 at the Queen's Lake 5K, again beating Ewell (31:22).

The third ranking goes to Jill Mottus of Baltimore, whose best performance was a 28:45 at the Preakness 5K, and fifth is Shirley Wampler of Mechanicsville, Virginia, whose performances included a 1:02:22 at the Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K.

 Pl	Name      	Age	Hometown
  1	Tami Graf	66	Lusby, MD
  2	Nancy Patron	66	Williamsburg, VA
  3	Jill Mottus	65	Baltimore, MD
  4	Pat Ewell	69	Williamsburg, VA
  5	Shirley Wampler	66	Mechanicsville, VA
  6	Betty Lou Wolfe	66	Manassas, VA

Women 70 - 79
Kay Morrison of Potomac, Maryland, the 2002 75 and over champion and Winter 70+ leader, is the only qualifier in the 70-79 age group, and she recorded four qualifying performances, including a 1:50:01 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile and a 66:38 at the Pike's Peek 10K.

Pl	Name      	Age	Hometown
  1	Kay Morrison	75	Potomac, MD

Women 80 & Over
This category is added for the spring ratings period to honor the accomplishments of 85-year-old Hedy Marque of Alexandria, Virginia, the oldest runner, male or female, to qualify for the rankings. Her times included a 1:10:11 at the St. Patrick's Day 10K and a 1:57:29 at the George Washington Parkway 10-Mile.

Pl	Name       	Age	Hometown
  1	Hedy Marque	85	Alexandria, VA

See the Men's Spring 2003 WRR Runner Rankings