Maria Balch

5-7, Senior, Distance
Mason, OH
Northwestern High School

Maria Balch returns for her final season as a distance runner with the Lady Jacket track team.....participated in five cross country meets this past fall for the NAIA national runner-up squad.....posted a career-best effort of 19:33 to finish 24th at the NAIA Region IX meet.....best overall finish of 2007 season was eighth at the Shawnee State Invitational with a time of 19:44.

2006-07 - Recorded 10 individual points during the 2007 track & field campaign.....placed first in the 300 meters at the Ohio Northern Indoor Invitational with a 42.87 effort.....posted a career-best 2:25.07 performance in the prelims at the NCCAA Outdoor Championship.....garnered a tenth-place finish in the 5000 meters at the AMC Championship with a 20:24.09 outing.....ran in three cross country meets for the NAIA national runner-up Lady Jackets.....produced a season-best 21:00 at the NAIA Region IX meet to finish 55th of 131 runners.

2005-06 - Registered a season-best 2:27.13 in the 800 meters to place fourth at the Anderson Invitational.....finished sixth in the event at the Yellow Jacket Collegiate Open with a 2:33.19 effort.....ran in seven of eight meets for the women's cross country squad.....best performance was a 21:30 outing at the NCCAA Nationals.....put together a 22:37 effort to help the Lady Jackets capture the American Mideast Conference and NAIA Region IX championships. 2004-05 - Saw action in just one track & field meet.....ran in the first four cross country meets before suffering a season-ending injury.....was CU's 5th finisher and placed 78th of 357 runners at the Louisville Classic with a time of 19:53 for the 5K.....made her collegiate debut at the Hope Invitational with a 20:21 effort.

High School - Produced a record-setting career at Northwestern High School.....four-year letter winner in track & field.....ran the 800, 1600 and 3200 meter runs.....member of the 4 x 400 and 4 x 800 meter relay squads .....earned all-county, all-conference and all-area recognition....four-time regional qualifier and ran in the state meet once....earned four letters in cross country.....two-time All-Ohio Division II runner after placing 8th in the state as a senior and 24th as a junior....won back-to-back Clark County individual titles.....named Springfield News-Sun Area Runner of the Year and Clark County Runner of the Year following senior season.....earned all- district, all-county, and All-Central Buckeye Conference honors all four years of her career.....National Honor Society student.....salutatorian of graduating class.

Personal - Dean's List student as a biology major at Cedarville University....born 6/27/86 in Montgomery, AL.....daughter of William H. Harley III and Lorraine A. Knudsen-Harley.....married former Yellow Jacket runner David Balch on July 28, 2006.....has two younger sisters.