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This season has been a whirlwind for Myers Park senior Mary Bonner Dalton.
From becoming the first girl in state meet history in any classification to break 17 minutes at the state championships to becoming the first girl in North Carolina history to make an Under-20 World Championships Cross Country team - and a lot in between.
And there has been a lot in between and before this season, that the Notre Dame commit has accomplished.
Dalton, who finished third on the U.S. cross country team and 28th overall to help the U.S. finish fourth of 13 teams at the World Cross Country Championships on March 30 in Belgrade, Serbia, is a five-time state 3,200-meter champion in track (2022, 2023 and 2024 indoors, and 2021 and 2023 outdoors).
But she has thrived on the national level, as well.
Besides winning the prestigious 3,200 meters at the Virginia Showcase this year after finishing runner-up the previous season, she has won the 3,200 meters at the 2024 Adidas Indoor Track Nationals, the 5,000 meters at the 2022 Adidas Indoor Track Nationals, while anchoring the winning Distance Medley Relay at the 2023 Adidas Outdoor Nationals and finishing runner-up at the 2022 Nike Outdoor Nationals in the 3,200 meters. She also took third in the 5,000 meters at the 2023 New Balance Indoor Nationals and 2022 Adidas Outdoor Nationals, fourth in the 2-mile at the 2023 New Balance Outdoor Nationals, and seventh in the both the Mile and 2-mile at the 2024 Nike Indoor Nationals. She also anchored the Myers Park Distance Medley Relay to fifth for an impressive Nike Indoor Nationals.
Her cross country success has been equally impressive. She won the North Carolina 4A girls' title in the fastest time ever at a state championship (16:54.0), while earning her second trip to Foot Locker Cross Country Nationals and second All-American honor with her fourth-place finish in December. She is only the fourth North Carolina girl in 44 years to earn two All-American cross country honors, and the first girl to break the 17-minute barrier three times - something only one other North Carolina girl had ever broken once.
Couple that with her track PRs of 16:45.97 (5,000 meters), 10:01.88 (3,200 meters) and 4:46.05 (1600 meters), and she has compiled a staggering list of accomplishments.
This upcoming Saturday she'll attempt to break 10:00 against a strong 3200m field at the Carolina Distance Carnival against Reese Dalton, her world XC teammate Maddie Gardiner and more in a stacked field!
MileSplit/NCRunners caught up with Dalton after her World Cross Country Championships race for her insights and thoughts on her preparation, her race and her experience, in general.
MileSplit/NCRunners: You are the first girl from North Carolina to represent the US on the Under-20 World Championship Cross Country team. How does that make you feel?
MARY BONNER: I did not know before that I am the first girl from North Carolina to make the team. There have been so many amazing runners that I look up to from North Carolina. I'm incredibly proud to add something to the list of achievements by North Carolina runners. It is extremely rare to have an opportunity to represent Team USA, and I am honored to be able to represent North Carolina, as well.
MileSplit/NCRunners: What was your reaction/what was going through your mind when you opened up your US Track and Field suitcase with all of your US team gear?
MARY BONNER: I was blown away by it all. It was so much more than I was expecting. Team USA was very generous in giving us anything we could need, including multiple sweats, rain gear, a parka, and two racing kits. I am going to cherish this gear for the rest of my life. It makes me feel very special to be a part of Team USA.
MileSplit/NCRunners: How did it make you feel to represent the U.S.?
MARY BONNER: There aren't many people who get to compete in a USA uniform, so to do so is a privilege. It is something I will never forget and would love to be able to do again in the future. Looking around the check-in area before the race, it really set in that we were about to race against the best u20 runners from all over the world. Representing the US on this large of a stage is something I had only dreamed of a couple years ago.
MileSplit/NCRunners: I know you were likely glad to just make the team, but you are a competitor, as well, so I'm sure you had a goal or something specific you wanted to accomplish heading into the World Cross Country Championships. What was that?
MARY BONNER: I really wanted to place in the top four of the US team and score. I wasn't sure exactly what the competition would be like racing against runners from around the world that I had never before raced. I always want to have no regrets by the time the race is over, leaving it all out there and knowing I did my best.
MileSplit/NCRunners: Finishing third on the team was awesome. How did that make you feel?
MARY BONNER: I was very excited to have finished third! I have raced the other girls on the team a couple times before, so to toe the line now as teammates was definitely special. I greatly admire them and to be one of the scoring members of this talented team makes me feel proud.
MileSplit/NCRunners: I saw they had hay bales on the course. How did you navigate through that? I saw that some people practiced running around them, and others practiced going over them.
MARY BONNER: I ran around them every time. As I saw during the race preview, they were up to about my waist in height. With my limited experience/ability in hurdling, I decided going around was the better option. There was the possibility of going over them if I wasn't in a good position to go around when approaching the hay bales. However, the race had become pretty spread out by the time I got to them, so I was able to go around. I expected a lot more people to go over them than did during the race. It was definitely a very different obstacle and course than what I am used to.
MileSplit/NCRunners: Was it difficult to plan your race strategy, given the unknowns of the competition, the course and the different distance? If yes, how did you plan? If no, why?
MARY BONNER: It was more challenging to plan a race strategy not knowing what obstacles to expect and racing against new people from all over the world, especially since that was only my second ever 6k race (the first was the qualifying race). However, I have raced the other girls on the team multiple times before and we ran in a pack together during the qualifying race. This helped to make my race plan more focused around staying with the team. Ellie Shea, Allie Zealand, and Zariel Macchia had also raced at XC Worlds last year. They had a lot of good pointers about how the race could unfold, although this course was very different from the hilly course in Bathurst last year. They also had lots of good tips on how to approach different barriers, such as the mud pit, which was very helpful in planning out the race. The course consisted of a 2k loop that we ran three times, which provided a basis for the race plan. We knew we wanted to stay controlled in the first lap, push the second loop, and close hard.
MileSplit/NCRunners: Were there any other differences that you noticed that would be different than the cross country courses you had previously run in the U.S.?
MARY BONNER: Most cross country courses that I've raced before did not have multiple loops like this course. It was very nice to know what to expect each time around and attempt to perfect each hurdle as the race progressed. However, this also meant there were lots of turns on the course which were at times difficult to keep momentum while racing around. The course had a mud pit, too, which I have never raced through prior to Worlds. Before the race, Ellie Shea gave us a great tip of planting our feet firmly into the mud instead of attempting to tiptoe through it, reducing our chances of slipping. In addition to the mud pit, there were sand sections throughout the course. This was especially difficult to run through in the back section of the loop where it was at the head of a sharp turn. There were also bridges on the course that created mini hills. That was probably my favorite section of the course as it was fun to push up it then gain momentum running immediately down. The second of these bridges was right before the final straightaway, so it was great to have that momentum into the finish.
MileSplit/NCRunners: Could you take me through your race? Each mile or each kilometer, physically (how you did and were doing), and your thoughts each mile and kilometer?
MARY BONNER: The US team started towards the left end of the start line, and we all got off to a good start. From there, I tried to get in a good position for the upcoming turns and stay towards the right side of the course. There was a small wooden hurdle close to the start that was lower on the righthand side (I noticed this while previewing the course). I wanted to try to keep the rest of my US teammates in eyesight, using them for pacing. Throughout the first kilometer, it was a bit more chaotic. Everyone was tightly packed. Soon after the first turn around in the trees, the leaders slowed down the pace a bit, so we became more bunched up. Soon after, though, they sped up again and people spread out. By the time we got to the hay bales in the first loop, the course was not as tightly packed. I thought that area would be more difficult than it was to get a good position going around the hay bales. Very soon after was the first bridge hill. Each time around, I used this and the second (more steep) hill to pick off people. I have more experience running hills and enjoy them. Towards the middle to end of this first loop, I had caught up to Zariel Macchia on the US team. We used each other a lot throughout the rest of the race, pushing and holding each other accountable. I kept telling myself to stay relaxed, focused, and remember that I was representing something much larger than myself. I was doing this for the team and wanted to run a race to be proud of. Going through the second loop, I heard Coach Rita Gary talking to Zariel and me. She told us to stick together and use each other throughout the next 2k. She reminded me how mental races like these can become. Whenever I started to feel extra fatigued, I reminded myself that my body can do so much more than I think it can. I was fit and ready for this race. Also, if I was feeling tired, so was everyone else. I kept my eyes up, sticking with Zariel and slowly catching other people in front of us. Going into the last loop, I was more used to the obstacles. I had a better understanding of how to attack them at race pace, using what I had learned from the previous loops. There was a group of four runners slightly ahead of me, so I focused on reeling them in and made it my goal to pass them before the race was over. I was able to catch up to the group ahead of me around the final turn. This gave me more confidence. The second bridge was right before the final straightaway. I knew I had to give it my all going up it and trust that the momentum on the way down would carry me to the finish. During this last stretch, I managed to pass a couple of the girls that had been ahead of me. I pushed hard into the finish, not wanting to have any regrets. The obstacles of the sandy sections, trees, wood obstacles, hay bales, bridges, and mud pit definitely kept the race more interesting, giving me something to focus on other than just the distance. This made it a very different racing experience, but I enjoyed it!
MileSplit/NCRunners: Did you get a chance to be a tourist? If so, what did you see, enjoy and learn about the country?
MARY BONNER: We weren't able to tour around Belgrade too much but were able to be tourists a couple of times during the trip. During runs before the race, we were able to explore the area around our hotel and the park where we raced. We were also able to go to the mall in Belgrade one afternoon and then visit the Fortress after the race on Saturday. The Fortress was beautiful and such a cool place to explore. The weather was very nice and there were many great sights overlooking the Danube and Sava rivers. We learned a little about the history of Belgrade by seeing the historical buildings on the Fortress grounds. We also walked around the main street of town to see a few shops and restaurants. I really enjoyed getting to see some of the culture in Belgrade. I also had spring break the week after the race, so I was able to go to Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary with my family.
MileSplit/NCRunners: You have accomplished so much in the sport already: national champion, state champion, breaking records...Where does this rank in those accomplishments? Where does it rank from an experience standpoint?
MARY BONNER: Racing for Team USA ranks very highly in all of my previous running experiences. As Coach (Matt) Sparks of Notre Dame told me when I was deciding whether to try for the team, you only have so many opportunities to make the US national team. This was a very rare experience, possibly once in a lifetime. I will never forget it. Stepping on the line in a USA singlet felt so surreal. Racing for my country is an honor. During the race, I kept reminding myself that I was racing for something bigger than just me, my school, or my state. There isn't anything bigger than one's country to race for, so this is an extremely profound accomplishment.
MileSplit/NCRunners: Tell me about Coach Hayes, and how he helped you prepare, mentally and physically, and how much he has meant to you in your high school career?
MARY BONNER: Coach Hayes has meant a lot to me. He has put so much effort into training me and helping me compete at a high level. He values my feedback and always works with me in my training. Knowing that he has confidence in me also helps me feel more assured going into races. No matter how my races go, he always supports me. Over the past four years, he has worked with me to create a personal training program that not only prepares me physically for competition, but also gives me the confidence mentally to succeed. I really appreciate the time he has spent on the electric bike, riding through McAlpine Park and creating cool video edits of my runs. I am extremely grateful for everything he has done for me.
MileSplit/NCRunners: How hard was it, in the middle of indoor and outdoor track season, and right before your last high school outdoor track season, preparing for a cross country race, but not just any race, but the world championships?
MARY BONNER: It was challenging to figure out training and racing plans around the world championships. I wasn't completely sure I was going to do it for this reason until a couple of weeks before the US Championships. I wanted to still be able to have an indoor season with my teammates, but also knew I could not pass up this incredible opportunity. Coach Hayes was extremely supportive of me with this, letting me make the decision and preparing to train me for whichever path I decided to take. My training plans varied during the period between the qualifying race and worlds, with some focus on indoor track training for the two mile, and other on longer distance training. We knew the world championship course would be relatively flat, so I was able to get in more track workouts to help with indoor training. I also had to shift my break to after world championships, so the normal season schedule between cross country and indoor track was shifted. It was a bit weird having a cross country race at the end of March when I would normally be starting the outdoor season, but I love cross country, so I was happy to extend it a little longer. My outdoor season will also begin later this year as a result, so I won't be able to have as many outdoor races as I was hoping. However, it was definitely worth it for the experience of racing for Team USA at the world championships.
MileSplit/NCRunners: Anything else about your experience at the World Cross Country Championships that I didn't ask?
MARY BONNER: One thing that I really enjoyed about the world championships was the opportunity to meet other runners from all over the world. A lot of other teams were staying at the same hotel, so we were able to talk with them between meals and activities. It was so cool to hear about what life is like for these other athletes. We spoke a lot with the Australian u20 team, who had amazing accents, and am very excited to see some of them again in the NCAA in the future.
MileSplit/NCRunners: How did you get involved in running? Could you ever have imagined everything you would accomplish when you first started?
MARY BONNER: My first 5k race was in elementary school through the Girls on the Run program. I participated in this for fun through my elementary school from third to fifth grade. I have great memories of running those races with my dad. I swam year-round throughout my childhood, as well, starting when I was 8 years old. I ran a season of track in seventh grade at my middle school, but swimming was still my main focus for activities throughout middle school. I loved swimming and thought that would be a sport where I could compete in college. My freshman year of high school was online as a result of COVID, and my parents wanted me to do something to get more involved in school. They suggested that I try out for cross country. I was at first a little hesitant, worried that it would interfere with swimming. I almost didn't try out. However, I quickly fell in love with the sport. It was especially nice to participate in an activity where I could have conversations with my teammates during practices, opposed to having my head underwater most of the time. During my freshman and sophomore years, my focus slowly shifted from swimming to running. I am so grateful that my parents encouraged me to try running and for everything they have done to support me. I definitely would not be the runner I am without them and am very lucky to have them.
I could not have imagined everything I have accomplished when I first started running. It has taken me so many places and taught me many important lessons. If someone told me four years ago that I would run for Team USA in a world championship race, I likely would not have believed them. There have been some ups and downs throughout my running journey so far, but I am truly grateful for the sport.