Boys Championship
Noah Dolhare (Providence Day) comes in with the best PR out of the NC competitors in the field of 16:02, his best mark from the last two seasons have come at McAlpine so don't be surprised to see a fast mark from him. I'd be surprised if he wasn't under 16 this weekend. Quinn Schneider (Woodlawn) is fresh off a win a Cannon XC Invitational where he ran 16:25 on a more difficult course. Brandon Hernandez (AL Brown) took second to him in that race and lead the first half by himself. Luke Evans (Westchester) has only raced once this season two weeks ago at Guilford County. He holds a 3200 PR of 9:34 and should be contending with the lead group in this field.
Haven Honeycutt (Asheville) holds a 16:23 PR from FL South last year and will contender with the front group. Dakota Mendenhall (Forbush)was just off his PR at Friday Night Lights last week and finished 10th in the Championship Race in 16:33. He only 8 seconds back of Dolhare and will look to set a big PR this weekend. Ryan Kendall (Ardrey Kell) is hungry for a fast time and has a big goal of breaking 16 this year. He ran 16:27 on this course last season.
Ben Verchick is entered at adidas XC Invitational in the Championship Race, so I assume he is attending that while his team travels here.
Jackson Ellenburg (Summerville, SC) is back to defend his title, as he ran 15:48 to win last year. Some other strong out of state competitors include Chase Korzenok and Udochi Okoro (Hillgrove, GA) who hold PRs of 16:23 and 16:24 respectively.
St. Pius X (GA) is back to defend their team title from the past few years, but will be challenged by a young Asheville team. St. Pius X comes in with only 25 seconds separating their 1st through 5th runner with their 6th and 7th man not too far behind. Charlotte Catholic has looked great early on in the season and won last weekend at Cannon XC Invitational.
Girls Championship
We will see a strong girls field with Sara Platek (Ragsdale) coming in with the best PR in the field of 17:39. We will also see a big matchup out of the NCISAA 2A between Ralene Kwiatkowski (Carolina Day) and Melissa Zammitti (Davidson Day). Zammitti will be kicking off her season and is coming off a huge track season where she ran 2:13, 4:56 and 10:55 and should be able to knock some time off of her 18:46 XC PR. Teammates Mariah Howlett and Izzy Evely (Lake Norman Charter) have both looked really strong this season. Howlett ran 18:55 last weekend at Cannon XC Invite, which is not thought of as a fast course. Sarah LaTour and Lexi Noch (Cuthbertson) have also been itching for some fast times. LaTour had a monster last mile last week, finishing second to Howlett at Cannon and I think she had a little more left in the tank. Giavanna Sirianni (South Iredell) ran 19:00 on this course last year at regionals and will hope to get under the 19 minute barrier.
Kate Eiselt (Myers Park) will be running at adidas XC Challenge while the rest of her team runs here.
Cuthbertson come in as the team favorites and rank 5th in our Saucony Flo50 Rankings. They'll be challenged Myers Park, Ardrey Kell, and St Pius X(GA). Myers Park will be shorthanded, but this will be a the first time we get to see their full squad run on a fast course this season. Ardrey Kell are fresh off a win at Seahawk last weekend and should come in with a lot of confidence from that. Carolina Day School girls have looked really strong as a team early on this season running on slow, hilly courses and could be a surprise on Saturday.