The first weekend of cross country invitationals is upon us! Filled with 2-mile races designed to be "eye-openers," we should nonetheless start to get an idea of who had a strong summer. In particular, 3A and 4A contenders from the Charlotte and Winston-Salem areas, as well as 1A and 2A powers from the foothills and mountains, will start to show their hands.
The Meet: Norman Trzaskoma Invitational
The Norman Trzaskoma Invitational, formerly known as the Forsyth County meet, has always been an early-season barometer for the strength of the 4A midwest, and a place for surprise contenders to declare themselves. Named for the longtime coach at R. J. Reynolds, coach of 5 consecutive cross country state champion boys teams, who retired at the end of the 2009-2010 school year, it's a great measure of the quality of summer training a program has done. "Traz" turned much of his considerable energy and effort toward supporting the Forsyth County cross country meet. He believed that it was important to the local athletes, and that the rivalries spurred greater performances. Positioned at the beginning of the season for at least the last decade, the meet provides consistent motivation for summer training.
Last year's meet, also held at West Forsyth, saw Mount Tabor and Reagan dominate the boys' race, taking the top 12 spots between them as Reagan edged out a 5-point win. Mount Tabor's girls ran away with their race, putting 8 runners in the top 18 (including 6 that return this season). The girls' individual race was the high point of the day, as a group of three runners charged away early: Kristen Henson (Reagan), exchange student Doreen Lagemann (Forsyth Country Day), and Jennifer Noguiera (West Forsyth). After a long back-and-forth battle, Henson finally pulled away from Lagemann for the win, while Noguiera was caught by Margaret Leak (Mount Tabor) and Julie Swaim (Reagan) in an intense three-girl fight to the finish,
For this year's edition there are some major changes. The date has been moved up one week, and the distance changed from 5K to 2 miles. Nonetheless, there will still be an intense spirit of competition, as pride is always on the line in this meet. The meet director, Jeff Thompson of West Forsyth, says,"We are excited to be hosting the first official Norman Trzaskoma Invitational to honor the longtime coach at RJ Reynolds H.S. in the spirit of friendly competition. With the talented kids in our area, we expect fast times even though this is an early season race."
One other interesting part of this meet is the canned food drive that accompanies the competition. Mount Tabor's athletes came up with the idea last year, and it looks like it will be a fixture for future years. Says Coach Thompson, "Last year Mt. Tabor brought in more food items (by weight) than any other team, and with their team numbers up again this year, they should continue that title. Of course, with the supplies at the food bank being at historically low levels, all teams are asked to step up with more contributions this year."
Meet Page (Including Recent Meet History)
The Course: West Forsyth High School/Southwest Elementary (2 miles).
This is NOT a fast course to start the season with. The combination of hilly terrain, slow grass and gravel, and occasional tight turns makes this a challenging and fairly technical track. The two-mile layout of this course allows runners to go down the long hill in the woods, which will help, but they still have to navigate the uphills from the lower athletic fields rising to the elementary school (twice, actually). That area of the course is very open to the sun and heat, too. There are some relatively sharp turns, some dirt/gravel roads, and a great finishing straight for the big kickers.
Girls Recent Performances at West Forsyth (5K)
Boys Recent Performances at West Forsyth (5K)
Teams to Watch:
Depending on who you talk to, either Reagan or Mount Tabor could have the best boys team in the state. Reagan had the best 5-person crew of 2-milers in the state during spring track season; Mount Tabor has the best returning pack of cross country runners in the state (although the lack of a true #1 last fall hurts them in the rankings). Those two teams are trailed by West Forsyth and Bishop McGuinness, while it looks like East Forsyth and RJ Reynolds will battle to round out the boys' top 5 teams.
In the girls' competition, there actually appear to be four strong teams up front. Reagan has a slight advantage over Mount Tabor in terms of returning 5K runners, although Tabor displayed more quality depth during track season. Bishop McGuinness, a 1A title contender, is also in the mix, and if West Forsyth has developed a few depth runners to go with their potent top 3 then they could be in the mix as well. Once again, RJ Reynolds and East Forsyth will be angling for the final spot in the top 5 teams.
Runners to Watch:
Craig Engels and Jordan Marsh lead Reagan and the county when you look at their returning times, and both had strong 3200 times in the spring. Mount Tabor returns four members of its front pack, with Josh Copus and Michael Ellis the leading candidates to be at the front. Eric Royer (RJ Reynolds), Justin Swink (West Forsyth) and Francisco Rocha (East Forsyth) are the returning leaders of their respective teams. Don't be surprised if Reagan's Perry Cabean moves into the top 5 individuals; if you follow the right people on Twitter, you know he has impressed with his summer training.
Kristen Henson (Reagan) is the top returner and defending champion. She will again face a strong challenge from Jennifer Noguiera (West Forsyth), who runs aggressively and wants to wash away the feeling of a spring track season stolen away by injury. Samantha Campanaro is the lone senior in Mount Tabor's returning top 8. Noguiera's teammates Kathryn Hayes and Kasey Skinner will be contending for top-5 spots, as will Reagan's Sophie Capshaw-Mack (transfer from RJ Reynolds), who is reported to be healthy after injuries ruined her spring season, as well. Bailey Seach leads Bishop McGuinness, while multi-sport star Chandler Borton (RJ Reynolds) makes her cross country debut this season after two seasons of winter track and one spring season (if she can fit the race in around her field hockey schedule). Hannah Moerk is the top returner for East Forsyth.
What the Stats Say:
Virtual Norman Trzaskoma Boys Race
Virtual Norman Trzaskoma Girls Race
Predictions:
By the first turn of the boys' race, the top 10 runners will be composed entirely of Reagan and Tabor runners...but it won't finish that way.
The girls' individual race leader will change several times, but Henson will defend her crown.
In both the boys' and girls' team scores, Mount Tabor and Reagan will be separated by less than 5 points.