Here's a look at the 2A teams and individuals racing this weekend in the 2A State meet.
On the boy's side, Cardinal Gibbons looks to be the favorite team. Their showing at the Wendy's Invitational really jumped them up in the standings. They are currently ranked #2 among all teams in the state, only behind the #2 ranked team in the SE region, Chapel Hill. The Gibbon's boys also have the individual favorite, Sean Sewell. Sean had an outstanding track season, one in which he made huge improvements, and that success has carried over to XC this season. Looking at the elite rankings on NCrunners, Gibbons has 5 boys in the top 16 strictly by time, and 4 of the top 6.
There seems to really only be one other runner who may try and push Sewell for the title though. Dakota Norris of Mitchell has had a great season so far, should be interesting to see what his gameplan is. Other runners besides Gibbons will be aiming for a high finish, they include: Matt Russell of Northwood, Zachary Bryan and Stephon Roach of Reidsville who had great regional races, and Landon Arey of West Stanley, among others.
The girl's race doesn't look much different. Cardinal Gibbons comes in as the overwhelming favorite for the 2nd title in as many years as a 2A school. The bad news for the other 2A schools is that they are young, too! If I am seeing things correctly, they return everyone. Yikes! The front runner for Gibbons is Heather Beichner. She is also the favorite for the state title, but she better not look ahead too much. Lincolnton's Morgan Turner is quite good. Morgan finished well last year as a 9th grader and has only been running faster this year. She has run in a couple bigger meets this season, posting an 18:44 at the United Way Invitational, defeating Tara Wilson, one of the state's better 4A runners. One other runner who won't hand the title over will probably be North Henderson's Sarah Willingham. Sarah won the regional race easily and ran a solid 19:23 at Wendy's in early October. She seems to be peaking at the right time.
North Henderson's girls look to be the 2nd best team, but don't count Durham School of the Arts out of that spot either. Northwood and Orange should be up competing for a top 5 spot as well. First Flight's pack could do some damage if they move together through the field.
2A Boys Teams
West Region:
Surry Central – ranked #2 by Coaches and NCrunners, they have a pretty tight group 1-5
West Henderson – this is a good team, especially when Ellison is running with Sharrits
Owen – a team of underclassmen, after losing their top 7 last year, excellent job on getting back so quickly
Wilkes Central – no front runner, but a tight 1-4, #5 needs to join them
Midwest Region:
West Stanley – led by regional champ, Landon Arey, he will get them a low score, they have a solid top 4, 5th man needs to step it up for a top finish in the state
Bunker Hill – Cameron Witherspoon has had some very good performances this year, this team only loses 1 out of the top 5, so this is good experience
Ledford – led by Andrew Hege, 2 9th graders in the top 5, good experience as well
North Rowan – only 5 runners finished at the regional race, not bad still making it to states
Mideast Region:
Cardinal Gibbons – this team is very good, they have had 5 runners eclipse the 17:00 barrier this year, should be an impressive win for them, but anything can happen
Northwood – Northwood looked good at the Jungle Run, then ran somewhat up and down a good bit of the season, if McLamb is running with Russel then they are tough, could mean a high finish for them
Orange – no front runners, but they have 2 packs within their top 5, packs are good in these state meets, having that 5 in is crucial
Reidsville – a great run at regionals by their front 2, Bryan and Roach, need a 5th man though
East Region:
First Flight – Rob Roderer and Tommy Lozupone went 1,2 in the region, but things will be much tougher this weekend
Northside – led by seniors Cole Anderson and Kyle Dubois, wow, their entire top 5 are seniors, they will won't to end their careers on a high note
East Duplin – a very solid top 4 led by Ronnie Sturgill, then they wait a couple minutes for their number 5, they could be up there if #5 has a great day
Swansboro – led by a 9th grader, Ben Sterett finished 6th in the region
2A Girls Teams
West Region: *this is a good region, but they all need #5 runners
North Henderson – led by Willingham who will get a very low score, this team is definitely looking for a top 3 finish
Wilkes Central – has been under the radar this season, but always has a good team, no exception this year
Shelby – led by 9th grader Glacie Blackley, they have been pretty consistent this year
West Henderson – led by Madelyn Larouche, 4 and 5 need to run better for a higher placing
Midwest Region:
Ledford – led by Nayeli Talamantes, she won the open race at Tanglewood earlier this season, so she knows the course, only 1 senior in the top 7
East Davidson – Kayla Schilly leads this team with Jess Brinkley not far behind, a good 1,2 punch, but they need support
Salisbury – front 2, Oakes & Horning, look to run together, need 5th to step it up
West Stanley – 1 senior in the top 7, led by 9th grader Brooke Bentoon, good experience for the future
Mideast Region:
Cardinal Gibbons – took 5 of the top 10 at the regional, led by Heather Beichner, the favorite for the individual title
Durham School of the Arts – a good team, but seems pretty spread apart, Ericka Charles can finish top 10
Northwood – Dispennette has had a great season so far, she will be hoping to end it with a top finish, Whitfield has also come on strong late in the season
Orange – they have 3 9th graders in the top 7, the'll be back next year, Orange you glad to be in the state meet, sorry
East Region:
First Flight – not extremely fast, but 1-5 were only 25 sec. apart at the regional, that's pack running
Northside – led by Jazmine Clifton, she has had some good runs this season
Croatan – led by Margo Eatmon, pretty big spred back to #'s 3,4,5
Swansboro – Becky Brandenburg finished 5th in the region, good job on making states