Let’s take a look at the races.
9:30 a.m. > Girl’s 3A NCISAA Championship
The obvious favorite for the individual title is Durham Academy’s Adrianne Soo. She put herself on the map last year at this meet by winning when no one, except for the DA contingent, thought she would. Later she clocked a very impressive 17:56 at the Foot Locker South race while finishing 16th overall. At the NCISAA Preview meet held in September, Soo ran 18:47 all alone. Since then she has set a new course record at the DA home course, running an 18:23. Is she ready to go sub-18:00 again, by herself? I think that is the only question here, as she should pull away by 800m and roll solo.
The battle for 2nd place could be very fun to watch. Charlotte Country Day’s Melanie Reyer, last year’s 1600m state champ, has been running very well in her first XC season ever. She has a PR of 19:11 and has won every CISAA race she’s run in. Melanie should be slotted for the next spot, but it isn’t a given. Also coming out of the CISAA are two other sub-19:30 runners, Charlotte Latin’s Haylee Dawe and Providence Day’s Haley Holway. Dawe, only a 9th grader, has run 19:23 and Holway has run 19:28. These two have battled all year and have split the outcomes with one another. Also in the mix will be Maegan Whiting of North Raleigh Christian, Rachel Park of Cary Academy, Erin O’Connor of Durham Academy, Stephanie Schauder of Cannon, and Kameron Spence of Charlotte Latin. All these girls have broken 20:00 this season and will probably run very quickly.
Can the NCISAA 3A race have 1 runner under 18:00 and a handful under 19:00? That would be great for the NCISAA! If the weather is right, look for these girls to fly.
The team competition is going to be tight as well. Throughout the season, the #1 spot in the Coaches Poll has changed almost every publishing. There are 5 teams that probably feel they have a shot at winning this year’s state title. They are: Charlotte Latin, Forsyth Country Day, Cannon School, Providence Day, and Cary Academy.
On paper, Charlotte Latin is the favorite as they have 2 girls under 20:00, 1 more in the mid 20’s, and 2 more right over 21:00. Latin just knocked off PD in the CISAA conference meet, giving them their first conference title in school history. The story would write itself should they go on to also win their first state title, with 3 9th graders in their top 5. Haylee Dawe has led this team all year, but Latin has benefited a great deal from the improvement of Kameron Spence. Kameron dominated middle school competition while at Latin and seems to be figuring out the 5k, too. These two freshmen have a bright future for Charlotte Latin.
Forsyth Country Day has had some great performances this season. The PACIS meet was called off due to weather, so no one is really sure where they are as a team right now. They have had 3 girls break 21:00 this season, but that was early. FCDS is the defending state champ, so look for them to come out with something to prove again.
Cannon School has laid low for the most part this season, not racing too many other NCISAA schools. They performed well at the Eye Opener in Spartanburg and the Tanglewood Invitational. At their own invite, they lost to Charlotte Latin by 5 points, so they could definitely be a force. They are led by 9th grader Stephanie Schauder, who has been their top runner for the last 2 years. They have 4 girls who have broken 21:00 this year, but will need a 5th runner to step up at the state meet.
Providence Day’s girls won the NCISAA preview meet in September and have been ranked among the top 5 teams all season. Newcomer, Haley Holway, leads the team and will be aiming for a high finish. The PD girls are one of only about 25 teams in the entire state to have 5 girls under 21:30, so they are deep. Only two of those schools are in the NCISAA. PD has 3 girls who have broken 21:00 this year and 2 others under 21:30. They will need to run well with their 2 and 3 in order for them to make a statement.
Finally, Cary Academy’s ladies began the season ranked #1 and proved that ranking at the first meet of the season. However, it has been an up and down season since then. Rachel Park, CA’s #1, has dealt with injuries and their top 9th grader was missing from most of their meets throughout the season. Caitlin Kelly ran right at 21:00 in the first meet of the season and then turned up again the other day at the TISAC meet. This is always a dangerous team because Coach Conrad Hall knows exactly what he’s doing. They always peak at the right time and I fully expect this team to do the same.
Here are the top 25 3A girls based on the NCRunners.com database
1. 18:23 Adrianne Soo, Durham Academy
2. 19:11 Melanie Reyer, Charlotte Country Day
3. 19:23 Haylee Dawe, Charlotte Latin
4. 19:28 Haley Holway, Providence Day
5. 19:38 Rachel Park, Cary Academy
6. 19:41 Maegan Whiting, North Raleigh Christian
7. 19:43 Kameron Spence, Charlotte Latin
8. 19:47 Erin O’Connor, Durham Academy
9. 19:59 Stephanie Schauder, Cannon
10. 20:20 Emily Branch, Forsyth Country Day
11. 20:31 Hillary Dawe, Charlotte Latin
12. 20:35 Frances Dougherty, Greensboro Day
13. 20:37 Danielle Curran, Cary Academy
14. 20:39 Elisabeth Lang, Forsyth Country Day
15. 20:48 Cathleen Ress, Cannon
16. 20:51 Brenna Lakeson, Providence Day
17. 20:51 Heather Ekstrom, Cannon
18. 20:51 Hollis Lineberger, Forsyth Country Day
19. 20:53 Eden Slipperly, Cannon
20. 20:55 Katie Lonergan, Providence Day
21. 20:55 Lexy Bader, Ravenscroft
22. 21:01 Caitlin Kelly, Cary Academy
23. 21:02 Louise Hindal, Charlotte Latin
24. 21:06 Ally Finical, Charlotte Latin
25. 21:08 Jessica Goodman, Asheville School
10:10 a.m. > Boy’s 3A NCISAA Championship
The Providence Day boys returned most of their squad that won its 2nd straight state title last year. They came into the season the favorites and are entering Friday’s meet the favorites. Last year they scored a very low 33 points and won by the largest margin in meet history. Don’t expect the same dominance come Friday as a young Durham Academy team is improving fast.
The PD boys should win their 3rd straight title led by 4 seniors. Clay Sankey is the team’s #1 runner and looks to be the favorite to win the individual title. Right behind him is Wyatt Freeman, who is much improved from last year, now with a personal best of 16:33. The next two seniors run 3 and 4 for the team, Preston Lennon and Ehsan Akbari, they finished 6th and 8th respectively at last years state championship.
The Durham Academy team is young and fast. Junior, Worth Newman, won the TISAC conference meet this past week with a time of 17:10. He was followed by sophomore Erik Kraus in 17:24. The next 3 DA athletes hit times of 17:27, 17:40, and 17:41. Among the top 5 for DA are two freshmen twins, Fred and Carl Ward. This team should take 2nd and should also close the gap between Providence Day and the rest of the field. Coach Dennis Cullen has to be excited about what he has for the future.
The battle for 3rd place is going to be tight. Look for Charlotte Country Day, Cary Academy, Forsyth Country Day, and Greensboro Day to all be in the hunt. I believe it will come down to the 3-5 runners for each of these teams.
Charlotte Country Day is led by 9th grader, Scott Foy, who has a season best of 17:15. His teammate Reid Palmer is the only other Buc to have a sub-18:00 performance, but that could change as they have guys right on the verge.
Greensboro Day ran well at the NCISAA Preview meet. Their top 2 runners, Patrick Nolan & Ryan Carty, mixed it up at the front and clocked times of 17:03 and 17:11. They have one other teammate under 18:00.
Cary Academy seems to be the team with the biggest question mark. They began the season very well, with David Dement and Nick Kisley running very well at the WNC CC Carnival. However, since then, Kisley and Dement have been up and down. Dement didn’t run at the Preview meet due to a sickness I believe. Their #1 runner at the TISAC meet was actually Thomas Graham, who finished 2nd in 17:17. If this team is hitting on all cylinders, they should be able to battle for 2nd, but as I said – question mark.
Forsyth Country Day has been improving throughout the season. Sophomore Taylor Boone has run his PR this season of 17:43. Taylor Twine came to McAlpine back in August and ran 17:22, right behind PD’s Wyatt Freeman. However, since that race, Taylor hasn’t raced at that same level. Can he come back and blast out a solid performance again? We’ll just have to see. Expect FCDS to have a number of athletes under 18:00.
Rett English of Christ School is last year’s XC state champion and 2-mile state champion. He is coming into the race as the 3rd fastest this year due to an injury he suffered during the summer. He ran a very gutsy race at the NCISAA preview meet, looking like the old Rett until the last 800 meters. I expect Rett to be right at the front running for his 2nd state title.
The race should be a 3-way battle at the front between Clay Sankey, Wyatt Freeman, and Rett English. Then behind them it is going to be fun. There are about 10 guys who could be racing for the 4th spot. I can’t wait to watch this one.
Here are the top 25 3A boys based on the NCRunners.com database
1. 16:13 Clay Sankey, Providence Day
2. 16:34 Wyatt Freeman, Providence Day
3. 16:44 Rett English, Christ School
4. 16:48 David Dement, Cary Academy
4. 16:53 Nick Kisley, Cary Academy
6. 16:56 Preston Lennon, Providence Day
7. 17:03 Patrick Nolan, Greensboro Day School
8. 17:09 Ehsan Akbari, Providence Day
9. 17:10 Worth Newman, Durham Academy
10. 17:11 Ryan Carty, Greensboro Day School
11. 17:15 Scott Foy, Charlottte Country Day
12. 17:17 Thomas Graham, Cary Academy
13. 17:20 Fadi Hanna, North Raleigh Christian
14. 17:22 Taylor Twine, Forsyth Country Day
15. 17:24 Erik Kraus, Durham Academy
16. 17:26 Junior Hilliard, Providence Day
17. 17:27 Ted Arapaglou, Durham Academy
18. 17:32 Reid Palmer, Charlotte Country Day
19. 17:40 Fred Ward, Durham Academy
20. 17:41 Wes Sankey, Providence Day
21. 17:41 Carl Ward, Durham Academy
22. 17:43 Graham Boone, Forsyth Country Day
23. 17:46 Patrick Bailey, Providence Day
24. 17:48 David Stern, Providence Day
25. 17:53 Austin Lassiter, Wesleyan Christian
12:00 p.m. > Girl’s 1A/2A NCISAA Championship
The girl’s 1A/2A race should be a battle between about 4 schools. Caldwell Academy has come on in the last month and has been the highest ranked 2A team in the NCRunners.com Coaches Poll for most of the year. Behind them has been Fayetteville Academy, who has been ranked off and on. Westchester Country Day and Village Christian have also been receiving votes for the past few polls.
Fayetteville Academy got the better of the other 1A and 2A schools at the NCISAA Preview Meet, placing 4th overall. Their top 5 were separated by 1:03, from 21:36 to 22:39. That could prove to be enough to win the state title, but coming for them will be a young Caldwell Academy team. Laura Floyd, a 9th grader, should lead the team again
Village Christian out of Fayetteville is also a strong team. Their top 3 were right behind Floyd at the conference championships. Those three are: Lauren Stephenson, Kristen Stephenshon, and Allie Patrick. They only lost to Fayetteville Academy by 9 points at the conference meet and with 3 runners near FA’s #1 . . . this could be the team to beat on Friday.
Caldwell Academy has a very strong top 3, Taylor Dunn, Marie Gentry, & Gorman Ashley, with PR’s of 20:57, 20:59, and 21:47. However, they may be searching for a 4th and 5th to help them out. At the preview meet their 4 and 5 were back around 24:00.
Westchester Country Day didn’t run at the preview meet but did show up to the last CISAA conference meet. They ran well, led by Claire Councill who’s in the 7th grade. Claire ran a time of 21:31. Avery Goho, also a 7th grader, came through in 21:54. However, then there was drop off. They too will need their 3-5 to step up.
Besides the individuals listed below, another athlete to look out for is Fayetteville Christian’s Blair Long. Blair won the Cape Fear Independent Conference defeating the girls from Fayetteville Academy and Village Christian.
Bethany Spano’s last name should sound familiar, as she is the sister to last year’s 4A NCHSAA state champ, Kimberly Spano. I see the individual title coming down to Spano and Cailtin Selle of Westminister Catawba. At the preview meet, Caitlin had the lead on Spano most of the way, but Spano put on a late move over the last 800 to beat her by 5 seconds.
1. 20:24 Bethany Spano, South Lake Christian
2. 20:29 Caitlin Selle, Westminister Catawba
3. 20:42 Whitney Thornburg, Asheville Christian Academy
4. 20:57 Marie Gentry, Caldwell Academy
5. 20:59 Taylor Dunn, Caldwell Academy
6. 21:07 Jana Allgeier, Gaston Day School
12:40 p.m. > Boy’s 1A/2A NCISAA Championship
The boy’s team title is not up for grabs. With 5 of the top 8 times listed below, Fayetteville Academy should be thinking about how many All-State athletes they are going to have. They won their first state title last year and are obviously back for another in 2007. The team is led by soccer player/XC runner, Jackson Ferrell. Jackson may not have the fastest time, but he is their #1 runner. He won the CFIC meet in 17:20, 23 seconds ahead of FA’s #2. So what does that mean for him? Can Jackson compete at the front with Davis Graham and Andrew McGee?
Fayetteville Academy is not only looking to win the state 1A/2A title, but they will also be running to prove themselves as one of the best teams in the NCISAA as well as one of the best in the state. They’d love to see their name in the NCRunners.com All Classifications Top 15 Poll coming out in a few weeks.
The battle for 2nd place will be a good one. There are a few teams that will have the opportunity to head home with some hardware. Carolina Day, Asheville Christian, and Covenant Day will all have that chance.
Carolina Day is coming off their victory over Asheville Christian at their conference meet. Their confidence will high coming into the meet on Friday. Davis Graham, last year’s state champion, will lead the way for them, hopefully with a first place finish. Will Jordan will also help the team, as he will be aiming for a top 10 finish.
Asheville Christian was the 2nd team to finish at the NCISAA Preview Meet led by Zach Barnett’s 18:19. Right behind him was Lawson McDonald in 18:20. They didn’t look to run to well at the CAA conference meet, so they will look to redeem themselves in the last meet of the season.
The individual race should prove to a good one. Last year, Davis ran away from the field but this year he may have some company. Andrew McGee of Calvary Baptist has been running solo much of the year, so I’m sure he is looking forward to this challenge. As stated before, I foresee Jackson Ferrell of Fayetteville Academy joining the mix, too. Look for a 3-way race for awhile.
1. 16:38 Davis Graham, Carolina Day School
2. 17:03 Andrew McGee , Calvary Baptist High School
3. 17:19 Robert Maughan, Fayetteville Academy
4. 17:20 Jackson Ferrell, Fayetteville Academy
5. 17:23 James Dawson, Fayetteville Academy
6. 17:30 Andrew Cameron, Fayetteville Academy
7. 17:37 Ben Pugh, Covenant Day School
8. 17:39 Edrian Murray, Fayetteville Academy
9. 17:42.7 Grant Woody, Cary Christian School
10. 17:51 David McPherson, Cary Christian School
11. 17:56.5 Zach Barnett, Asheville Christian Academy