The 2A state meet should prove to be a very competitive competition. The girl's team title is probably decided as Gibbons is quite possibly the best team in the state and will most likely place 5 in the top 10. However, the girls individual race may be between 2 athletes, and should be very fast.
The boys team title looked to be Owen's but West Henderson has come on strong throughout the year and only lost by 6 at the West Regional. The individual title should also be a lot of fun to watch. Look for a group of about 4 to race together for much of the race.
Photo: Look for the Owen/West Henderson battle to continue this weekend. Photo taken by Susan Anton.
2A Boys
Team Standings | Individual Rankings
After the WNC Cross Country Carnival, Owen High School, looked like they were going to be the new “dominate” team in the 2A classification. Owen defeated Chapel Hill and Providence Day, two defending state champions. Owen has remained at the top of the 2A classification all season as they have continued to run well. However, at the West Regional, West Henderson finished only 6 points behind Owen. This is by far the closest another 2A team has been all season.
So, heading into the state meet this weekend, the battle for the team title looks to be between Owen and West Henderson. Both teams will need all members to perform at their best because any faltering may give the other team the title.
Owen was led by Will Canon at the regional and close behind him was Chris Patino and Robert Dobbs. Owen seems to run as a pretty tight group as their 1-5 were only separated by 35 seconds.
West Henderson was led by Alex Cremer, and close behind was Spencer Sharrits and Nick Castellucci. If Dylan Ellison races the way he is capable of doing, look out! West Henderson also had a tight top 5, separated by 5 seconds. Seems to me that the team who moves their top runner the most could win the title.
The battle for the 3rd spot should be a good one. Cedar Ridge, Orange, and Brevard look like the next best teams. Cedar Ridge won the Mideast Regional, but in a big meet like states, will be looking for their 5th to have a much better performance. Orange ran well, but needs a great race from Jake Wimberly. Brevard has been consistent all season, led by Luke Anton, they will be in the mix for the 3rd position.
You should also pay attention to: First Flight, Cardinal Gibbons, and Northwood.
The way I see it.
1) Owen
2) West Henderson
3) Cedar Ridge
4) Orange
5) First Flight
6) Brevard
7) Cardinal Gibbons
8) West Stanly
9) Northwood
10) Wilkes Central
The individual state title should be fun. All year Dakota Norris of Mitchell and Josey Weaver of Madison have been battling up in the mountains. Josey has come out on top every single time . . . does there have to be a first? Mark Sullivan of Cardinal Gibbons turned up his running at the Greensboro Invitational in late September. Prior to that race, Mark had turned in anything special, but then a 16:16 at Hagan Stone opened some eyes. Zachary Bryan is a talented runner out of Reidsville who should be at the front, as he has run 16:19 this season. Ben Sterett of Swansboro has been flying under the radar while winning races on the east coast. Could he be the sleeper? Are there other spoilers? Justin Gragg of West Caldwell? Cameron Witherspoon of Bunker Hill?
Here are the top 20 individuals in my opinion.
Mark Sullivan, Cardinal Gibbons
Josey Weaver, Madison
Dakota Norris, Mitchell
Zachary Bryan, Reidsville
Ben Sterett, Swansboro
David Riska, North Surry
Justin Gragg, West Caldwell
Jeremy Gerlach, Cedar Ridge
Cameron Witherspoon, Bunker Hill
Robert Dobbs, Owen
Chris Patino, Owen
Daniel Yeakley, West Stanly
Alex Cremer, West Henderson
Will Canon, Owen
John Gladmon, Reidsville
Stacy Hardin, Cedar Ridge
Spencer Sharrits, West Henderson
Nick Castellucci, West Henderson
Luke Anton, Brevard
Ryan Magee, Cardinal Gibbons
Dylan Ellison, West Henderson
2A Girls
Team Standings | Individual Rankings
The Cardinal Gibbons girls have really turned it on this season. They were 2nd at the WNC Cross Country Carnival in August and then lost to Durham School of the Arts in a dual meet. Then DSA had an exceptional race at the Seahawk Invitational which led some to think maybe Gibbons was beatable . . . well, they aren’t.
The Gibbon’s ladies have found their stride and are running unbelievable. Now receiving votes to be ranked in the Southeast, they are dominating their competition. Their top 5 have seasonal PR’s of: 18:32, 19:18, 19:23, 19:46, and 19:56. Are they the best team in the state? They very well could be as they have a similar team to TC Roberson 2-5, but Heather Beichner may give them the edge.
Durham School of the Arts came out of nowhere and placed 2nd at the Seahawk Invitational in early September. Since that race, however, they haven’t showed steady improvement. Their top 5 girls have PR’s from 20:05-20:33, but as you can see that can’t tough Cardinal Gibbons. Durham School of the Arts should be 2nd, but after losing to Gibbons’ 17 to 63 at the Mideast Regional, don’t expect an upset.
North Henderson and West Henderson battled all the way through the West Regional, finally being separated by a mere 3 points. North Henderson has really come on as of late, but look for this battle to continue this weekend.
A couple other teams to look for would be Cedar Ridge and Orange.
Here’s my guess as to how the top 10 will shake up:
1) Cardinal Gibbons (scoring 25 points)
2) Durham School of the Arts
3) North Henderson
4) West Henderson
5) Cedar Ridge
6) East Lincoln
7) Orange
8) Northwood
9) East Henderson
10) Wilkes Central
I’ve been looking forward to the individual race every since I traveled with Sarah Willingham of North Henderson to Australia. Heather Beichner is the returning champ and has been running some incredible times all season. She hasn’t had much competition during the season, but Sarah could provide that. These two raced at the Wendy’s Invitational, with Heather winning 18:35 to 18:46. Sarah is a tough girl who has high expectations of her running. Don’t expect Heather to run away with this one, instead expect a fast race, which could see the top 2 running faster than any other classification.
Molly Baker of Cardinal Gibbons, Morgan Turner of Lincolnton, Sarah Rapp of Cardinal Gibbons, and Mackenzie Robinson of Orange should be the chase group, battling for the 3rd spot on the stage.
In my opinion, here are the top 10 runners in the girl’s 2A classification after regionals:
Heather Beichner, Cardinal Gibbons
Sarah Willingham, North Henderson
Morgan Turner, Lincolnton
Molly Baker, Cardinal Gibbons
Sarah Rapp, Cardinal Gibbons
Mackenzie Robinson, Orange
Leah Vaughn, Cardinal Gibbons
Halsey Merritt, Cardinal Gibbons
Tori Jones, Madison
Amber Bowles, East Lincoln