When you think of the 3A West the first team to pop up is TC Roberson. What they have done this decade has been amazing (Team of the Decade?), they always produce talented runners. They must have a running factory in Skyland, year after year you can count on them being one of the best in 3A and the state. That being said, there appears to be some challengers to their throne. Lake Norman and Asheville look to be ready to knock them off. Both teams on paper look to be better than Roberson.
And this might be one of the most intriguing subplots of the whole season, can LakeNorman or Asheville beat Roberson when it matters most.Winning in August and September can build confidence, but what really matters is winning in late October and early November.You have to bring the meat (and not the Vegetable Medley)!Last year Roberson dominated.Is there anything to sway us into thinking they can’t do it again?They won’t dominate like last year, but it’s hard for NCRunners to see LakeNorman or Asheville getting them.It’s going to be a great and competitive region, if you had to go to one regional the 3A West would be it.
So NCRunner’s picks TC Roberson for the win. Now for second place.Both teams look to be outstanding, it just depends on how each team runs.That said we think Asheville has some extra motivation from last fall, being two points out of second place.Asheville is our pick for second, Lake Norman third.The first race for all three teams is August 23rd in Hendersonville, the race lineup has to be top notch.Getting the last spot: Mooresville.
3A Midwest @ McAlpine
Reagan, by NCRunner’s rankings is the best women’s team coming back.They have two lead pack runners in Laurie Humphries and Leslie Raymond, who will help them in the big meets by producing low scores.They squeaked by Asheville in the state meet last year, and now they should be looking to challenge TC Roberson for the top spot.That’s going to be a tough challenge, but August 23rd will give everyone an opportunity to see where each team is after summer training.
Reagan gets the regional win, then the following three teams will qualify as well: Charlotte Catholic, Marvin Ridge, and Sun Valley.The remaining three teams look to be closely bunched and it could be a tight one for second, third, and fourth place.Last year Catholic eased by MarvinRidge and Sun Valley, and then fell apart at the State meet (let’s hope that doesn’t happen again).MarvinRidge and Sun Valley are teams on the rise and look to be returning nearly everyone.In track it looked like Marvin Ridge had the slight edge, so that’s why we will pick them for second.Sun Valley in third and Charlotte Catholic in fourth.
3A Mideast
The individual state champion came from this region, not from some of the stronger regions.With that being said it going to be a close region with three teams in the mix: Williams, Western Guilford, and Triton.Triton returns everyone that ran in the State meet, but they are going to need to improve a little bit more if they want to be the top team in the region.Williams was the top team last year and the best team at the State meet from the region, that’s something that works in their favor.Western lost a lot of girls to graduation.That being said NCRunner’s thinks Williams will be the top team followed by Triton.If both teams improve their depth they could make some noise in November.Then in third is Western Guilford, and the last team to get a spot is Union Pines.
3A East
Kaitylin Davis has moved to Virginia, so Jacksonville’s road is a little tougher now.It’s going to be a close race between them and White Oak, but NCRunners believes that White Oak will be the top team in the region.Jacksonville now has to rely on Ryanna Henderson, but they should hold on for second place.Getting the third spot we pick West Carteret, and depending on how their summer training has been they could close the gap with the top two teams.Grabbing up the last spot we like Fike.