2A Preview
Last year Owen won and this year it doesn’t really look like anything has changed. Owen has a deep team that should put them over the top once again.
For this individual race it appears that Mark Sullivan of Cardinal Gibbons can win it again, although he will have some company. Ben Sterett of Swansboro and Daniel Yeakley of
Owen (1) Last year’s champions they look like they will repeat again as well. They dominated the West regional meet, and it looks as if they will dominate the state meet as well. Owen doesn’t have a guy that has posted a time under 17 minutes, but they have the best collection of runners in 2A and that is what matters the most.
Wilkes Central (12) Chase Miller leads Wilkes Central with the fifth best time in 2A with a 16:39. The rest of the team is a nice steady pack that will help out Wilkes Central.
East Rutherford (-) Not much is known about this team, although they did finish three points in front of
West Stanly (7) Lead by Daniel Yeakley, who could be a contender for the individual crown, this team looks as if it could be a top three team. Yeakley has improved throughout the season and his break out race happened at McAlpine during Wendy’s. Although it will depend on how that time translates to Tanglewood. Also Andrew Smith is a solid number two runner on this team, he also ran well at Wendy’s. If they can get a good run from their number five then they could do some damage.
Central Davidson (10) Runners one through four have developed into a nice pack, while their fifth ran a 19:39 at regionals. That needs to improve at the state meet.
Ledford (-) Ledford is another team that relies on a pack of runners, instead of one standout runner. The pack that they had was good enough for them to finish third at regionals, but could not move them into the top two spots in the race.
Cardinal Gibbons (6) Mark Sullivan will look to win the individual title and his team looks to be running well when it counts. They were close to
Northwood (9) Northwood is a good solid team that has issues with depth.
Carrboro (-) Carrboro has a nice steady pack and could probably finish in the top ten, the advantage that they will have is that they have run in enough big meets so inexperience shouldn’t be a problem.
Swansboro (16) Ben Sterett may be a close competitor to Mark Sullivan, he should be an individual to watch during the 2A race.
Croatan (-) Another team that has a pack mentality, Croatan can try and aim for a top ten finish, which should be something that they can do.
First Flight (5) They had the second and third place runners from the East regional, but their lack of depth hurt them in the race. Last year they were the highest finishing team from the East at states, it will be tough for them to do it again.
Richlands (-) They mirror First Flight in that they have a solid one-two, but then their lack of depth hurts them. I think that three of the teams from the East will be close to each other in the state meet, they all seem to be about the same.
2A Women’s Preview
Cardinal Gibbons has won the 2A meet for three years, it looks as if they will win it again for a fourth straight year. I’m sure most teams are thankful that they are moving up to 3A next year. After them it seems as if
For the individual race it could be between Sarah Willingham of
North Henderson (4) Lead by Sarah Willingham, who has run an 18:53 this year,
Brevard (-) This is another surprise team, haven’t really heard anything about them until the regional meet. They were able to beat a couple teams that thought they should be going to the state meet, and Brevard should be able to hold their own at the state meet.
Central Davidson (-) A nice steay pack of runners, they return to the state meet after finishing second in the Midwest.
Lincolnton (-) Lead by Morgan Turner, who has run an 18:55 at a disputed course, Lincolnton does not have the depth that most teams have in order for them to do well.
Cardinal Gibbons (1) Last year they won the state meet by over sixty points, they probably won’t win it by that much again, but they have to be the odds on favorite to win another state championship. Sarah Rapp is a runner to watch, and could provide a battle with the other Sarah, Sarah Willingham of
Carrboro (-) Can this team be in the top two? I think the answer to that question is a yes. Carrboro has the runners to do that, and they have produced at the big meets, don’t doubt them for one second.
Northwood (-) They didn’t run that poorly at the regional meet, it’s just that compared to the other teams in their region they don’t stack up well. But Northwood can definitely finish in the top ten.
Croatan (6) Croatan was able to win the East regional by twenty points, it will be interesting to see how they run at Tanglewood.
First Flight (13) Another team from the East it will be interesting to see how they stack up against teams from other regionals.
Swansboro (16) They were close to First Flight at the regional meet, look for them to use that at motivation at the state meet.