PG County Boys XC Preview

Photo by Craig Amoss

Andrew Okon and the Eleanor Roosevelt boys took home the PG County boys team title last fall by putting three runners in the top seven. Six of their seven varsity runners are back, including their big three of Okon, Brandon Lewis and Benno Wien, which makes them the heavy favorite to repeat as PG County champions this fall. The Roosevelt boys have enjoyed success at the county meet throughout the decade, winning the team title in 2010, 2014, 2015 and 2018.

PG County Boys Preview: By the Numbers

Photo by John Roemer

The county's top returning runner is Parkdale's Jafar Hussen, who continued his improvement on the track in the spring after a solid fall season. Hussen finished ninth in the 1600 at the 4A indoor state meet and eighth in the 3200 at the outdoor state meet, where he ran a personal-best time of 9:42 (the fourth-fastest outdoor 3200 of the decade in PG County). Hussen could compete for a top-ten spot at this year's state meet and could become the first repeat champion since Roosevelt's Justin Ahalt in 2010-11.

Photo by Craig Amoss

Friendly's Angel Ramirez was last year's 1A South regional runner-up and one of the top returning runners from last year's PG County championships. Ramirez also qualified for the 1600 at both the indoor and outdoor state meets, running personal bests of 4:42 (1600) and 2:05 (800). After finishing 29th at the 1A state meet last fall, he will have a shot at a medal this November. Among all PG County returners, his 18:49 time at the state meet was fourth-best.

Photo by Dasam Gill

The top two returning underclassmen from last year's county championships, Roosevelt's Benno Wien and Wise's Dyson Coley both showed improvements on the track during the spring. Wien's 4:40 1600 season best was good for sixth in the county, while Coley's 4:42 mark was right behind in eighth. Expect both to be familiar faces at the county meet for the next few years.