Coming in at No. 7 on the pre-season cross country countdown is Pinecrest's Zack Gilbertson.

Gilbertson, a rising senior, is coming off a strong track season where he played 4th in the 800m and 8th in the 1,600m at the NCHSAA 4A state meet. He won the 1,600m at the NCHSAA 4A Mideast Regional in a personal best time of 4:21.94. His 800m best also comes from the regional, a 1:56.23 3rd place performance. 

He was undefeated in the 1,600m on the season prior to the state meet, and he won all three 3,200m's he raced.

His best in the 3,200m of 9:37.47 came from the Weddington Invitational. 

During indoor season, he was runner-up in the 1,600m and 6th in the 1,000m at the NCHSAA 4A Indoor State Championship Meet. He also ran 9:20.62 at New Balance Dash for Doobie which placed him 10th overall in the event. 

Last fall, he was runner-up in at the NCHSAA 4A Mideast Regional, and he was also the SAC 3A/4A Conference champion. He also placed 3rd at the NCRunners Elite Invitational. 

His cross country personal best of 15:40 comes from the 2020 NCHSAA 4A Mideast Regional at WakeMed which he was victorious. He went on to place 7th at the state meet as a sophomore. He placed 7th at the 2019 NCHSAA 4A State Meet as a freshman, as well. 

Gilbertson is already a 2x all-state cross country runner, and he is looking to rebound in 2022 and get back on the podium, if not stand atop it as champion. He has all the tools and plenty of big-race experience to get the job done, but there is a ton of talent in the 4A classification that are gunning for the now-empty throne.