Now that we've all had a while to absorb the results, let's look at some of the best performances throughout the day, plus a few other impressions.
Overall Impressions
It seems like the Beeson Park course ran 20-30 seconds slower than usual due to the wet conditions, but that didn't prevent the competition from being intense! Also, every single state champion team was one of the expected contenders; no suprise, came-out-of-nowhere teams this year.
Best Female Performance: Sammy George, Millbrook
An astounding 17:27 (PR by almost 20 seconds) on a slow course means Sammy is primed for some serious postseason action.
Best Male Performance: Steven Phillips, Cardinal Gibbons
Simply carried his team to the championship with a fantastic race. Chapel Hill ran very well, but Phillips was the difference.
Surprise Female Performance: Rebekah Greengrass, Panther Creek
We knew she was good, but pushing the pace in such a loaded field was gutsy, and it paid off with a PR and a 6th-place finish.
Surprise Male Performance 1: Frank Cline, Robbinsville
A huge PR for the freshman from the mountains, and a jump from out of the top 10 in the rankings to third.
Suprise Male Performance 2: Densel Jefferson, St. Paul's
Ditto for Jefferson, who ran almost 30 seconds under his recorded PR and got all the way up for second place.
Great Shows of Sportsmanship: North Lincoln girls, Mount Tabor boys
Both of these teams wanted to win so badly, but both showed great class while on the stage for second place.
Most Dominating Female Team Win: Cardinal Gibbons
No disrespect to Green Hope, but we all thought this one would be closer; great effort by the Crusaders.
Most Dominating Male Team Win: North Lincoln
Four in the top ten was impressive, and the team looked extremely well-prepared.
Best Interview: North Lincoln boys
Very happy, very close, eager to share credit with teammates. Check out the meet page to see all the interviews.
Teams that Left Before Giving Me an Interview: Carrboro girls, Lake Norman Charter girls
I won't hold it against you, though (even you, Coach Zamaira!).
1A Boys and Girls:
While Steve Mulherin (NCSSM) dominated the race, I thought Dylan Johnson (Hayesville) did a great job closing the gap down at the end. After Science & Math, the next eight boys' teams were from the West or Midwest regions. In the girls' race, watching Sarah Hardin (LNCS) and Carly Kreber (Bishop McGuinness) duke it out all race was fantastic. Watch out for Franklin Academy next year, they have talent back and a solid middle-school program to help develop the 5th runner they need to contend. Six of the top 7 and 8 of the top 10 girls' teams were from the Western half of the state.
2A Boys and Girls:
Corbin Boyles (Maiden) was another freshman with a great performance Saturday. Carrboro's boys ran the best I've seen them run all year, but it just wasn't enough against North Lincoln this year. The First Flight boys managed fifth despite having their #1 runner struggle with his breathing. Seven of the top 8 boys teams were from the middle of the state (Mideast & Midwest regions). I still don't think we've seen the best Grace Morken has to offer this year (maybe at NXN Southeast?); since Seahawk she has essentially just run what she needed to run to win. Speaking of which, the Carrboro girls might just have a monster 4x8 in the making, as Morken and Perone are proven track talents, and Araba showed serious speed at the finish Saturday. It was great to see Grace Turner (Lincolnton) finish so well at the state meet after struggling there the past few years. Swansboro girls were one of only two East region teams to crack the top three in any race; the 2A girls had at least one team from each region in the top 5 teams.
3A Boys and Girls:
Chapel Hill's Brad Viles had a rough season after a long injury layoff, but he sure came up big on state meet day, giving the Tigers three in the top 10. With the Orange boys finishing fourth, the Mideast region took 3 of the top 4 places, while the Midwest had four of the top 9 teams. Natalie Andrejchak (Robinson) got the last word in her season-long battle with Mallory Price (Weddington), but both will be back next year. The injury to Jamie Vezolles definitely impacted Charlotte Catholic's season, but as it turned out Rachel Bartolomeo's move to Raleigh was not so dramatic. If she was still at Catholic, the Gibbons girls still win by 50-plus. West Carteret is the other of the two East region teams to crack the top 3; the other six teams in the top 7 were either Mideast or Midwest.
4A Boys and Girls:
Jacob Sears (Panther Creek) had a terrific race, especially over the last 800 meters. Same for George Oliver (Mount Tabor), who did everything in his power to bring home a title for his team. Wyatt Maxey (Providence) was a mild surprise in the top 10, and Sam Miner (East Chapel Hill) redeemed himself after a slightly sub-par regional race. T.C. Roberson, Broughton, and Ardrey Kell all had both boys and girls teams in the top 4. Despite bringing the boys' title home for the 7th straight year, the Mideast region only had one team in the top 6 (though 4 in the top 10). Watch out for Maura McDonnell (Green Hope) this year, both in the cross country postseason and in track; she's running extremely well right now. A solid run from a Myers Park girls' squad that has struggled this season, but came on quietly the last few weeks (they have good talent returning). Four of the top 6 girls' teams came from the West region, and the 5th-place team there (Providence) would almost certainly have been in the top 10.