The Wickham Jamboree showed why Brevard County is being considered by some the new hub of cross country in Florida. And on the other side of the state, Tampa Jesuit showed itself to again be one of the best and deepest boys teams in the state.
Jesuit placed its top eight under 17:30 at the Red Mule Labor Day 5K, a preason traditional race in the Brooksville area. With Connor Revord's 15:43.65 leading the way, their team average of 16:39 looks extremely impressive this early in the season--even on the lightning quick McKeathan Lake course. Jordan Schilit 16:23, Matt Tucker 16:51, Ben Martin 17:03, and Carson Holton 17:15 rounded out their "scorers." And Mikey Gonzalez 17:15, Logan Trimble 17:19, and Andrew Robbins 17:26 gave them the depth they need to really make a statement. NTN are you looking?
Meanwhile, at the Wickham Park Jamobree in Melbourne the hometown crew from Melbourne High showed they had surprising depth. Everyone knew about last year's freshman sensation (now a sophomore) Brian Atkinson and he did not disappoint, with a 15:47 opener. What some may not have realized is that they have been apparently logging the miles this summer and have some more guns. The biggest shocker was James Post who opened his cross country career with a time of 16:32! James... who? James Post, better learn it. That's right he didn't run on the grass last year, but started running in the spring. With Dillon McGee 17:21, Derek Bastien 17:36, and Erik Fagan 17:40 to follow that one-two punch Mel High averaged 16:59.2. Not a bad way to start a season.
Four more boys squads had three under 17:45 at the meet including Holy Trinity, Bayside, Satellite, and Vero Beach. For the Holy Trinity boys it was a power packed top three, followed by two big question marks for 4 and 5. If the Tigers can find a couple of their diomands in the rough to step up and fill those positions, even if just mid to upper 17s, by the time the state meet rolls around they'll be tough to beat. Their top three might be the best top three in the state at this point. Bret Butler was their leader at 16:19 with Kyle Cooke and Tyler Truitt close behind at 16:22 and 16:30, respectively. Most expect that Cooke will take the leading role this year and potentially be the state's top runner or even Footlocker Nationals contender. Last year before getting injured, Cooke ran a 15:35.12 at the flrunners.com Invitational for second place at the prestigious meet.
The HTA girls, on the other hand, did not have the problem of depth. Their team average of 19:23, of course is a bit skewed by their (way way way) front runner Kayla Hale, who is qualified for Footlocker Nationals last fall and is likely to do the same again this year. Hale won by well over a minute padding with a time of 17:46. About two minutes after Hale crossed the line the next three Tiger girls (Melissa Jones 19:41, Savannah McKendree 19:47 and Teresa Ristow 19:48) came through in near sequential order. While depth is not a problem, the 1-5 split might be... they won't need much help to win another 1A title but if they can find someone else to join Jones, McKendree and Ristow in the 19 minute club they could secure their spot as the state's #2 girls team (behind Episcopal) and probably earn an NTN South Region ranking. And they've got such depth that it could easily happen. Their 4-8 positions were filled by Jade Miller 20:41, Heather Farthing 20:42, Stephanie Bird 20:48, and seventh-grader Brianna Wahy 21:24.
Helen Mann and her Melbourne High girls averaged 20:24 for their opening performance. Mann set the pace at 19:23, with Sam Sapundjieff 20:18, Candice McNaughton 20:25, Danielle Todd 20:45, and Lyndsey Spraggins 21:10 finishing their top five. And to keep the top five on their toes Stephanie Trout 21:15, Allison Shockley 21:19, and Michelle Atkinson (yes, that Atkinson) 21:22 are ready to step up into a scoring position should someone falter or get injured. Spraggins is likely to enter that top five as the season gets going. She saw the other side of 20 minutes regularly last year including a 19:02 road race performance and 19:46 at Footlocker South.
Keeping it in Brevard County, the Astronaut girls looked impressive only lacking in the depth of their aforementioned counterparts. Devin Spoerle finished second overall with a time of 19:05. Amanda Slayman 20:16, Kori Snitker 20:40, and Alyssa Thompson 20:56 made them strong through four. What they can put together beyond their fourth is yet to be seen.
The Satellite Scorpions lost a bit of their sting to graduation last year, but had Julianna Stern at 19:29, followed by Mollie Hibbard 21:07 and Alisa Kowaleski 21:25 with quality opening day performances. Missing, however, from the Saturday roster was junior Ashley Shiver who had a PR of 19:05 last fall and a great spring as a miler. They also have another Shiver (Nicole) entering as a freshman this year, who could give them the number five they need to continue the great tradition they have built in the last several years.
This week at UF (and some more Jamborees) we should get a better look at teams from some other areas around the state. But if this weekend is any indication, it's going to be a great year!
Jesuit placed its top eight under 17:30 at the Red Mule Labor Day 5K, a preason traditional race in the Brooksville area. With Connor Revord's 15:43.65 leading the way, their team average of 16:39 looks extremely impressive this early in the season--even on the lightning quick McKeathan Lake course. Jordan Schilit 16:23, Matt Tucker 16:51, Ben Martin 17:03, and Carson Holton 17:15 rounded out their "scorers." And Mikey Gonzalez 17:15, Logan Trimble 17:19, and Andrew Robbins 17:26 gave them the depth they need to really make a statement. NTN are you looking?
Meanwhile, at the Wickham Park Jamobree in Melbourne the hometown crew from Melbourne High showed they had surprising depth. Everyone knew about last year's freshman sensation (now a sophomore) Brian Atkinson and he did not disappoint, with a 15:47 opener. What some may not have realized is that they have been apparently logging the miles this summer and have some more guns. The biggest shocker was James Post who opened his cross country career with a time of 16:32! James... who? James Post, better learn it. That's right he didn't run on the grass last year, but started running in the spring. With Dillon McGee 17:21, Derek Bastien 17:36, and Erik Fagan 17:40 to follow that one-two punch Mel High averaged 16:59.2. Not a bad way to start a season.
Four more boys squads had three under 17:45 at the meet including Holy Trinity, Bayside, Satellite, and Vero Beach. For the Holy Trinity boys it was a power packed top three, followed by two big question marks for 4 and 5. If the Tigers can find a couple of their diomands in the rough to step up and fill those positions, even if just mid to upper 17s, by the time the state meet rolls around they'll be tough to beat. Their top three might be the best top three in the state at this point. Bret Butler was their leader at 16:19 with Kyle Cooke and Tyler Truitt close behind at 16:22 and 16:30, respectively. Most expect that Cooke will take the leading role this year and potentially be the state's top runner or even Footlocker Nationals contender. Last year before getting injured, Cooke ran a 15:35.12 at the flrunners.com Invitational for second place at the prestigious meet.
The HTA girls, on the other hand, did not have the problem of depth. Their team average of 19:23, of course is a bit skewed by their (way way way) front runner Kayla Hale, who is qualified for Footlocker Nationals last fall and is likely to do the same again this year. Hale won by well over a minute padding with a time of 17:46. About two minutes after Hale crossed the line the next three Tiger girls (Melissa Jones 19:41, Savannah McKendree 19:47 and Teresa Ristow 19:48) came through in near sequential order. While depth is not a problem, the 1-5 split might be... they won't need much help to win another 1A title but if they can find someone else to join Jones, McKendree and Ristow in the 19 minute club they could secure their spot as the state's #2 girls team (behind Episcopal) and probably earn an NTN South Region ranking. And they've got such depth that it could easily happen. Their 4-8 positions were filled by Jade Miller 20:41, Heather Farthing 20:42, Stephanie Bird 20:48, and seventh-grader Brianna Wahy 21:24.
Helen Mann and her Melbourne High girls averaged 20:24 for their opening performance. Mann set the pace at 19:23, with Sam Sapundjieff 20:18, Candice McNaughton 20:25, Danielle Todd 20:45, and Lyndsey Spraggins 21:10 finishing their top five. And to keep the top five on their toes Stephanie Trout 21:15, Allison Shockley 21:19, and Michelle Atkinson (yes, that Atkinson) 21:22 are ready to step up into a scoring position should someone falter or get injured. Spraggins is likely to enter that top five as the season gets going. She saw the other side of 20 minutes regularly last year including a 19:02 road race performance and 19:46 at Footlocker South.
Keeping it in Brevard County, the Astronaut girls looked impressive only lacking in the depth of their aforementioned counterparts. Devin Spoerle finished second overall with a time of 19:05. Amanda Slayman 20:16, Kori Snitker 20:40, and Alyssa Thompson 20:56 made them strong through four. What they can put together beyond their fourth is yet to be seen.
The Satellite Scorpions lost a bit of their sting to graduation last year, but had Julianna Stern at 19:29, followed by Mollie Hibbard 21:07 and Alisa Kowaleski 21:25 with quality opening day performances. Missing, however, from the Saturday roster was junior Ashley Shiver who had a PR of 19:05 last fall and a great spring as a miler. They also have another Shiver (Nicole) entering as a freshman this year, who could give them the number five they need to continue the great tradition they have built in the last several years.
This week at UF (and some more Jamborees) we should get a better look at teams from some other areas around the state. But if this weekend is any indication, it's going to be a great year!