Ready to Rumble
Something speedy this way comes...
All right, here we go! We are officially barrelling down the final chute, hurtling1 towards Nationals. The racing opportunities left between now and Nats are officially zero, and tapers are beginning across the country.
This week is mostly going to be a recap of last week — I’m working on my predictions but I’m saving those for next week. In the meantime, however, let me know who’s racing! Will your club be at Nats? What are your predictions? Discourse is welcome at the button below.
Southeastern Region
The night before the Southeastern regionals I called into the UNC running club’s pre-meet livestream and discussed my predictions for the next morning. The Southeast is pretty much strong across the board, but I reiterated my statements from last week’s newsletter — the biggest team title threats are the NC and GA schools, with a caveat to watch out for Floridians2. They brought up Tennessee and their runner Scott Greeves in particular. I agreed Tennessee was absolutely a threat (and Scott is always a force to be reckoned with), but in terms of depth, UNC, NC State, UGA, and Georgia Tech were highest on my radar.
When the results came down, I felt vindicated to say the least. The men’s team podium? GA Tech (43), NC State (443), Tennessee (72). Individual top 5? Hayden Marshall (GA Tech), Ethan Turner (UNC), Elijah McCauley (GA Tech), James Vlasis (NC State), and Jack Lesh (Florida). Women’s team podium? UNC (22!4), Florida (70), and NC State (73). Individual top 5? Abbey McKee (UNC), Madison Lanai (UNC-C), Janet Scott (UNC), Maggie McCormick (UNC), and Hannah Hosay (Florida).
Thank you, thankyouverymuch.
Mid-Atlantic Region
So…. this is awkward.
Due to a timing error at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Meet, I don’t have individual times or placing for the men’s race (nor does anybody, for that matter). I do, however, have all the info from the women’s race, AND team results. Let’s dive in.
Princeton runner Eden Michael took first individually, running 22:42 over 6k. Penn State’s Jodi Patterson and UVA’s Zoe Van Winckel were just behind, followed by PSU’s Alyssa Fedorshak and Pitt’s Caroline Beard. In a definitive display of team cohesiveness, however, VA Tech took first as a team, scoring 56 points to PSU’s 66, despite their top runner finishing 8th (behind PSU’s 2-4 top two finishers). This is another one of those “winning team has a slower average time” situations. Say it with me now — CROSS COUNTRY IS A TEAM SPORT.
Like I said, I don’t know any exact results for the men’s race, but I know VT took first as a team — fulfilling their sweep after calling their shot back in September — and a Delaware Runner took first (presumably either Alexander Horgan or Matthew Kwiatkowski). The big takeaway here? The Hokies got their sweep, and now their eyes are set firmly on Pole Green Park.
8 days till Nationals. Let’s get ready to rumble.
Or maybe hurdling, if you’re into that
One should always watch out for Floridians
Remember that cross country coach from last week’s edition who’s all about team sports? He just dumped gatorade on himself.
The UNC women are ridiculous this year. They’re absolutely in the conversation for a podium at Nationals.