VTHSXC.COM Vermont HS Cross Country Poll Results - Oct. 15, 2018
Boys Overall Top 10
10. Stowe
Comments: All the same teams remain in the top ten with just a few changes in order but no major shake-ups this week. A calm before the storm/States (10/27) perhaps? This week saw #1 Essex run some very impressive times at the Burnt Hills Invite in New York. The Hornets' top 5 all ran under 16:04 on the short and blazingly fast
course. This suggests that the reigning D1 Champs are out to prove they are the best in Vermont in 2018 and have the legs to make it happen.
#2 U32 also ventured to the Empire State, where they raced very impressively in the massive Manhattan Invite over the famous 2.5 miles of Van Cortland Park in the Bronx. The Raiders ran some quick times and finished 25th out of the 300+ teams gathered from around the country. Waylon Kurts and Andrew Crompton both posted top 100 times out of the several thousand Varsity boys running on the day.
#3 Burlington holds form after a solid showing at Burnt Hill as well, where they finished 8th among many New York teams. The Seahorses were 40 seconds, on average, behind Essex. While this keeps them a step ahead of the rest of D1 and in the overall race, their impressive top three of Kissam, Ford, Summa will need some help if they are to move up.
If form holds, one of the best and most exciting races at States will be for the last three spots at New Englands. The best six teams, among all three divisions, will advance. #4 St. Jay, #5 MMU, #6 CVU, who also ran well in NYC this past week, #7 Harwood, and #8 South Burlington, have been playing leapfrog all year in the rankings but only six get to go to the Big Dance (New Englands). Do not forget about D3 where both Thetford and Stowe will be looking to knock off the big schools.
Individually, Henry Farrington continues to be the man to beat at the top, but Waylon Kurts almost broke the elite 13:00 minute mark in the Bronx, falling only 1 second short. The Raider with the long hair and Burlington’s Simon Kissam remain Farrington’s closest rivals, but don’t sleep on fellow Hornet Peter Alden who has been right on his teammate’s heels all year.
Division 1 Boys Top 5
Comments: No major changes in the D1 boys ratings. EHS solidify themselves once again by finishing 2nd in the Burnt Hills Invitational (2nd to nationally ranked team). Farrington may have had the strongest performance of the year nearly breaking 15 minutes. Peter Alden also ran his best race of the season finishing in 8th place. BHS ran a strong team race with the gap from 3-4 coming down from previous races. This was done without it’s normal 4th runner in Ethan Goldsmith. They will still need improvements to entertain the idea of challenging EHS for the top spot. The next three spots could be very tight with St Jay, CVU and MMU. St Jay and MMU both won the meets they attended while CVU raced in Manhattan. All three teams will be racing each other for the next two weekends.
Farrington looks like the odds on favorite for the individual title. Kissam and Alden appear to be the biggest challengers.
Division 2 Boys Top 5
1.U32
2. Harwood
3. MIDD
4. Woodstock
5. Spaulding
Comments: #2 Harwood was an impressive champion at their home invite. Winner Brendan Magill was very strong over the hills of Duxbury. The Highlanders trounced #1 U32’s JV by 43 points. That is all well and good, but the Raiders' Varsity was in New York City running strongly against national caliber teams at the Manhattan Invite. Harwood is young and improving every week but it will still take a major upset for them to prevail at States. That said, the Kerrigan versus Chaplin history book is littered with upsets and shockers in both directions over their 40-some years of racing against each other. You can be sure Harwood will be out for the win on October 27th.Barring that, the Highlanders will also be in the thick of the race for New Englands, and a close battle with U32 will help them in that regard. MIDD with a strong 1-2 in Cade and Nevins, Woodstock with a low stick in 10th grader Riley Shepherd, and Spaulding hold form in places 3-5, but none of them seem to be gaining on the top two teams.
Division 3 Boys Top 5
Comments: Division 3 teams were largely idle, with only Thetford and Bellows Falls competing at the CVC championships in New Hampshire. The Panthers cement their spot behind a strong showing from senior Owen Deffner. Stowe may be stronger through five runners, but with only four scoring in Division 3, they will need to move their very strong pack up thirty seconds or so to have a good shot at defending their championship. Neither Peoples nor Randolph competed this weekend, and while Bellows Falls had five athletes under 20:00 at CVCs, there is reason to believe that that course was not a true 5k. Stowe, Peoples, and Randolph will all face off this weekend at NVAC Mountain Championships, which may help provide some clarity in the rankings going into States, but at this point, the money has to be on either Thetford or Stowe to walk away on top on the 27th. Not currently ranked, but worthy of mention, are upstart teams from Lake Region and Oxbow. Both could have a shot to end up in the top five at States. Individually, it seems to be a bit of a toss-up at this point, with eight or so athletes having legitimate shots at coming on top, with Randolph’s Kaplan, Peoples’ Craig and Smith, Thetford’s Owen Deffner, and Oxbow’s Durham brothers all gunning for the spot. Finally, don’t sleep on Winooski’s Ali, who has not raced since a DNF at Manchester Invitational.
VTHSXC.COM Vermont HS Cross Country Poll Results - Oct. 15, 2018
Girls Overall Top 10
Comments: From one VT Coach: CVU’s 3rd place in the Eastern States Championships at the Manhattan Invite was nothing short of stunning. The Redhawks young 3-5 runners blitzed many elite big state teams and CVU is now a serious contender to qualify for Nationals in Portland,OR this December. What an inspiring moment for all 802 runners and teams to see one of our own up with the best in the country.
The girls top 10 has no changes in it this week. CVU maintains its #1 spot after finishing 3rd in the Eastern States race at the Manhattan Invitational this past weekend. The Redhawks were led by Alice Larson in 9th place and Ella Whitman in 18th place. Essex stays at #2 after finishing 2nd at the Burnt Hills Invitational. Natalie Preston finished in 11th place for the Hornets. Burlington remains at #3 after finishing 8th at Burnt Hills and the Seahorses were led by Emma Barker in 10th place. Bellows Falls finished 2nd at the CVC Championships and stays in the #4 spot. Abby Broadley finished 2nd and Stephanie Ager followed in 7th place. St Johnsbury holds down the #5 spot for another week but is followed closely by Harwood. Harwood looks like a team that could be on the move up the polls after a solid win at their home invitational this past weekend. They were led by their duo of Ava Thurston in 1st place and Julianne Young in 2nd place. The remaining teams stay the same as last week with Colchester at #7, U-32 at #8, BFA St Albans at #9 and Middlebury at #10.
Division 1 Girls Top 5
Comments: The division 1 girls top 5 is unchanged this week with only a few teams racing head to head. CVU maintains the top spot after their 3rd place finish in Eastern States at the Manhattan Invitational. They were led by their top duo of Alice Larson in 9th place and Ella Whitman in 18th place. The most important piece for the Redhawks was a trio of youngsters performing beyond their years with 9th graders Chloe Silverman and Jasmine Nails finishing as their #3 and #4 runners followed closely by 10th grader Alicia Veronneau. This trio was separated by only 4 seconds. Essex stays at #2 after a very strong 2nd place finish at the Burnt Hills Invitational. Once again Essex showed the strength of their pack finishing their 1-5 runners in a 41 second gap. Burlington stays at #3 after their 8th place finish at Burnt Hills. Emma Barker continues her strong season finishing in 10th place. St Johnsbury is in the #4 position this week and Colchester remains at #5.
Division 2 Girls Top 5
Comments: #1 Harwood, led by Thurston, Young, and a rapidly improving supporting cast of 9th graders, left no doubt as to who is the best team in D2 at their home invitational this past Saturday. Handily defeating #2 U32 and #3 MIDD at every spot 1 to 5, the Highlanders have stormed past their Central Vermont rivals in the last several weeks. THe Highlanders looked much stronger than the rest when the terrain turned uphill in Duxbury. U32 has been good in flashes but also very inconsistent and will need to raise their game if they are to prove that their 2017 championship wasn’t a one year fluke. Given the youth of the Harwood squad, the Highlanders could be looking at another multi-year run on State Championships starting in 2018.
Division 3 Girls Top 5
Comments: Bellows Falls has been the surprise of the season, and continued their roll with a strong performance at the CVC Championships on Saturday. The Terriers placed second in the conference, ahead of traditional powerhouses Brattleboro and Hanover High. Barring a major disaster next Saturday, they should comfortably claim the D3 title, and perhaps even be the first Division 3 girls’ team to qualify for New Englands since the 2004 team from Peoples. The Northfield/Williamstown team jumps a spot over Rice after a convincing victory over the Green Knights at Harwood Invitational. Stowe and Thetford are both putting together strong seasons, but they need to have significantly more success up and down their rosters in order to compete for a spot in the top 3. Individually, the favorite has to be Craftsbury’s Camille Bolduc, but Rice’s Emily Bloom laid down a fast time of 20:29 to win the Varsity B race on the tough Harwood Invitational course. Add the fact that her nearest competitor was two minutes back, and watch for her to make a play for the title. Bellows’ Falls’ Abby Broadley should also be in the mix, although a number of her faster times seem to have been run on 3-mile courses.