Week 6 Rankings - Week of 10/10/22


VTHSXC.COM Vermont HS Boys Cross Country Poll Results - Oct. 10, 2022

Boys Overall Top 10

1.St. Jay

2.CVU

3. U32

4. Essex

5.SB

6. Montpelier

7. BFA

8. BHS

9.Midd

10.MMU


Comments:

How can such a simple sport–first one to run from point A to point B wins– be complicated? This week’s rankings have both the simple (#1 St.Jay is the team to beat) and the complicated. With COVID shuffling lineups week to week, the State Championships in two weeks at Thetford may well be decided by an immunological roll of the dice. These past two weeks also saw Vermont teams racing across three different states and on vastly different courses, making direct comparisons of times and teams almost impossible.


#1 St. Jay and #2 CVU both ran very well at the Manhattan Invite in New York City, one of the largest and most competitive races in the country. The Hilltoppers finished a solid 14th in the elite Eastern States Championships and posted an impressive 1:04 spread between their 1-5 runners. This kind of pack running is vital to Cross Country success and highlights the team aspect of the sport. The CVU Redhawks, led by Matt Servin, finished 2nd in their “Letter Race” (sub-elite but very competitive) and if their 2nd-5th runners can close about 20 seconds on each of their St. Jay counterparts, the boys from Hinesburg could again be the best in Vermont come States. #3 U32 was idle, withdrawing from Manhattan, and has not run a full team for a month. The coaches keep voting for them but injury and illness may have tanked the Raiders season? #4 Essex, running workout pace, won easily at a lower key midweek race at Rice.


The top 6 teams overall, all divisions, at States qualify for New England Championships, and while #5 SB and #6 MHS may be the slight favorites for those last two spots on paper, #7 BFA and #8 BHS have run some very fast times. #9 Middlebury won the Harwood Invite last Saturday and have been getting stronger as the season progresses. Look for the Tigers to have something to say in the D2 race and the run for New Englands. While not ranked, Craftsbury Academy was in Rhode Island to race the Ponaganset Covered Bridge Classic run on the same course as New England’s, so clearly the Chargers are looking to repeat their 2021 performance by qualifying for the regional race.


The best individual boy in Vermont is Matthew Servin. He is more than 30 seconds faster than any other boy in the state. At the Manhattan Invite he ran an elite time of 12:47 over the storied 2.5 mile course in the Bronx. While Vermont has some other fine runners (Smart, Yagoda, Thorton-Sherman), Sevrin is in a different class. He is running among the best in the Northeast and, barring illness or injury, has a legitimate chance to win New England’s and to make Nationals this fall. For the moment, the rest of the boys in Vermont can only watch him run off the front.


VTHSXC.COM Vermont HS Girls Cross Country Poll Results - Oct. 10, 2022


Girls Overall Top 10

  1. CVU

  2. Essex/U32 TIE


  4. MMU

  5. Harwood

  6. BHS

  7. ST. J.

  8. Middlebury

  9. South Burlington

  10. Thetford


Comments:

Lots of results since our last POWER RANKING. We saw most Vermont teams toe the line in Thetford, some small mid-week races, a New England Champ preview meet and one of the greatest meets on the East Coast, The Manhattan Invitational/Eastern States Championships.


Despite all the shuffling in race locations and rosters, one thing remains consistent….CVU is the #1 team in Vermont and if the Eastern States results are worth anything, they have stamped themselves as a top team in the Northeast with a 4th place finish there this past Saturday. The Redhawks also dominated The Woods Trail race a week prior.


The coaches were split, as they were a few weeks back, about our #2 team. Once the rankings were compiled, U-32 and Essex shared the #2 spot. They also share another characteristic, both teams finally fielded a more complete team over the past two weeks and showed that while still far behind CVU, they can put together a very competitive roster. U-32’s Ginger Long was back in action at Van Cortlandt Park and Essex showcased Virginia Cobb, who provides a solid #2 for the Hornets.


Beyond the top three schools, the coaches found MMU and Harwood in the 4 and 5 slots. MMU is coming off a strong performance at Thetford and Harwood has been tough to follow, but solid when they show up in force. The rest of the list will be angling for a berth at New Englands as the top 6 teams will qualify once all divisions are combined at the state championships at the end of October.


On the individual side, things got a lot more interesting since we last published these rankings. A wise writer once wrote “Never count out a senior running with her team for what could be the final time.”, referencing MMU’s senior Tess Drury. Well, despite losing to Kredell throughout the early part of the season, she showed why you shouldn’t sleep on her, or anyone when they take to the trails of Thetford again in late October. Drury put on a show at Woods Trail and dominated the field, winning by over 20 seconds. Alice Kredell has been the class of the field up to this point, but there is plenty of talent on the ladies’ side of Vermont running to ensure the championships will be exciting. BHS’ Gillian Fairfax, CVU’s Estella Laird and Essex’s Scarlet Stimson, all remain contenders. Kredell and Laird showed their stuff in NYC this past weekend while Stimson was in Rhode Island. I’m sure it was all a welcome break from racing each other every week. Oh, and don’t sleep on Ginger Long from U-32 as she looked sharp in NYC in a separate race from the CVU tandem.


While the team outlook looks boring, you can bet that the CVU coaching staff is ensuring that message doesn’t reach their team. This cross country fan can’t wait for the individual battle and is rooting for a close one that comes down to that final straightaway. I can’t tell you who will win the individual crown come Championship Saturday, but I can tell you that whoever does, will have earned it.