2012 IHSA 3A Cross Country

[Fitzxc27]

Originally Posted by Col Crunch

There is still room for more.

Go Tomcats...err... Wildcats? I think it is some kind of cat... Thundercats?

Blackhawks. East Aurora are the Tomcats.

[Col Crunch]

Originally Posted by Fitzxc27

Blackhawks. East Aurora are the Tomcats.

I really am more of a Directional Aurora fan...

[hcxc2010]

A little self-promotion, but the WSC-Silver Conference should be much more competitive this year. Obviously, York will be a powerhouse. Lyons and Central also have a lot of talent while GW and DGN have some promising young runners.

I think York and O'Fallon will be competing for first. York has a lot of runners packed up, while O'Fallon has the strongest 1/2 combo in state and as O'Fallon has shown us the last 2 years, the ability to develop a great supporting team. Not to say that York doesn't have that ability either. They always do.

Individually, Keelan is the favorite as of NOW, but that is not set in stone. Riba/Perrier, Mroz, Hauser, Bund, etc. could all be #1 competitors.

My team predictions:
1. York
2. O'Fallon (These two are interchangeable for me as of now)
3. Neuqua Valley (never count them out as a competitor)
4. Palatine (Brown and Zambrano can be a strong force for them)
5. Hersey (Philapose, Somary, AND Rodriguez. This might be their best team in a while)
6. WW South
7. Prospect (A strong top 3 w/ Shaffer, Leet, and Daleiden)
8. New Trier (Lots of potential in this young squad)
9. Plainfield South
10. Hinsdale Central (Not necessarily any top runners, but good depth)

Other top 10 teams could be West Aurora, Lyons, Naperville North, Wheaton North and Maine South

[Phenom Man]

Okay, so O'Fallon, right? They have an amazing top 2. Riba and Perrier could be the strongest 1-2 punch in the state. Their 3rd guy will be Dorrian Gordon. He ran 15:35 at state last year as a freshman and ran 4:33 in track, so he'll be solid. After him there is going to be a gap. Unless two of their other runners make a huge improvement, or they bring in a strong freshman or soccer player, they are not going to compete with York. At this point, I don't think they can even be considered a lock for top 5. I don't want to sound like I'm doubting them. I think they have the returning strength to trophy with a good summer, but I think that about a lot of teams. I don't know why everyone wants to make them contenders with York or a lock for 2nd at this point.

[AragornstheBoss]

maine south returns a ton and u gotta imagine they will work super hard and be completely motivated to f **** up considering the bull that happened to them last year, plus they have consistently always been around year after year.

also list of top individuals, top of my head:
keelan riba perrier mroz milling mimlitz (mayb? super big wild card, also like the whole top 10 of york id bet another will step up too and run up with mroz/milling) bund beller leet shaffer santillo martinez, thats strictly 3a, it sucks cuz theyre a ton more in 2a and 1a like nykaza, mayb that hale kid, then yunk, lee menard?, dale, wold, singleton, mcinerery, would be very cool if all these guys could be in the same race, talk about LOADED!!!!! unlike last year there is a far better number of studs in 2a and 1a this year, which i think is good and bad.

[usnspecialist]

Originally Posted by AragornstheBoss

maine south returns a ton and u gotta imagine they will work super hard and be completely motivated to f **** up considering the bull that happened to them last year, plus they have consistently always been around year after year.

also list of top individuals, top of my head:
keelan riba perrier mroz milling mimlitz (mayb? super big wild card, also like the whole top 10 of york id bet another will step up too and run up with mroz/milling) bund beller leet shaffer santillo martinez, thats strictly 3a, it sucks cuz theyre a ton more in 2a and 1a like nykaza, mayb that hale kid, then yunk, lee menard?, dale, wold, singleton, mcinerery, would be very cool if all these guys could be in the same race, talk about LOADED!!!!! unlike last year there is a far better number of studs in 2a and 1a this year, which i think is good and bad.

Refresh my memory, what happened with maine south last year that would qualify as "bull".

[Phenom Man]

Originally Posted by usnspecialist

Refresh my memory, what happened with maine south last year that would qualify as "bull".

They were told they qualified for state (results were posted) before the official review, and then it was decided that they did not qualify for state.

[zpppe]

Interesting question in Keelan's situation. Has anyone ever failed to qualify for state one year and then won the next? (Excluding Verzbicas tripping on a log or whatever his freshman year)

[usnspecialist]

Originally Posted by Phenom Man

They were told they qualified for state (results were posted) before the official review, and then it was decided that they did not qualify for state.

that would indeed qualify. I was wondering if this was one of those "we were in a stacked sectional and didnt make it out" things.

[Col Crunch]

Originally Posted by Phenom Man

Okay, so O'Fallon, right? They have an amazing top 2. Riba and Perrier could be the strongest 1-2 punch in the state. Their 3rd guy will be Dorrian Gordon. He ran 15:35 at state last year as a freshman and ran 4:33 in track, so he'll be solid. After him there is going to be a gap. Unless two of their other runners make a huge improvement, or they bring in a strong freshman or soccer player, they are not going to compete with York. At this point, I don't think they can even be considered a lock for top 5. I don't want to sound like I'm doubting them. I think they have the returning strength to trophy with a good summer, but I think that about a lot of teams. I don't know why everyone wants to make them contenders with York or a lock for 2nd at this point.

Riba/Perrier could easily be so good that they are running 3 on 5 against everyone else in the state.

It is a lot easier for them to find someone to step up to be the #4 runner than other teams finding someone who will put up a single digit. At this point, that has to be a huge advantage.

Originally Posted by zpppe

Interesting question in Keelan's situation. Has anyone ever failed to qualify for state one year and then won the next? (Excluding Verzbicas tripping on a log or whatever his freshman year)

I would be less shocked if it happened in girls... I am also assuming you are talking about someone who ran the year before (i.e. no freshmen or first year runners).