Midwest 1s - Neuqua Valley boys, Carmel girls

The Midwest Boys

By Paul Schmitz

The state of Illinois dominated the Midwest region in 2015 finishing with the top three spots and sending three teams to NXN (Sandburg No, 3, Lyons No. 9 and Neuqua Valley No. 19).

Illinois will once again be the top state in the region, but Ohio and Indiana have NXN contenders this fall as well. This is a region with depth, and any of the teams in the top 10 realistically could podium at the NXN Midwest. With that depth, the Midwest is in line for another at-large bid to NXN with all of its strong contenders. 

With heavy losses to graduation from its top teams, we have Rock Bridge as the team to beat in large class Missouri over defending champion Lafayette Wildwood. The fastest team in Missouri might just be Class 3 Festus.  The defending state champions in that division return five of their top seven and have the fastest returning average on the state course.  We have the same scenario playing out in Michigan where Division II defending state champion Fremont return the fastest team on the state course besting all of the large class teams.

However, with a great track season, we predict large class Saline as the preseason fastest team in the state with an outside chance to compete for an NXN berth.       

1. Neuqua Valley IL.  The Illinois state third place finisher and Midwest Regional runner-up finished a disappointing 19th at NXN in 2015.  We see them improving on that position and they will have a prominent position when our national rankings are released next week. This team returns four from the top five and and are at least seven runners deep in 2016. 

2. Solon OH.  Solon has never qualified for NXN but with its top six runners returning from a third place Ohio state meet finish, this could be the Comets' year.  Led by seniors Danny Cohen and Joe Riordan, we have them with the preseason edge over in-state rival St. Ignatius and their low stick runner CJ Ambosio (9.01 3200). 

3. Lake Zurich IL. The Bears are tough at the top led by seniors Matt Pereira, Brian Griffith and Kyle Griffith.  If they can fill out the back of their lineup they will compete for the regional title and move up in the national rankings.  Last year we declared this team one year away from competing at the national level and they are on track to compete for an NXN bid. 

4. Carmel IN.  Even with the loss of low stick star Ben Veatch (second at NXN) to the Indiana Hoosiers, Carmel is clearly in a class by itself in the state of Indiana.  The defending state champions and NXN Midwest No. 6 return the next six runners after Veatch and are in the mix for a bid to Portland.   

5. Hinsdale Central IL. Last year's NXN Midwest ninth place finisher and the other Illinois teams on the watchlist are the reasons we are optimistic for a Midwest at-large bid to NXN.  Hinsdale will have to hold off in-state rivals Downers Grove and Lyons to maintain this spot in a state with incredible depth. Lyons will move up from the watchlist quickly if they can fill in the lineup behind front runners Danny Kilrea and Vince Zona.          

Teams to watch: 

LaGrange Lyons Township IL

Downers Grove North IL

St. Ignatius OH

York IL

Saline MI

Festus MO

Rock Bridge MO

Fremont MI

Whitney Young IL 

The Midwest Girls

By Adam Kopet

The Midwest sent four teams to NXN in 2015. At the regional, those four teams finished within 13 seconds of one another. The big story was the Northville MI girls, who became the first team from the state of Michigan to be allowed to compete at NXN. Hopefully, that precedent paves the way for 2016 qualifiers and beyond.

The likelihood the team battle will be as close this year is small, but the Midwest still has some good teams that could vie for national prominence. This year, with the exception of teams like Carmel IN and Centerville OH, Illinois has a heavy presence in the Midwest rankings, holding three of the top five spots and two additional teams on the watch list.

At the end of last season, teams from Michigan, like Northville, came on strong. At this point, the top Michigan teams have lost too much to warrant a top-five ranking but there are three schools on the watch list and any of those could make moves up the rankings board.

1. Carmel IN: The Greyhounds lost two runners from the varsity squad that finished eighth at NXN last year. They are led by senior Sarah Leinheiser, one of the top runners in the country. Not only is Carmel favored to win the Midwest Regional, but they could challenge for a trophy in Portland.

2. Minooka IL: The defending Illinois Class 3A state champions return six runners from last year's varsity squad. Despite success in Illinois, this team did not compete at the Midwest Regional. Minooka is led by senior Ashley Tutt who finished fourth at the state meet last year.

3. Yorkville IL: The Foxes dominated the Class 2A level in Illinois last year and often competed toe-to-toe with the larger schools in Class 3A. The pack running Yorkville girls only lost one runner to graduation after finishing fifth in last year's regional. They were just 35 points from first. As long as the Yorkville pack can stay relatively near the front, this team should challenge for a spot in Portland.

4. Centerville OH: The Elks narrowly won the Midwest Regional last year before finishing 11th at NXN. They graduated two runners from last year's squad, including their No. 1. Their top returning runner from NXN is sophomore Grace Kilroy.

5. New Trier IL: The Trevians could surprise people this year. They were only 11th at the Midwest regional in 2015, but they return five runners from their varsity squad and have the potential for a much higher finish. They are led by senior Caroline Fix.

Watch list:

Northville MI

Naperville North IL

Highland-Milford MI

Birmingham Seaholm MI

Glenbard West IL

Batavia IL