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High School Regional Rankings Boys XC 2021 - 9/23Published by
By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor Newbury Park firmly cemented themselves as the No. 1 team not only in California but in the U.S. with its sensational performance at the 40th Woodbridge Cross Country Classic, presented by ASICS, at the SilverLakes Sports Complex in Norco, Calif. The most evident change in the rankings happened on the individual side of things, where four Newbury Park boys now occupy spots in the top eight. This squad was already No. 1 and in some ways is now competing against history and memory as perhaps the best team in prep history. Across the country, the big meets and invitationals of Sept. 18 did cause some movement in the regional rankings, but in the Southeast the results confirmed the order, for now. And in the Northeast, where many teams are still getting started, there was no movement in the top five. In the South, Jesuit of New Orleans won the Southern Showcase in Huntsville, Ala. with a seven-man lineup that did not include any seniors. Sophomore Michael Vocke led the team to an impressive team win and the Bluejays bumped Humble Atascocita out of the No. 5 spot. In New York, the Pre-State Invitational provided an important early look at how teams are shaping up. As expected, Corning-Painted Post ran to No. 1 in the end-of-day merge and was led by senior Jack Gregorski. Fayetteville-Manlius proved to be a bit deeper than expected and improved two spots to No. 3. In the Midwest, Orland Park (Sandburg) broke out at the Richard Spring Invitational and displayed its quality and depth at Detweiller Park. The Eagles unseated York as the top team in Illinois and move up to the No. 2 spot in the region. Sophomore Grant Giblin, senior Declan Tunney and senior Brock Rice all ran under 15 minutes on the famed three-mile course. Millard West of Nebraska crashed the top five and is installed at No. 3 in the Heartland Region after running to an impressive win at the Heartland Cross Country Classic in Iowa, scoring 68 points in a 42-team invitational. That broke up Minnesota's stranglehold on the top three spots in the region as some top teams in that state are still searching for a fifth man who can keep up. In the Southwest, the number of exceptional teams in Utah and Colorado seems to keep growing. The insertion of Valor Christian, which won the Liberty Bell Invitational, and the inclusion of Niwot, which won at St. Vrain, shows that the best teams are not stacking in nice predictable rows. Similarly, the two-day Pre-State meets in Utah revealed a cluster of five teams that are all capable of wining big at the end of the season. For now, Mountain Vista holds the No. 1 spot because there important pieces missing in the lineup in a three-point loss to Niwot, which got a big performance from Zane Bergen. Central Catholic of Portland put together a strong performance at the Meriwether Cross Country Classic, with Wes Shipsey leading five guys under 15:50 on a flat course. The margins between Central Catholic, Lincoln and Franklin -- all of Portland -- seem very small. Blanchet Catholic, however, has emerged as a force in Washington and moves up to No. 2. Besides Loyola of Los Angeles, which put five guys in the top 11 at the Mt. Carmel/ASICS XC Invitational at Balboa Park in San Diego, led by Richard Moreno, the rest of the California order comes straight out of Woodbridge.
SOUTH SOUTHEAST NORTHEAST 2. Christian Brothers Academy NJ NEW YORK MIDWEST HEARTLAND NORTHWEST SOUTHWEST (tie) 5. Niwot CO CALIFORNIA More news |
