Meet: A-AA Boys State Meet Predictions Location: Elkins, WV Date: To be held October 27, 2001 Predicted A-AA Boys Team Results Ravenswood has sat atop the standings all season long. They have four runners that could conceivably gain All-State status. That makes them a heavy favorite going into the state meet, but they are not unbeatable. If any one of those first four guys has an off day, it opens up into a completely different meet. The battle for 2nd should be between Grafton and Ritchie. Ritchie took the Region II title, but Grafton looks to be slightly stronger in this type of meet. Oak Glen should claim fourth, but will have to fend off Frankfort and Scott. Scott probably has the most upward potential of the teams fighting for the top 5. 1. Ravenswood Rav 49 2. Grafton Gra 77 3. Ritchie Rit 86 4. Oak Glen OG 107 5. Frankfort FF 127 6. Scott Sco 127 7. Weir Weir 136 8. Independence Ind 170 9. PikeView PV 239 Predicted Boys A-AA Top 25 Justin Simpson has been the top dog in the state throughout the season, going through his season unscathed by A-AA or AAA or Ohio competition. He has to be tabbed a strong favorite, but this will not be the cakewalk many people think it is. Doddridge's Josh Sheets had passed Simpson near the half-way mark of the Forest Festival before turning an ankle. He'll finish much closer than most expect. Scott Gemberling has had a run of strong finished to close out the regular season as has Ravenswood's Chris Snell. Colin Wine has proven to be a consistently strong performer over the second half of the season. Jon Riffle placed fifth last year, and typically runs very well on the Elkins course. One to watch is Frankfort's Woody Snoberger. He scored a top-10 finish at the Forest Festival, and Frankfort's athletes historically perform very well at the state meet. A true wildcard in the mix is Notre Dame's Kenny Beerbower. He hasn't raced frequently this fall, and has run mostly on cruise control when he did. We know there is more in the tank than what we've seen, but the question is how much? Team Place Score Name Year Team ------------------------------------------------------------- 1 1 Simpson, Justin 11 Oak Glen 2 Sheets, Josh 12 Doddridge 3 2 Gemberling, Scott 10 Grafton 4 3 Snell, Chris 11 Ravenswood 5 Wine, Colin 12 Braxton 6 4 Riffle, Jon 11 Grafton 7 5 Snoberger, Woody 11 Frankfort 8 Herron, Chris 12 Liberty Raleigh 9 6 Andrick, Isaac 12 Ravenswood 10 7 Lafferre, Jayson 11 Ritchie 11 Raper, Adam 11 Williamstown 12 Beerbower, Kenny 12 Notre Dame 13 8 Benford, Adam 10 Ravenswood 14 9 Gray, Kelby 12 Ravenswood 15 10 McDougal, Craig 11 Grafton 16 11 Felton, Brandon 12 Frankfort 17 12 Simpson, Josh 11 Oak Glen 18 Blair, Jamie 9 Chas. Catholic 19 13 Drinkard, Dylan 11 Scott 20 Stephens, Chris 11 Wheeling Cent. 21 14 Ganoe, Sean 11 Weir 22 15 Roby, Robbie 12 Ritchie 23 16 Gilson, Matthew 12 Independence 24 17 Hauser, Seth 11 Oak Glen 25 Powell, Jason 11 Mercer Christian