AAA
Boys Regional Preview
Region I
This Region should produce three state meet teams. Going in, it looks as though Parkersburg South, Parkersburg, and University should likely take the spots. There are only seven teams, so if one of them happens to not field a full team for the meet, Parkersburg or University would be staying home. Individually, Curt Ruble or Jesse Vernon lead the pack, but any number of runners could walk away with the top spot. With only eight individuals advancing, inclusive of the teams, there will be some people going home disappointed. The 8th ranked runner in this Region is Ryan Skotnicki with a score of 150. The region features 25 ranked runners, so there will be several quality runners who will be staying home. Those who are closest to jumping in to that top 8, and will likely have to do so, are Chris Spears of Wheeling Park, Micah Gerasimovich of Morgantown, and Brandon Rouse of Wheeling Park.
There are only six teams in this Region. That means only two will be advancing to the state meet. Elkins and Fairmont Senior look like the top two candidates to take those spots. Great days by East Fairmont or North Marion could push those teams for a spot. Individually, the region features 25 ranked runners. Elkins’ Steve Johnson, Buckhannon-Upshur’s Tim Andrew, and East Fairmont’s Bryan Talerico are all in the top 10 overall. Elkins’ Joseph White was in the top 5 before a few weeks of inactivity and a bounce-back meet dropped him out of the top 10, and Mathias Hickman of East Fairmont has spent time in the top 10 this season as well. The 8th ranked runner in this region is currently Dameon Hall of Fairmont Senior, with a score of 165. That means we’ll again have a lot of quality runners staying home on November 2nd. Those closest that aren’t on one of the expected qualifying teams are North Marion’s Josh Mason, Buckhannon-Upshur’s Andrew Roth, and North Marion’s Joseph Morris.
There are seven teams in this Region, so if they all compete, we’ll get three from Region III. Obviously, Cabell Midland is the class of the field. Nitro and Ripley look like the most likely candidates for the other spots. This is another individually loaded region, with 26 ranked runners. The top three and seven of the top nine belong to Midland. The 8th ranked runner in this Region is Midland’s Nick Perry, who at 110 points may not even be running varsity at the Regional. On the outside looking in at the end of the day could be Casey Fuller of St. Albans, Bobby Johnson of Hurricane, John Gibson of Spring Valley, Ryan Dudley of Huntington, and Brad Creamer of Spring Valley.
This Region should produce two teams for the state meet. Woodrow Wilson and George Washington look like the top two contenders. Individually, Thomas Hobbs leads the group. This region has only ten ranked runners. All except Nicholas’ John Thompson run for one of those two teams.
This Region will only advance two teams. Jefferson should take one of those spots. The other is up for grabs. A preliminary scoring of the region (calculated similarly to the way the Power Rankings are calculated) shows only 6 points separating four teams. Hampshire, Preston, Musselman, and Hedgesville all have very legitimate shots at taking the second spot. Individually, this region has 24 ranked runners, including three in the top 10 and two others who have been in the top 10 at some point. Currently, Martinsburg’s Brad Dodson is the 8th man, with 180 points (his score has dropped recently due to inactivity). Depending on which team gets the second team spot, different runners could be left out in the cold. Hampshire’s Andy Wilcox, Preston’s Bryan Hooton, Hedgesville’s John Windle, and Musselman’s Matt Rouzer could be left home if their team’s don’t make it. People will be running their hardest to get individual spots, which will help their teams. It should be fun.
Once again, this Region is loaded. Brooke is the key to this region. If Brooke runs a full girls team, which they have done on occasion, but not always, this Region will advance three. If Brooke doesn’t run a full team, University or Parkersburg will go home unhappy. There are 29 ranked runners in this region, including 4 of the current top 10. Currently, Parkersburg’s Amy Bugyis is the 8th ranked girls in this region at 263 points. Those that could be left home could include Brooke’s Brittany Zumpetta, John Marshall’s Nicole Robinson, and Parkersburg South’s Brittany Harvey. If Parkersburg or University does not advance as a team, several runners could get added to that list.
Another loaded Region. Elkins and Fairmont Senior should take the two available team spots. The Region sports 32 ranked runners, including five of the top ten. The 8th girl on the list currently is Fairmont Senior’s Sierra Wolfe at 255 points. The depth of this region combined with the reality of only getting two teams to the state meet will leave a lot of outstanding runners home. By the current rankings, the ladies on the wrong side of eight are East Fairmont’s Olivia Fulaytar, North Marion’s Jeni Lowe, North Marion’s Kristal Hardway, North Marion’s Erin Daniel, East Fairmont’s Rebecca Fulaytar, North Marion’s Cara Parrish, East Fairmont’s Amanda Conrad, East Fairmont’s Abby Swiger, and Buckhannon-Upshur’s Angie Wilcox.
This Region should produce two teams. Cabell Midland and Ripley should take those two spots fairly easily. There are 17 ranked girls in this region, led by Ripley’s Alison Spiker. The eighth on the list is currently Mandy Estep of Hurricane. On the brink of qualification are Huntington’s Lindsay Graham, Nitro’s Bridget Melvin, and Huntington’s Laura Watson.
It looks as though only one team will come out of this Region. It looks like George Washington is probably the favorite to take the spot. The Region only has 7 ranked runners, led by Aleacha McClintic and Rebekah Daniel who have been trading wins all season. All the ranked runners should make it, but none of them run for complete teams.
Two teams should advance from this Region. Preston and Jefferson look to be the favorites, but Hedgesville is certainly in the mix. There are 17 ranked runners, led by Preston’s Amanda Maxwell. Currently 8th on the Regional list is Preston’s Sarah Pauly. The closest to breaking into the qualifying spots are Hampshire’s Serena Mowery, Hedgesville’s Nicole Phillips, and Martinsburg’s Mary Power.