The 2009 West Virginia Cross Country Region Meets will be held on Thursday, October 22. The 8 different meets will determine which teams and individuals advance to the West Virginia State XC Championship to be held at Cabell Midland High School in Ona, WV on Saturday, October 31. Group AAA Preview Group AAA Region I will be held at Apple Valley Golf Course in White Hall. On the girl’s side, this is shaping up to being one of the most hotly contested of all the region meets. It appears to be a four team race with North Marion the #1 ranked AAA girls team, the #2 team in University , #7 Preston , and #8 Morgantown. Jordan McDonald and Emma Harrison of North Marion, Lydia Martinelli of University and Chelsea Clark of Fairmont Senior are the leading candidates to take home a region title. For the AAA Region I boys, #2 ranked Fairmont Senior, #4 Preston, and #7 University are the team favorites. Individually, defending State champion sophomore Cody Pelliccioni and teammate Lucas Greza a junior from Morgantown are the top two ranked runners. Pelliccioni is the heavy favorite. Schools participating in Group AAA Region I: Brooke, Wheeling Park, John Marshall, Morgantown, University, Fairmont Sr., East Fairmont, Preston and North Marion. Group AAA Region II will be held at Elkins High School in Elkins. The 5th ranked girls from Jefferson are the favorites with #10 ranked Buckhannon-Upshur and #12 Hampshire as the closest competition. Individually for the girls, two time defending State Champion and junior Letitia Propst is a slight favorite over Alyssa Boucher a senior from Jefferson. Andrea Nickerson of Jefferson is expected to make a strong showing. Jefferson is leading the way for the AAA Region II boy’s teams as the 3rd ranked team in the State. Brandon Doughty , the #4 ranked runner in the State, leads Jefferson. Doughty is also the favorite to win the race. Hampshire is ranked a distant 2nd. Schools in the Group AAA Region II meet: Robert C. Byrd, Bridgeport, Buckhannon-Upshur, Elkins, Hampshire, Hedgesville, Martinsburg, Musselman, Jefferson and Washington. Group AAA Region III will be held in Charleston and hosted by Charleston Catholic. The girl’s team and individual races are toss-ups. Greenbrier East and Woodrow Wilson are the highest ranking girl’s teams. For the boys, George Washington is the highest ranked team and Greenbrier East is not too far behind. Picking an individual favorite for the boy’s race is difficult. It is wide open. Schools participating in Group AAA Region III: Greenbrier East, Woodrow Wilson, Nicholas County, Riverside, Capital, George Washington, South Charleston, Nitro, St. Albans and Princeton. Group AAA Region IV will be held at Valley Park in Hurricane. The girl’s race boasts 4 of the top 10 teams in the State. Cabell Midland and Hurricane are the #4 and #5 ranked teams in the State. Comparing their top 5 runners, only 5 points separate the two teams. However, the Hurricane team seems to have put up their times on more tested courses. The edge goes to Hurricane. #6 ranked Parkersburg and #9 ranked Parkersburg South are ready to stake a claim if the higher ranked teams experience any problems. Alex Dent of Hurricane is favored to win. For the boys in Group AAA Region IV, Cabell Midland gets the nod as the favorite. #5 ranked runner Jacob Burcham and heavily favored to win the region meet has been a steady force all year with continued improvements. Parkersburg South and Hurricane are outside chances to take the crown. Schools participating in Group AAA Region IV: Parkersburg, Parkersburg South, Ripley, Hurricane, Cabell Midland, Huntington, Spring Valley, LincolnCounty, and Winfield.
Coverage
WV Group AAA Region Previews
Oct 21, 2009