Boys' Preview
Teams to Watch
Loudoun Valley: The 2017 Nike Cross National Champions. Need we say more? The Vikings have a
staggering 7 boys under 16:00 this season, with most of their season bests coming from Great American last weekend where they won the championship division. Ranked number 1 nationally, the Vikings return to Third Battle after having won the meet in 2015 and 2016. The Vikings were second in last year's meet without running their top 7 boys. The 7 who have dipped under 16:00 this season does even not include last year's state champion, Sam Affolder, who sat out last weekend with a minor injury. Carlos Shultz currently leads the team with a 15:08, followed by 3200m state champion Jacob Hunter's 15:15.
George C. Marshall: With a season best 1-5 spread of only 45 seconds, look for their front runner, Benjamin Smith, to be quickly followed by his teammates.
Riverside: The Riverside boys packed together a 1st place finish at last week's Woodberry Forest Invitational.
The team was paced by junior Christian Spore's 17:45, closely followed by the next four runners in a 21-second span.
Dominion: Led by a strong 1-2 punch of Omar Aougab and Nicolas Vandenheede, the Titans won the Judges
Classic in early September. The team also finished second to Loudoun Valley in their Loudoun
County Championship.
Individuals to Watch
Carlos Shultz, Loudoun Valley: Shultz didn't wait long to make his presence known in Virginia after moving from Pennsylvania. Carlos won the first race of the year at Great Meadow in August and has only improved since then. Last week's PR of 15:08 is currently ranked #1 in the state.
Rylan Pettit, Woodgrove: Two weeks ago Pettit looked in good form as he ran away with the Champions race at the Carlisle Invitational. Last weekend, he showed he had room for improvement as he ran a minute faster with a 15:10 at Great American for 9th place.
Jacob Hunter, Loudoun Valley: The state 3200m champion started his season with a win in Pennsylvania's PTXC Invitational in 15:44, but lowered that season best to 15:15 at last weekend's Graet American where he finished 10th.
Oliver Wilson-Cook, Robert E. Lee: Oliver comes into Third Battle with a season best of 15:44 from Knights Crossing in early September where he finished 2nd overall. Look for this 2A 3200m state champion to run a fast time in Third Battle's deep boys field this year.