Roger Cooke

Check out the top rankings in the 5000 Meter Run for VA.

Here are the top 1,000 boys times ever records at Oatlands.

Photo by Ted Plunkett The boys' individual title figures to be wide open this fall with a handful of returning runners having realistic shots at making a run for first at Pole Green in late October. Nathan Puckett of Hermitage pulled a mild upset off last year over a group of favorites, so the door is always open in the district for another surprise. Roger Cooke would like to follow in the footsteps of not only teammate Puckett, but the past three Colonial District champions reigning from Hermitage with John Vial as the district champion in 2006 and Alex Bowman also as the race winner in 2005.

 Photo by Ted Plunkett Without a doubt, the Colonial District Meet on Saturday at Pole Green Park will showcase the most depth in the Central Region. The Capital, Central, nor the Dominion will have as strong of a fourth place team squeaking out of the district onto the regional meet as the Colonial District will certainly have in both the boys and girls' races. The Maggie Walker girls and Susannah Piersol come in as favorites, but still are very wary of the potential of the defending district champions in the Douglas Freeman girls to run up to their potential come championship season. An upset by the Freeman girls would almost guarantee a team sweep as the Douglas Freeman boys have shown themselves to the be the second best team in the region this fall behind Midlothian. Freeman is led by one of the individual favorites in Lewis McPherson (pictured above), but Mills Godwin's Brian Welch and Patrick Henry's Davis Barry will make for an entertaining battle.