Boys Preview
Team Contenders:
Arlington has owned the region 7-AAA meet the past two years, claiming the titles in ’12 and ’13 with scores of 28 and 21 respectively. They will now try, for the first time, to accomplish the “three-peat. The defending champs will not have it easy, since they lost three from last year’s championship squad. Meanwhile, Bartlett has been on the rise and looks to put a stop to Arlington’s run. It’s been 12 years since they last held the title, will this be the group that reclaims it? Who will fill that final spot for the state meet? Bolton and Hardin County could be the deciding factors there, or will another team spoil the party?
Arlington lost three runners from last year’s squad, two of them who were previous overall champions. Those are some tough shoes to fill, but newcomer Sena Murray has filled one set of them nicely. Murray, along with returners Chandler Jenkins (last year’s runner up), Chris Wall, and Blake Herron, looks to bring the championship back to school for the third time.
Bartlett has continued to improve all season long, and looks to provide a serious challenge to the team title this year. Eric Jaramillo returns to lead a much improved Panther squad that includes newcomer Luke McNair and returnees Jason Zeng and Benjamin Homeyer.
Bolton lost three of their top five from last year’s runner up squad. That being said, the Wildcats surprised the field by claiming the runner up spot. They accomplished that feat with the help of some young runners: Chance Rone, Brody Myers, and Dennis Hathorn. Brandon Kennon and Devin Abraham have also stepped up to help the Wildcats in their attempt to play spoiler again.
Hardin County came close to qualifying for state last season, but just fell short. The good news for them is that they return their entire squad. Peyton Ewoldt, who individually qualified for state, returns to lead his squad in their attempt to qualify as a team.
Cordova failed to qualify for state for the first time in over a decade, one that saw them win six titles in a row. Frederick Alexander will look to get the Wolves back where they belong, but his team will need to give him some help if they want to get to state.
Munford fielded a young team last year and ended up last. However, it’s always nice to return the bulk of the squad. Chris Coley will do his part in helping the team in their quest for a state championship trip.
Individual contenders:
As is the case in the girl’s race, the same holds true for the boy’s; there will be a new champion this year. The past two champions have graduated and the door is open for a new champ. Newcomer Sena Murray of Arlington looks to lead the field as he has been consistently one of the top runners on this end of the state. Murray’s teammates Chris Wall and last year’s runner up Chandler Jenkins would like to keep him company up front. Bartlett’s Eric Jaramillo and Luke McNair plan on mixing it up with the leaders as well as Bolton’s Chance Rone, Cordova’s Frederick Alexander, and Hardin County’s Peyton Ewoldt. There could be a mad dash for the final individual qualifying spots, due to the amount of runners who all find themselves running relatively similar times, and it will be interesting to see who cracks that top 10.
Others to look for:
Blake Herron (Arlington)
Robert Renfrow (Arlington)
Ryan Redman (Arlington)
Jason Zeng (Bartlett)
Benjamin Homeyer (Bartlett)
Brendan Hill (Bartlett)
Ryan Guyer (Hardin County)