Storylines to Watch:
MBA vs. BA
As mentioned earlier in this preview, for MBA to win, there is little room for error. MBA could make it interesting with 3 runners in 200m but Brentwood Academy may shut the door with 3 of their own in the 3200 one event later. In an ideal world, there's a chance this comes down to the 4x400m Relay at which point MBA would have the edge.
Nashville vs. Everyone
Not much to say for the Division I Small Classification.
East Nashville Girls and Pearl-Cohn Boys are in position to sweep the division
by a lot again. Guess the real question is how many points will they score as
they were the only teams in Division I last year to eclipse 100 team points.
In covering cross country this year, I saw one meet run out of water, several athletes taken to the hospital from the Tennessee Classic, and heard Trinity in Louisville opted not to time the JV division and told coaches their athletes could run at their own risk due to heat concerns. With projected high temperatures for this week's competition ranging from 91-94 degrees, attrition and exhaustion will become a factor. From short sprints to long distances, anyone who is attempting multiple events will likely suffer as the meet moves on at its scheduled pace. As I've already written, the distance triple is nearly impossible to be competitive in in fair conditions. Throw on a heat index nearing triple digits for the mile... bring down your body temperature and hydrate for a few minutes just to step back onto the track less than an hour later. Similarly, run your fastest 400 of the year and 30 minutes later run your fastest 200. Will be interesting to monitor scratches as the meet progresses.