Three-Horse Race
It has been a few years since a boys team from far Northeast Tennessee had a podium finish at the state meet in the smaller classification. The last school to do it was University School of Johnson City in 2018 when the Buccaneers won the Small Class team title.
Last year, Volunteer had its highest placing ever, finishing sixth in Class A/AA.
This season seems to be a banner one for the area's smaller schools as Elizabethton, Sullivan East and Volunteer are all ranked inside the state's top 10. That's three teams not only from the same region but from the same conference.
In the virtual meet, the three teams are separated by a mere 14 points with eerily similar averages.
"Going into the year and looking at the projections, we knew that Elizabethton and Sullivan East were both ranked ahead of us," Volunteer coach Jim Ailshie said. "Elizabethton is extremely strong and they've got a lot of depth. We are thin depth-wise and we have to keep everyone healthy to compete against Elizabethton and Sullivan East."
Surging Cyclones
Elizabethton is currently third in the state with a solid average of 17:38.7 and a spread of just over 64 seconds. This could be the best team the Cyclones have had since finishing runner-up in 2005.
"Winning the small schools division at Bristol Cross gives us a lot of race experience," Elizabethton coach Mark Newman said. "Everybody knows what they need to do on that course now and where they need to step up.
"Us, Volunteer and Sullivan East all know what it takes to win and it's going to be a fight against each other."
Max Garner has been a consistent No. 1 runner for Betsy, recording three top 10 finishes already this season. The junior ran a personal-best of 17:04.5 at Fender's Farm two weeks ago and finished eighth.
"Max is the staple for us," Newman said. "The way Max goes is the way the team goes. He's the pacesetter and many of our guys run off of Max."
The last time Elizabethton won a region title was back in 2005 when Josh Jaynes led the way, covering the 3-mile course at Daniel Boone in 15:59.8.
Fleet Of Foot Falcons
Defending regional champion Volunteer looks solid going into the championship season, but it still is looking like an uphill climb to catch Elizabethton.
Roman Borghetti-Metz leads the way for the Church hill crew, clocking in with a season-best mark of 17:07.0 at Fender's Farm. The Falcons have a 1-to-5 spread of 71 seconds and the fifth man (Cayden Cox) is only trailing Elizabethton's fifth by about 10 seconds.
"As a coach, I'm walking a tight-rope regarding introducing tough workouts or being conservative," Ailshie said. "I've leaned towards the conservative approach for both guys and girls because I can't afford to lose anybody."
It's going to take a great effort for Volunteer to repeat and Ailshie is very much aware that his team needs to run its best to qualify.
"Our conference and region is going to come down to the third, fourth and fifth," Ailshie said. "I have to depend on a freshman that is running very well and I've got a couple of seniors that continue to improve. I'm extremely proud of Cayden Cox and Evan Glass, which are the two seniors."
Patriots In Pursuit
Sullivan East was tabbed as the preseason favorites to win Region 1 and they're still squarely in the hunt, but they have some catching up to do.
James Shirk leads the way with, running 17:06.0 at Knights Crossing in Salem, Va. He is currently ranked second behind Garner.
East has a 17:50.2 average with a split of 1:24, but the Patriots have a solid mixture of flat and hilly courses ranging from the brutal climbs at Run for the Hills and the open fields at Knights Crossing.
The Patriots haven't won the region since 2015 when Foot Locker finalist Luke Meade was leading the way. That same year, the Bluff City seven finished runner-up at state.
"I keep talking about it with other coaches that each week, any one of us can finish higher than the others, but we're all three consistently right there together," Sullivan East coach Christian Watson said. "I fully expect all three of us to do extremely well at the state. It wouldn't surprise me if we're all in the top five."
Sullivan East and Elizabethton raced each other on Saturday at Bristol Cross. In the Small Division, Elizabethton edged Sullivan East narrowly by 3 points 67-70 for the victory.
Wait And See
The rolling hills of the Trailblazer course - which will serve as the Region 1 course for the 42nd consecutive year - do not play into the hands of either Volunteer, Elizabethton or Sullivan East.
All three teams run in hilly places and all of them regularly see the course in Gray.
"This is old-fashioned cross country," Ailshie said. "You line it up in a dual-meet style and everybody knows what everyone else has."
The top four teams plus the next five individuals go to the state meet from the region, but the three big dogs will duke it out first at the Three Rivers Conference meet on October 17 at Steele Creek Park in Bristol.
It should be a good test for all three and an indicator of what is to come down the road.