'Tis the Season
It's that time of year! When fall is right around the corner, the cool breeze kicks in, and everybody is getting ready for their number one sport. Oh wait, we are in Louisiana. We may or may not get any fall, it's 100 degrees outside, and no, I'm not talking about football. It's cross country season. Everybody has been working hard in anticipation of the first meet of the year. We all want to see how the top 7 shakes out for our teams. I would like to start the year with my preseason rankings for Class 5A through Class C. I'll start with the boys teams today, and follow up with the girls tomorrow. I would also like to ask if you are interested in having a Top 10 rankings every week for big schools and small schools. If you are a coach and want to be a contributor, please email me at vesselfamily@bellsouth.net. So let's get down to it!
5A:
Catholic High - The men in Orange sit atop the throne. Until someone knocks them off, they will stay.
St. Pauls - They bring a strong 1-2 punch with Patrick Elliott and Evan Pardo. Can they do enough to knock off Catholic.
Jesuit - They return almost their entire team led by Jack Wallace.
Brother Martin - The loss of Hunter Appleton hurts but brother Mason Appleton looks to pick up where he left off.
Airline - Bring back the trio of Joshua Burns, Gabriel Cole, and Collin Morgan. Who is going to be their 4 & 5?
4A:
St. Michael - Solid team 1-5 led by Joshua Breaux. Their 1-5 split is only 37 seconds.
Belle Chase - Led by one of the best runners in the state in junior Louden Boudreaux.
Teurlings Catholic - Led by one of the best in 4A in Cameron Kelly.
Lusher Charter - team average of 18:32 coming into the season
Vandebilt Catholic - team average of 18:44 with a 1-5 split of 1 minute.
3A:
University High - The "U" is led by sub 16 guy Jack Moran and looks hard to beat in 3A.
Erath - Solid team with a strong 1-4. If they can get a number 5 to move up they could make some noise.
West Feliciana - Led by Wyatt Barbe who is looking to break 16 this year.
Lutcher - team average of 18:17 with a 1-5 split of 52 seconds.
St Louis - Boast the number 1 runner in 3A in Ivan Appleton but need some more parts to move up.
2A:
Episcopal - Senior James Christian leads this team as they go for 20 something state championships in a row.
Holy Savior Menard - The loss of Ben Beard and Coach Wally Smith hurts but they return Cyrus Cox, Bradon Scalisi, and Charles Beard.
Newman - Team average of 18:20 with a 1-5 split of 1 minute and 2 seconds.
Lafayette Christian - Moves up to 2A and have a solid rebuild going.
Haynes Academy - Led by Yves Uwanama trying to build on his 16:52 from last year.
1A:
Metarie Park Country Day - Drops down to 1A this year and they are loaded! Average 17:18 as a team coming into the season.
Ascension Catholic - Chase Walker is one of the best in 1A. Can the youth on this team grow up this year?
Cedar Creek - Defending state champs look to build off last year. They return 800m state champ Collins Walker and all-state runner Blake Moss.
Ouachita Christian - This young team could make some noise this year. Especially with the addition of freshman Jace Wimbush.
Houma Christian - Led by Cameron Kerley who was a top 10 runner last year.
B:
Christ Episcopal - Moves up to Class B and should contend. Led by Jake Tournillion with a 16:22.
Episcopal of Acadiana - Oliver Nickels returns to lead a squad that should contend as well. Could even call them 1a.
Runnels - Led by Dawson Latona with a 16:38.
C:
Hornbeck - moves down to Class C with John Jett leading the team with a 16:47.
Harrisonburg - Comes back with a 1-5 team split of 44.17 seconds.
Claiborne Christian - Have 5 runners in the top 20. Can they move up?
These are my preseason rankings. Best of luck to everybody this year. See you on the course!