DIVISION I
This may be the most anticipated race of the LHSAA state championships. We could be in store for a rare sight of Jesuit claiming a perfect score. We already saw the face-off between two of the best teams in the state at the district qualifiers, so it's only a question of whether if the Blue Jays will be able to pull it off again. Brother Martin is the clear choice for second place while the real competitive race would be between Catholic High and Ruston.
Ruston is coming off of a regional win with a squad that was still recovering from sickness. It looks like this team might be able to fit five of its boys in the top 25, but it's much easier for this to be said than done. The two leaders of this team, Thomas Rogers and Bryar Madden will most likely be in the top 20 and if they're lucky, the top ten. The next three in this squad of Taylor Roller, Landon Byrd, and Andrew McKaskle would have a good day if they managed to appear in the top 25.
Landon Spears (back left), Thomas Rodgers (middle), and Bryar Madden at the Region 1 Division I Championships
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It's hard to predict what Catholic High is able to do from day to day because this team is routinely deep with a lineup of runners that often changes. As it stands, Matthew Maynard and David Lemann have the best chances to sneak into the top ten and provide some quality low sticks for this team. The rest of the top five's best hopes would be to finish within the top 30 and give the Grizzlies a chance to snag third.
If it weren't for the national caliber team that is Jesuit, Brother Martin would have an easy runaway with the Division I title. The Crusaders have the rare opportunity to place four of its runners in the top ten and two more in the top 20. This would be a hard feat to accomplish, but with the way that Brother Martin's season is going so far, I'd say it could be possible.
Jesuit is, by far, the favorite for this race. I'm not sure what could be said that would sway that opinion. This team has accomplished historical feats in the state of Louisiana and is regarded as one of the top ten teams in the nation (MileSplit 50 #2). On top of that, this team may be able to pull off a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of running a perfect score at the state meet. The individual title most likely lies with either Jack DesRoches or Brady Mullen. These two have had phenomenal seasons. DesRoches was just a few seconds shy of Eric Coston's 3-mile state record (14:25 v. 14:29) and Brady Mullen was just shy of Ryan Travis's 5k state record (15:01 v. 15:04).
Jack DesRoches (left) and Brady Mullen (right) at District 9 Division I Championships
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Outside of the teams mentioned before, here are some other individuals to look out for. Rhen Langley of Zachary, Jacob Kennedy of Walker, and Landon Spears of West Monroe. Spears was just shy of the top ten last year, surprising most by establishing himself early on in the race. He is more of an underrated runner that can show up any day and put up a strong performance. Kennedy was an unexpected face to see this season, but then again he did finish 16th at the state meet last year, and he has only improved. Langley has been an ominously consistent athlete this season, posting almost the same time each race. It would not be surprising to see the LSU-commit place within the top ten, but it would be interesting to see if he could challenge the podium position.