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Region 4-5A highlights the midlands rankings with the top three spots being taken up by the strongly contested region.
The Lexington Wildcats are the current region champions and are looking to add their 15th straight title later this month. The Wildcats have had a rotating roster of athletes that prominently features sophomore, Jesse Oates, who is the current region leader. The Wildcats started to a bumpy start after finishing 3rd in their season opener at home to Phillip Simmons and Dutch Fork. Recently they finished 4th at the Bob Jenkins Coaches Classic Invitational in the International division which featured several top 10 teams from across all classifications besting Chapin along the way.. The Wildcats are currently ranked 7th in the SCTCCCA Coaches poll but have recently just raced their fastest returner from the 2021 season and will look to rise the ranks in the weeks to come.
The Gators of River Bluff opted not to race this weekend but will instead compete at the Starlight Run in Greer on Friday. The Gators and Wildcats varsity squads will meet for this first time at the Lexington County championships at Lexington next week. The Gators have been led by senior Carlos Lanzagorta who has assisted the gators two wins at the Battle of Camden and the championship race at the Eye Opener Invitational. Most impressively the Gators finished 2nd to Fort Mill, the number two ranked team in 5A at the Mike Moore Lake Murray Invitational. The Gators currently sit in 5th in the latest SCTCCCA Coaches poll and will have to rely on a strong 5th runner in order to take down the Wildcats.
The Chapin High School’s boy squad has youth which the other squads lack. Looking forward, Chapin will return all five of their scoring members in 2023. Among the top three schools, Chapin is the only team with a less than 60 second spread among their top five. .The Eagles strong pack will look to break up the spread out Wildcats and Gators as they battle it out the next two weeks. Recently the Eagles won the Pelion/Strictly Running Invitational beating the Wildcats for their first match up.
|
|
SCHOOL |
Division |
Average Time |
1-5 Split |
Top Runner |
Power Rating |
|
1 |
Lexington |
5A |
16:32 |
1:02 |
Jesse |
1.333 |
|
2 |
River |
5A |
16:43 |
1:12 |
Carlos |
1.571 |
|
3 |
Chapin |
5A |
16:45 |
0:42 |
Calvin |
2.000 |
|
4 |
Dreher |
4A |
16:52 |
2:09 |
Sam |
2.667 |
|
5 |
AC |
4A |
17:21 |
1:04 |
Heidt |
3.750 |
|
6 |
Heathwood |
SCISA |
17:30 |
1:23 |
Jackson |
4.111 |
|
7 |
Dutch |
5A |
17:40 |
0:10 |
Brady |
4.500 |
|
8 |
Ben |
SCISA |
17:39 |
1:26 |
Luke |
5.375 |
|
9 |
Irmo |
4A |
17:50 |
2:03 |
Jonah |
6.333 |
|
10 |
Blythewood |
5A |
17:41 |
1:44 |
Jacob |
6.833 |
Honorable Mentions: Wilson Hall & Aiken
The Midlands XC Rankings takes into consideration head to head competition between midlands athletes at meets/invitationals. Rankings are based on a season best, season average, and place at meets/invitational with 3+ midlands teams, a total of 5+ teams, and consists of races where the top 7 athletes run under 18:00 (Boys) or 21:30 (Girls)/
