District 5
Location: Big Driver (Washington)
Teams in Attendance
Alton, Bourbon, Cuba, Dixon, Gainesville, Hartville, Houston, Liberty Mountain View, Licking, Mansfield, Steelville, Thayer
What To Watch
In the girls race, we are expecting a battle between Steelville Alyssa Church and Hartville's Ava Taylor. Taylor has a slight edge on Church this season based on both season best and season average, but Church is still seeking out that success she had her freshman season when she threw down a 19:26 and then finished 17th at state. If she can take down the 21:00 Taylor this weekend, she'll go a long way towards meeting that goal. She should lead Steelville to the team title, though, unless Hartville really rallies behind their top two low-sticks.
On the boys side, we could be in for a drubbing from those Cardinals. Steelville's boys have had an impressive season so far, led by freshman Connor Diaz and junior Ty Merseal. Diaz boasts a season average of 17:22.05 to go along with a 16:17.89 mark on the notoriously fast Vienna course. Steelville could post a 20-spot Saturday and even take 3-4 of the top 5 places. The Hartville Bettendorf brothers - Joshua and Josiah - will look to break up the pack of Cards with top 5 finishes of their own and lead their squad to the other state berth spot.
Top 2 Teams and Top 5 Individuals (Prediction)
Boys
3. Larry Shoemake - Steelville
4. Joshua Bettendorf - Hartville
Teams
1. Steelville
2. Hartville
Girls
Teams
1. Steelville
2. Hartville