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Southeast Region Boys Early Season Rankings 2022Published by
Wide Open Southeast Up For Grabs, But Florida, Tennessee Teams Look Poised For Opportunity By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor/Photo courtesy Victor Arrieta Boys NXR Southeast Preview The best teams in the region last year, a group that included Severna Park of Maryland, Mount Tabor and Weddington of North Carolina and Conner of Kentucky all graduated the bulk of their lineups after successful seasons in 2021. This fall, early indications point to strong teams in Florida and Tennessee. Belen Jesuit Prep and Creekside have both shown depth and quality in meets in Florida already this season. And a handful of Tennessee schools return big numbrs, including Brentwood, McCallie, Houston, Brentwood Academy and Farragut that could lead to a competitive in-state battle in the Volunteer State. Belen Jesuit has won five straight Florida 3A state titles and ultimately finished fifth at last year's NXR Southeast. This year's group is about 40 strong and includes a pair of sophomores who ran sensational 800-meter times in the spring as freshmen. Joseph Socarras ran 1:54.79 at the Florida Relays and Joey Diaz-Quintero ran 1:55.73 in May at the regional finals. "We still have a few things to figure out before we consider ourselves true contenders nationally," head coach Frankie Ruiz said. Creekside, located south of Jacksonville, brings an extra layer of motivation to the season after losing to the Florida 4A title to Viera (Melbourne) on a sixth-runner tiebreaker. Brentwood TN brings back six of its top seven from a team that finished third in the Tennessee state cross country final last year. Carrollton of Georgia has early wins at the Pickens Preview and Bob Blastow Invitational that could point to good things this season. The top-ranked team in the region last year, Mount Tabor of North Carolina, suffered some big losses to graduation but might have enough returners to pack up and contend for a repeat state title. 1. Belen Jesuit Prep FL. The reigning Florida Class 3A team champions return five of seven and got out to a strong start at the Park Vista Cobra Invitational last weekend. Junior Joshua Ruiz won the race in 16:00 and more importantly the top six finished with a 31-second compression. That type of pack running could pay off big in a region where there are very few teams with that type of quality through five runners. Sophomore Joseph Socarras, junior Lucas Garcia, junior Joseph Ruiz, senior Roberto Leon and sophomore Justin Ruiz give this team depth and potential to go far. 2. Creekside FL. A strong performance at last weekend's Cecil Field Summer Classic in Jacksonville provided an eye-opening look at Creekside, which won the team title by a wide margin with 77 points. Junior Tanner Simonds (15:36) was followed by four teammates within 35 seconds for a performance tha revealed the team that could be better than the version that lost the Florida 4A title on a tiebreaker last year. 3. Brentwood TN. The Bruins have Brody Chapman coming back from a fifth-place finish in the state cross country final last year and the team could very well push up into a NXN qualifying position. Sophomore Callahan Fielder, senior Connor Vanderkolk, sophomore Wyatt Hamilton, junior Robert Pautienus and freshman Kehler Vaughn are all important pieces moving forward into a competitive Tennessee season. 4. Carrollton GA. Noah Martinson led the team to a big early season victory at the Bob Blastow Invitational and showed depth through six runners. Martinson, a junior, looks to be vastly improved from his sophomore season. He is at the front of a group that includes Hagan Russell, Joshua Sipes, Daniel Neill, Nathan Moseley and Braven Davis. 5. Mount Tabor NC. The reigning North Carolina 4A champions graduated their top three runners, but there remains hope that the pack, led by seniors Andrew Burrell, Luke Armentrout and Jeremy Kern, has enough left to stay on top in North Carolina. Much more will be revealed about the depth and quality of this team when it hosts its Friday Night Lights event on Sept. 9. Watchlist
History for Coach Jimmy Sorrells
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