JACKSONVILLE – For the first annual Cecil Field Preseason Cross Country Classic race to be held Fri., Aug. 18, Fleming Island’s boys team, led by Class 4A state meet finishers Andrew Miller and …
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JACKSONVILLE – For the first annual Cecil Field Preseason Cross Country Classic race to be held Fri., Aug. 18, Fleming Island’s boys team, led by Class 4A state meet finishers Andrew Miller and Evan Fuller, both seniors, come in as heavy favorites for a top five finish as well as a favorite to place top five in team points.
In a scouting report from FLRunners.com correspondent Todd Grasley, Fleming Island High coach Jason Poole has his top seven runners back with hopes of a state meet invite after finishing eighth by just two points behind power house Mandarin High in the region 1-4A championship race. Sixth place finisher Freedom High scored 193 for the final team invite with Mandarin at 199 and Fleming Island at 201. Both Miller and Fuller made the top 16 to go to state with Fuller sprinting in at 16th for that final spot. Miller finished 14th.
Returners include juniors Nick Hoelscher and Gage West, both under 18 minutes.
Ridgeview High junior Joel Nesi, in the 1-2A region, is one of two premiere runners in the county with Orange Park High’s John Bear, a standout 800/miler on the track, one of the better runners coming back. Bear, at 17:16 in the very tough district 4-3A lineup with the likes of graduates Matthew Clark, Nicholas Deal and Joseph Storey, all from Creekside and all in the top 10 at the Class 3A championship race, could be one of the main contenders in a region race full of top 10 state finishers last year.
For the girls, at Fleming Island, sophomore Madelyn Stephenson, with a 12:06 3200 in district 1-4A, has emerged as a strong distance track athlete that will take her legs back into the woods this year. Senior Julie Franzoni, with an 80th place finish at the region 1-4A race last year, returns to try and get out of regions in her final season. Fleming Island’s top finisher was another freshman, Jennifer Fliess, at 42nd in 20:43.
St. Johns Country Day School will be at Cecil Field with top returners Ben Kailes, a junior, and Matthew Stratton, an eighth grader, for the boys. St. Johns loses girls aces Helena Kummings to Bolles and Mackenzie Glenn to Episcopal.
Next week, Sat., Aug. 26, Ridgeview hosts the annual Bob Hans Invitational.