St. Johns County district cross country previews: Nease, Ponte Vedra among favorites
High school cross country district meets
Qualification: Top eight teams, top three individuals to regionals
District 1-4A
At Santa Fe College
Nov. 4, 9 a.m. (girls), 9:30 a.m. (boys)
County teams: Bartram Trail, Creekside, Nease, Tocoi Creek.
Top St. Johns County individual times: Matt Ryan, Nease, 15:00.90 (boys); Alyson Johnson, Creekside, 17:49 (girls)
Outlook: The boys race looks like a three-way battle of Creekside, Nease and Gainesville Buchholz, with Nease holding the likely edge. Not only do the Panthers return a champion in Matt Ryan, who may face the likes of Buchholz's Riley Smith and Creekside's Tanner Simonds for individual honors, but their overall depth is superb. At this point, it's a surprise when Creekside's Alyson Johnson doesn't win an individual girls race, and the speedy sophomore has a solid chance to add a district trophy. Buchholz is the girls team favorite.
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District 2-3A
At Ponte Vedra
Nov. 4, 8:30 a.m. (girls), 9 a.m. (boys)
County teams: Beachside, Menendez, Ponte Vedra, St. Augustine.
Top St. Johns County individual times: Tanner Andrade-Brinsko, Ponte Vedra, 15:49.00 (boys); Daisy Ross, Ponte Vedra, 18:13.00 (girls)
Outlook: It's tight. The boys race could go down to the wire between Fleming Island and Ponte Vedra, who have excellent top duos (John Keester IV and Graham Myers for the Golden Eagles, Miles Wicks and Tanner Andrade-Brinsko for the Sharks), while Gateway Conference champion John Syla of Stanton is also in the individual mix. Ponte Vedra is a clear favorite in the girls event, led by Daisy Ross, Lindy White and Hilaree Vega, but Fleming Island and St. Augustine also have strong times.
District 2-1A
At Apalachee Regional Park, Tallahassee
Oct. 31, 10 a.m. (girls), 10:30 a.m. (boys)
County teams: Florida Deaf, St. Joseph.
Top St. Johns County individual times: Ashton Akam, St. Joseph, 17:07.60 (boys); Paige Brammer, St. Joseph, 20:20.00 (girls).
Outlook: It's never unusual to see Tallahassee Maclay top the district girls standings, and they'll likely do so again with four runners in the low 19s or below during the season. But on the boys side, Providence has a real chance for the top spot, with Maclay and Community Christian also contenders. St. Joseph should qualify comfortably on the boys side, while the girls are close to the cut line.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: High school cross country 2023: St. Johns County district meet preview
