Harriers will wake up Thursday morning with one thing on their minds.
That thought will be earning a spot at the state cross country meet Oct. 28 at Cabell Midland High School.
The list of participants will be determined at various locations across the Mountain State during regional competition.
Area Class AAA teams will compete on the course beside Beckley-Stratton Middle School, while the AA event will be contested at Little Beaver State Park. The area Class A schools will compete in Charleston at Coonskin Park.
Runners will qualify for the state meet either as a team or as an individual competitor.
Regions with 1-5 teams will qualify two teams for the state meet, while regions with 6-9 teams will send three teams to Cabell County.
Each region will also qualify 20 percent of the number of contestants that start the regional race. That number also includes the individuals that qualify in the team event with a maximum of 10 runners qualifying from each region.
Beckley and George Washington top the AAA boys field with both teams ranked in the top-10. Brandon Canaday leads the Flying Eagles who sport a talented team running for a school that has controlled the region over the last several years.
The Lady Flying Eagles are ranked No. 10 with St. Albans one spot ahead at No. 9. The battle for the top-two spots will also include Greenbrier East who is the defending regional champions.
The Spartans have been strong all season guided by freshman sensation Neena McClintic who is the No. 7 ranked runner in the state.
Seniors Lauren Curtis, Cecilia Lindley and Kyndall Ince give Beckley a strong trio of runners to make a run at the regional crown.
With five runners scoring, the AAA girls showdown will likely come down to what order runners three through five cross the finish line.
PikeView is the defending AA Region 3 champion, capturing the title for the first time since 2008 last year. The Panthers will be the favorites to repeat Thursday.
Ranked No. 4 in the state, the boys from Gardner are led by three runner in the top-40 statewide including Tyler Huffman (18), Matt Murphy (22) and Nate Cook (39).
Shady Spring was the defending regional champion going into last year’s regional before being edged by PikeView by just one point.
The Tigers also have a balanced squad that will give the Panthers a run for the title. Eli Jordan (35) and Logan Mallott (37) have been strong all year for Shady along with David Hegele and David Northrop.
The AA boys race for individual spots will be a heated affair for sure.
Nicholas County standouts Johnny Walkup and Luke Barr are ranked 11 and 12, respectively, and battled to the wire for the title at the Coalfield Conference race last week.
Bluefield’s Hank Marson won the Oak Hill Invitational this year and he will be a strong contender Thursday along with Jadon Acord from Liberty. Tommy Wikel from Wyoming East ran strong at the regionals last year and has the ability to grab a spot in Ona as well.
Shady Spring won the girls regional run last year for the first time in 11 years and the Tigers are poised for a repeat.
Sophomore Gwynn McGinnis and freshman Bre Crouse give Shady a strong 1-2 punch, but just like the boys team, the Tigers are balanced across the board. Juniors Journey Wisthoff and Abby Honaker, along with freshman Audrey Justice give Shady five solid runners.
PikeView will likely give Shady a run for the title led by sophomore Carli Spade who was fourth in the regional last year.
Nicholas County was second at the regional last year and has a pair of top contenders in Haley Johnson and Adrienne Truman.
With the Tigers, Panthers and Grizzlies having so many top runners this year, individual qualifying spots will likely be at a minimum. Kyndal Lusk from Wyoming East is one that could punch her ticket to the state meet.
Charleston Catholic, James Monroe and Richwood will battle for Class A girls regional championship.
The Irish are ranked fifth with the Mavs right on their heals in sixth.
Seniors Katie Collins (19) and Abby Dixon (30), along with freshman Kynzie Taylor (46) have taken James Monroe to new heights in cross-country and put them on the verge of a team berth at the state meet.
Baylee Jarrett has been a stalwart for the Lady Jacks over her career and will make one last push for another run at Cabell Midland.
Summers County junior standout Avery Lilly will lead the group of individuals hoping to qualify as well. Lilly is ranked 35th in the state and was fifth at the Coalfield Conference meet.
Charleston Catholic is the heavy favorite on the boys side in Class A with Richwood hoping to grab the second team qualifying spot up for grabs.
Summers County sophomore Dakota Pettry will be looking to make it two years in a row at the state meet when he runs Thursday.
The girls will run first at each venue with the boys following 45 minutes later. Class AA starts at 1 p.m., while Class A begins at 1:30 p.m. The big schools will hit the trail at 5 p.m.
