Class 1A Boys Top 5 Teams
#1: St. Henry
The Crusaders have a clear path in front of them towards a state title. They are the frontrunners having been the state runner-up in 2020 and returning all 7 of their state competitors. It also helps that Holy Cross (Louisville) graduated a huge portion of their state championship team. St. Henry is led by Dixon Ryan, Lake Durrett, and Mark Ryan who were 6th, 8th, and 20th respectively in the 2020 state championship. Looking at 2020 season-best times, the 1 to 5 split for St. Henry is an impressive 45.33 which bodes well for a solid pack and anyone being the difference-maker when they toe the line.
#2: Bishop Brossart
Brossart is the only team that appears on both the girl's and boy's top 5 returning squads. The boys do not have the dominance from 2020 that the girls had, however, they do have the experience. Last year's state squad included 2 seniors and 3 juniors. Move forward to this year, those juniors are now the team leaders and will be looking to improve on their 5th place finish last year. Look for Ryan Branch and Parker Losure to be those senior leaders to close the gap on St. Henry. You want to see something fun, check out the regional virtual meet for Class 1A Region 4. Just the top 3 teams in the entire state for Class 1A in one region.
#3: Villa Madonna
Rounding out the Northern Kentucky domination is Villa Madonna. This group finished fourth at the 2020 state championships and return all but one of their scorers from that group. Owen Kovacic carried the torch for the team at the state meet with Adam Kolar coming into the 2021 season as the top returning time for the team. They will get solid competition all season long with their neighboring regional foes being the top two returning teams which could bode well for a post-season push. This will be a fun group to watch compete week in and week out.
#4: Augusta
The group of gentlemen from Augusta are trying to make some noise in the top of the Class 1A teams. They finished with as the 11th place team at the 2020 state championships and return every single one of their state runners. As the #4 team coming into the season, it is time to see if they can contest for that podium finish. Led by Connor Snapp in the season as the top mark, he was their fourth runner at state. Bryant Curtis and Michael Jones were the top two at state in 58th and 61st. This group will be interesting to watch to see if they can keep the momentum from 2022.
#5: Louisville Collegiate
Louisville Collegiate comes into the 2021 cross country season with a 12th place finish in the 2020 state championships and looking to improve. Led by freshman Roman Sierpina who was 23rd at state in 2020 but comes in with the 15th best season-best mark. Following Sierpina are Calder Beasley, Logan Shearer, and Tommy Fitzgerald who will all be back from the 2020 state team to compete in 2021. While this group does not have the awe factor that the top 3 do, they have the potential to climb up the ladder.