Youth runners from as far as Pike County will come to Lexington this weekend for the Bluegrass Invitational, hosted by Tates Creek High School.
He's not from Pikeville, but the fastest prep runner scheduled to compete is from eastern Kentucky. Bell County senior Caden Miracle has the best seed time by 40 seconds: he ran a PR of 15:07.70 last Saturday at the Trinity/Valkyrie Invitational. Miracle entered that race with a previous best time of 15:37.01, set the week prior. He's run a sub-16 minute 5K in seven of his previous eight races, including six straight dating back to last season. Chances are he'll do it again this week, and pick up a fifth consecutive win in the process.
What of the young men behind him? The seed times for Jonathan Christopher (Campbell County) and Noah Mathews (Paul Laurence Dunbar) were separated by just .02 seconds before last weekend. Matthews built a gap with a strong showing in the Trinity/Valkyrie last week; he ran 13th overall with a 15:47.00, bettering his previous mark (also set in Louisville) by 15 full seconds. Christopher earned his 16:02.00 at the Mason County Invitational on Sept. 10.
Philip Lamartiniere, a senior at Tates Creek, jumps out from a crowded field of "next bests" because he has yet to enter a competition this season. His seed time (16:15.19) came as a sophomore at the Woodford County Invitational, but he won last season's Class 3A KHSAA Region 6 meet and was a top-15 finisher at the equivalent state meet. He ran fourth here last year (16:41.70) and is the only top-five finisher returning for this edition.
The team portion, based on seeding, is likely to come down to how the top runners from Dunbar and Highlands Latin finish. Each school has three entrants ranked in the top 15. The Highlanders are paced by Josiah Claunch, a junior whose seed time (16:32.89) was earned last year. He had not raced competitively until last week at the Trinity/Valkyrie (16:49.70).
Girls
Madison Central is fielding runners here, but wunderkind Ciara O'Shea isn't entered - which makes for more drama at the front of the pack!
Campbell County sophomore Olivia Holbrook narrowly has the edge in seeding over Woodford County freshman Addison Moore. Both ran their best time in their most recent race - Holbrook (18:22.20) to win the Mason County Invitational and Moore (18:22.36) in a sixth-place showing at the Trinity/Valkyrie Invitational. Forced to pick between the two, I'd favor Moore, whose high school is about as close to Masterson Station Park as any within Fayette County. But it should make for a fun duel.
Woodford County senior Maggie Twehues (18:50.04) and Lexington Catholic sophomore Caroline Beiting (18:57.67) are next on the seed list, though neither time came this season.
As with the boys, a Paul Laurence Dunbar runner paces the Lexington public schools represented here. Anna Gedritis, a senior, ran a PR of 18:57.81 to finish 15th at the Trinity/Valkyrie. That was the 13th best individual time this season and would make her the third fastest entrant in this field.
Sixth seed Shelby Lamb, a Madison Central freshman stepping out of O'Shea's shadow, ran her PR (19:00.54) earlier this year and came close to bettering it at the Trinity/Valkyrie last week (19:03.93). Keep an eye on her and Abigail Bastin, a Lincoln County freshman who finished second to Moore earlier this season.
Projecting an order of team finishes is harder here than on the boys' side. Woodford County barely got the better of Lexington Catholic last year, and it wouldn't be surprising to see them go 1-2 again. Look out for West Jessamine, though; the Colts are unlikely to have a top-three individual but have the depth to disrupt the team standings.
Fast Facts
Patrick Reilly is sixth on the boys' seed list with a time of 16:43.80. The junior from Buffalo High School is one of West Virginia's best runners.
After Holbrook at the top, northern Kentucky is sparse on top-10 challengers other than Isabella Gay. The sophomore out of Conner has PR'd each of her last two trips out.
Pikeville junior Trinity Rowe (PR of 21.13.60) likely won't be among the first girls to cross the finish line, but you'll hear her name plenty after the fall; she's one of the top girls' basketball players in the state and has received multiple NCAA Division I scholarship offers in that sport.
John Spencer (Lafayette) and Michaela Reinhart (Lexington Catholic) own the course and meet records, respectively. Both set them during the Bluegrass Invitational, Spencer in 2013 (15:19.80) and Reinhart in 2015 (17:49.49).
The five best seed times among middle school boys who've entered: Kyle Stickel (Woodford County, 14:25.71); Will Houlihan (Tates Creek Middle School, 15:09.40); Jacob Heuckroth (Beaumont Middle School, 15:34.13); Jacob Brannon (Bell County, 15:37.64); and Matea Ivanov (Beaumont Middle School, 15:38.40)
The five best seed times among middle school girls who've entered: Sophia Anderson (E.J. Hayes Middle School, 16:03.25); Kylie Blackburn (Bryan Station Middle School, 16:16.54); Tye Park (Bryan Station Middle School, 16:16.96); Charlize Compton (Pikeville, 16:54.10); and Kylie Marcum (West Jessamine Middle School, 17:50.84).
