D1/D4 State AIA Cross Country Championships Preview
Here is the MileSplit Arizona full preview of the AIA State Cross Country Championships, with predictions and analysis from state editor Logan Stanley
- Boys -
Division I
Individuals
State qualifiers:
- Kai Espinosa-Golinski, Westwood
- Angel Vargas, Westwood
- Spencer Eyrich, Pinnacle
- Ben Wallace, Dobson
- Diego Brown, Skyline
- Jan Ponsa, Dobson
- Zachary Zima, Dobson
- Aron Kiflu, Camelback
- Filimon Kednmarey, Maricopa
- Gael Lopez, Trevor G. Browne
- Guillermo Corona Carmona, Maryvale
- Griffin Good, North High
- Ibrahim Mustaf, Alhambra
- Sango Kibukila, Alhambra
- Zachary Ripperdan, Queen Creek
- Kade Ruff, Valley Vista
- Eduardo Marquez, Gila Ridge
- Anthony Renguul, Tucson Magnet
- Andy Ward Garcia, Sunnyslope
- Nicolas Delgado, Valley Vista
- Kevin Seckinger, Tucson Magnet
The most competitive division in the state, the leaderboards have seen a few names occupy the top spot throughout the season. Hamilton senior Andrew Gibby jumped out to a hot start before the Chandler twin duo of Gibson and Francis Kibia vaulted themselves to the top. But the dust has settled in the past few weeks, and a pecking order has emerged.
Gibby ran a state-leading time of 15:04.40 at the City of Chandler XC Championships to beat out Gibson's 15:12.90. Those two are No. 1 and No. 2 in the division. Gibby ran 14:47.20 at Woodbridge to win the Varsity Blue B race, the second-fastest three-mile in the state for the whole season. He is undefeated against Arizona opponents this season and has collected a total of six wins.
Gibson Kibia hasn't won race a this season, but has been in the top five in all of his races besides Desert Twilight. He led the division for a portion of the season in the 5k before Gibby retook the lead recently.
Another athlete to keep an eye on is Red Mountain junior Matthew Hamilton. While sitting at No. 9 in the division, Hamilton has only lost one race this season -- to Gibby at the Fountain Hills Invitational on Sept. 10. And that race was extremely close, as Gibby came in at 16:16.94 and Hamilton came in at 16:18.59. Hamilton won the Boys Championship race at Desert Twilight and is the Northeast Section champion. He's certainly going to be in the hunt for a title.
Of course, it's hard to ignore the top team in the state, Highland, and their No. 1 runner, junior Timothy Willford. Willford was second to Hamilton at Sectionals, but boasts a faster 5k time than him. Willford only recently dipped under 16 minutes for the first time with his win at the Casteel Invitational on Oct. 14, but went 15:43.0 at Mt. Sac (three miles) and 15:50.5 at Sectionals in two races since then.
While we recognize Gibby's flawless in-state record and his recent performance at league championships, the MileSplit Arizona favorite to win is Hamilton.
Teams
State qualifiers:
- Highland
- Red Mountain
- Mountain View
- Boulder Creek
- Sandra Day O'Connor
- Mountain Ridge
- Hamilton
- Desert Vista
- Chandler
- Carl Hayden
- Basha
- Corona del Sol
- Perry
- Alhambra
- Liberty
- Shadow Ridge
- Brophy Prep
- Marana
- Cibola
- Rincon
This matchup figures to be one of the most exciting at the state meet with the top two teams (Hamilton and Highland) both projected at 58 points. Let's break it down:
| 1 | Hamilton High School (AZ) | 58 | ||
| 1) Andrew Gibby | 15:04.40 | 1 | ||
| 2) Nicholas Valle | 15:35.10 | 5 | ||
| 3) Jacob Slater | 15:38.10 | 6 | ||
| 4) Chase Markunas | 15:41.60 | 7 | ||
| 5) Theo McDaid | 16:32.80 | 39 | ||
| Average Time: 15:42.40 Total Time: 1:18:32.00 1-5 Split: 1:28.40 | ||||
| 6) Andrew Mickey | 16:37.10 | 42 | ||
| 7) Adam Slater | 16:43.00 | 48 | ||
| 2 | Highland High (AZ) | 58 | ||
| 1) Timothy Willford | 15:45.70 | 8 | ||
| 2) Austin Rueff | 15:51.10 | 11 | ||
| 3) Josh Howard | 15:56.10 | 12 | ||
| 4) Crewe Resendez | 15:56.30 | 13 | ||
| 5) Jonah Alexander | 15:57.30 | 14 | ||
| Average Time: 15:53.30 Total Time: 1:19:26.50 1-5 Split: 11.60 | ||||
| 6) Lucas Witcher | 15:59.70 | 15 | ||
| 7) Jack Breinholt | 16:09.90 | 19 | ||
Highland has the clear better 1-5 split (actually one of the best in the nation) with a time of 11.60 seconds. But the Huskies feature a faster top four, with each runner under 15:42 while the Hawks only have one athlete under that time. This makes up for Hamilton's No. 5 runner, sophomore Theo McDaid, being at 16:32.8.
Up until the last week of October, Highland had been the top team in the state. Hamilton's performance at the City of Chandler XC Championships resulted in personal bests for each of their top five. So, Highland has the advantage on consistency.
With the Hawks' proven track record over the duration of the season, and their insanely close 1-5 split, they are the MileSplit Arizona favorite to win.
Wild card: Mountain View