Twenty-two of the nations' top teams and forty-five of the best individuals will make the trek to Portland, Oregon for Nike Cross Nationals. The teams are comprised of two winners from nine different regions and four “At-Large” berths, decided on by a team of Nike consultants. 

Northlakes Park, Denton - #1 Ranked Southlake Carroll impressed putting 5 in the top in the top 8 overall averaging 15:28.98. Joe Sansone led the dragons placing 3rd overall running 15:11.90. Sansone got out fast running a 4:43 for the first mile split. Sansone kept a strong place at mile 2 splitting 5:02 (9:45). Other ranked teams participating in the meet included #6 Marcus, #7 Flower Mound, and teams receiving votes in the CCCAT poll McKinney Boyd and Amarillo Tascosa.. 3A #1 Sanger did very well in the team competition placing 7th overall beating 5A ranked team Marcus.

  Northlakes Park, Denton - Just like in the Boys race the #1 Southlake Carroll Dragons dominated the Marcus I meet over the best teams in North Texas. The Lady Dragons were led by JR Shelby Chapin.

Marc Bloom's Top 25 US High School Cross Country Teams (via ESPN RISE)

Southlake Carroll and The Woodlands make Marc Bloom's National top 25 teams.

One week from now, 44 teams will be in Portland, and each with the dream of contending for the national championship of high school cross country. Photo by Alan Versaw.

The talent came out today at Nike South. The boys elite race did not dissappoint with a competition for the team title and a dominant victory in the individual title. The individual race was highlighted by state contenders Zachary Ornelas, Craig Lutz, Reed Connor and Paul Snyder in 5A. Along with the best in the 5A division 4A and 2A featured state contenders 4A Alex De La Garza and 2A Contender Nathan Collier. The weather was perfect for a fast race and that is just what happened as the first mile was quick with Lutz coming through with a slight lead in 4:29. The rest of the pack were as follows: Zachary Ornelas 4:30 Reed Connor 4:30 Jimmy Welin 4:30 Neil Smith 4:30 CJ Brown 4:31 Paul Snyder 4:31 Chase Rathke 4:31 CJ Jessett 4:31 Drew Butler 4:31 Ryan Dohner 4:32 Connor Adams 4:32 Parker Stinson 4:35 Alex De La Garza 4:47 At 2 miles Lutz continued to open up his lead on the pack. Lutz was through approx at 9:30 followed by Zachary Ornelas 9:33 Reed Connor 9:33 Paul Snyder 9:34 Parker Stinson 9:38 CJ Brown 9:39 Jimmy Welin 9:39 Ryan Dohner 9:41 Alex De La Garza 9:41 Chase Rathke 9:42 Connor Adams 9:43 Drew Butler 9:44 Neil Smith 9:45 Lutz then made the same surge I saw him make at Marcus I Invitatoinal to gap the field after the 2 mile mark and nobody could respond. Lutz won the race in 15:13. Nike South Invitational Meet Results Video- Coming Photo Album: Nike South Invitational Boys Elite Photo Album: Nike South Invitational Girls Elite Photo Album: Nike South Invitational Varsity Boys Photo Album: Nike South Invitational Girls Varsity 5k Nike South Preview The team title was just as exciting as The Woodlands edged out Cedar Park 88-90. The Woodlands were up on the team scores at 2 miles 76-91 on Cedar Park. The Woodlands barely held on the last mile fading slightly to win 88-90 over a game Cedar Park squad. Marcus and Southlake Carroll continued its team battle today with Marcus coming out on top again by only 4 pts 159-163. These teams will meet again at District and at the Region I meet in Lubbock. The most surprising team finish of the day was probably highly ranked Klein Oak finishing 7th overall.

The second full weekend of the season has many of the top teams and individuals in each state opening up their seasons. From Texas, to South Carolina, to Colorado, to New Mexico, MileSplit will have on-site coverage of nearly a dozen meets this weekend. Check out our weekend preview for the top meets taking place this weekend. (photo courtesy of SCRunners.com)

The girls I-5A race is stacked. With at least 20 girls having a great chance at qualifying for state meet it is aknist impossible to forecast who will come out on top. I went though pages and pages of data and came to a conclusion. The best in I-5A are....

The questions for Region I-5A are numerous. Who will take control of the Region I-5A race now the Colby Lowe is gone? Will Region II transplant Plano and Plano West have an effect on the Region I meet? Who makes it out of District 6-5A?

Southlake Carroll won both the Boys and Girls Division at the Marcus I Invitational in Denton. Tara ran a 11:20 for the win and Colby won in 15:14.

Here is a recap of the Texas Relays. It complete with quotes, summaries, and video.

ROUND ROCK

What he did: The Southlake Carroll standout ran away with the five-kilometer Class 5A/4A boys race at the Texas A&M Invitational, winning in a personal-best time of 14 minutes, 38 seconds

Video Highlights of the 2005 Marcus I 5A Boys and Girls race. Video is in Windows Media Player format. It is a large file so a high speed connection is required.

What she did: The Southlake Carroll standout ran away with the Class 5A girls title at the Marcus I Invitational, winning the two-mile race by 11 seconds over runner-up Loren Hodges of Paradise.

More than 470 teams converged on Norbuck Park for the annual start of the High School Cross Country season in North Texas. Under a blistering sun with temperatures in the high 90\'s more than 2,000 high school runners started their quest for success.

Will Smith found himself on Skid Row last month, surrounded by the thousands of homeless people who sleep on the streets of downtown Los Angeles. He saw cardboard boxes, blankets and tents being used for living quarters.

AUSTIN - For the second year in a row, Carroll\'s distance medley relay team took home gold in the Texas Relays with a runaway victory.

Today the teams got their first look at the European style course created from the infield of Portland Meadows race track.

I represent one of the 4 teams from Texas at the first ever Nike Team National event. My intent was to jot down a few items each day and send them to Alex to publish. Little did I know how hard it would be. I am sitting in my room at the Embassy Suites on Friday morning 5:15 local time not really remembering where I am or what time it is.

Marcus I meet had many big names and big surprises. Unlike the boys race the girls race brought more questions than answers.