MHSAA 5A Cross Country Championships
The upcoming MHSAA 5A promises a thrilling spectacle with Zachary Josiah Nobles and Ricardo Venegas leading the charge. With recent victories at their regional championships, these two are poised to give each other a run for their money. Nobles holds the top seed, while Venegas boasts the third-fastest 5K time this season, just behind Kayson Newsome from Pontotoc.
Nobles is a strong second-half racer and likes to come from behind, while Venegas takes the pace out early. That said, these two should offer an interesting matchup.
On the team front, Brookhaven High's young guns are expected to make a significant impact early on in the race, similar to how they raced at the 2023 Central Mississippi Super Regions. However, Corinth High's depth and consistent top-10 state rankings throughout the season make them the team to beat.
The Warriors' lineup seems unstoppable in the face of the 5A championship.
In the girls' division in MHSAA 5A, Elsie Wilbanks from Corinth is the clear frontrunner. Her substantial lead in seed times and a dominant regional win signify she will cruise to victory unless a surprise challenger emerges from the shadows.
The team title appears to be a direct showdown between Corinth and Brookhaven. While Corinth is favored to win most matchups, Brookhaven's potential cannot be underestimated, and they could very well upset the standings.
MHSAA 6A Cross Country Championships
Moving onto MHSAA 6A, the boys' race is heating up with an interesting matchup between Parker Shannon from Saltillo and Caden Louder from Olive Branch, both posting sub-16:30 times. Shannon is a seasoned veteran, with a string of impressive performances, that include his Cross Country-1600m-3200m triple in MHSAA last season, while Louder has emerged as a dark horse, showing remarkable improvement this season from last year's.
Shannon and Louder are 1-1 against each other, but it seems like both are going on a hot streak and peaking at the right time of the year.
The Saltillo High School Tigers are anticipated to extend their reign with the fastest team average and a solid 1-5 split that's hard to match. That said, they are the clear favorites for the team title.
For the girls, Maine Lund of South Panola is expected to lead the pack, potentially capturing her first-ever MHSAA title in her career.
Center Hill is the on paper favorite in the MHSAA 6A girls title race, though there is not a lot to go on with their matchup against nearest rivals Saltillo. Most of their personal bests are from one course, therefore it would not be surprising if the Lady Tigers sneak up on them and potentially steal the show, pulling off the MHSAA 6A gender sweep in the team title competition.
MHSAA 7A Cross Country Championships
In the highly competitive MHSAA 7A Cross Country Championships, the boy's race is shaping up to be a historic event.
The individual battle is filled with several top-tier names, and most of these athletes could likely win any other classification. At the forefront is Pearl's Jaquavion Bryant, the defending champion in MHSAA 6A with a MS No. 1 5K time of 15:24. His top Mississippi finishes at Jesse Owens and Watson along with his confidence displaying in his execution have established him as the pace-setter for the upcoming championship.
However, if anyone is going to take Bryant down, it will likely be Oxford's Bailey Kosko. With a 15:28 5K to his name, Kosko has multiple high-profile wins this season and is as tough as they come. Bryant nipped Kosko at the 2023 Jesse Owens Classic by four seconds, but this will race will likely play out differently as they will be the ones setting the tone.
Other dark horses include Farren Oberto, Graham Weiss, Andrew Brown, Taylor Brown, and you can never count out Colin Brannon, the 2023 MHSAA 6A 3200m State Champion who tends to always show up during the championship season.
Meanwhile, Pearl High School is showcasing its absolute dominance with five runners breaking under 16:15, yielding an impressive average time of 15:51 for their top five. This depth is unlike anything Mississippi has ever seen, and the question isn't if the Pirates will win - It is by how much.
Led by the Brown brothers, Tupelo's team is crafting its own bid for glory. Their most recent performance at the 2023 French Camp Classic was very impressive, having a 52 second 1-5 split en route to a perfect score of 15 points.
The Oak Grove High School boys, often considered the dark horses, continue to surprise the field and have shown they have the potential to disrupt the standings. If they have a strong finish, particularly from their No. 5 runner, and manage to place two runners in the top 10, likely Grayson Taylor and Matthew McGuire, they could very well snatch the runner-up title from the more favored teams.
In the girl's race in MHSAA 7A, the competition is equally as fierce.
Leading the charge is Hernando's Kaitlyn Burge with a phenomenal seed time of 17:58, and is only the fourth Mississippi girl to break the 18 minute 5K barrier in the last decade. Additionally, she nearly broke Brooklyn Biancamano's Choctaw Trails course record when she soloed a big time Watson victory, easily winning in a phenomenal 18:03.
That said, there is an interesting matchup that is yet to be had this season, and that is Ocean Springs Addison Rainey, who actually enters as the defending champion. Like Burge, Rainey has also not lost to anyone in MHSAA 7A this year, and has actually not lost to any Mississippian. It should be noted that Burge's strength of schedule has definitely been stronger than Rainey's, but Rainey still had a solid season opener at The Opener that we can't forget about, and we also can't forget her state title race she won a year ago. Both Rainey and Burge are aggressive front runners, and this will likely offer a thrilling matchup for fans to watch.
One more addition to the watch list is Alex Lee from Madison Central, the other sub-19 5K performer outside of Burge and duos from Tupelo and Hernando. Her impressive performances throughout the season position her as a dark horse capable of challenging the frontrunners.
The team race in the MHSAA 7A girls race is much, much closer than the boys.
The standout performances of Tupelo High at the 2023 Watson XC Classic, where they triumphed over teams from Pearl, Clinton, and Hernando, has positioned them as the frontrunners for this year's championship. Yet, in the unpredictable world of cross country, certainty is a luxury, and the day could belong to any of the contending teams.
The Ocean Springs Lady Greyhounds, back-to-back defending champions, are no strangers to upsets and come into the championships with a history of spectacular performances. Pearl, with the chance to claim both the boys' and girls' titles, is a team with enough drive to disrupt any predictions. Hernando, with its formidable duo of Burge and Riley Jackson, and Madison Central, fresh from their victory at the Saltillo Cross Country Invitational, are also in prime positions to make their mark on the championship race.
The depth of Tupelo, however, is not to be underestimated, boasting a well-rounded team that includes standout athletes Brookelyn Morgan and Sophie Santucci, alongside the up-and-coming Carrie Ann Brown, who has recently ascended to varsity to bolster their ranks. With their entire scoring five clocking in under 20:40, their depth is evident, extending to a formidable No. 4-7 lineup that many teams will find enviable.
It is the nature of the sport of cross country, after all, to be a theater where the drama of each race unfolds in its purest form of competition, and the MHSAA Cross Country Championships are set to be just that. Fans are promised a spectacle where the unpredictability of the race is biggest thrill, and as MileSplit Mississippi can offer insights, we will never know what the end result could be until the race is run.