Lipps to lead Hampshire boys
Jefferson likely to repeat as region champs

2010 Top Times

By Kevin Spradlin
TriStateRunnur.com

ROMNEY, W.Va., Aug. 1, 2011 – Now in his fourth year, Hampshire cross country coach Craig Nething knows it doesn’t take long to see who trained over the summer and who didn’t.

Incoming junior Garrett Crawford didn’t leave much to guesswork. Crawford admitted he ran only sporadically over the summer. He was set to begin a more consistent program on Monday, the first official day of practice for West Virginia prep teams.

The task for the day? A 10-minute warm-up, stretching and plyometrics followed by a 60-minute run.

“I’m not ready for 60 minutes,” Crawford said.

Yet. Nething knows the key to Hampshire’s success in overcoming the loss of Chris Wilson and Tim Loughran – both of whom graduated this past spring after leading the Trojans to a second-place finish in the region meet in 2010 – will be a steadfast practice of the fundamentals: endurance, strength and speed.

Even then, Nething figures no team is likely to upset Jefferson as the No. 1 team in the region. Sure, they lost head coach Scott Biola (relocated to Elkins) and lost three of their top seven, including region champ Brandon Doughty, to graduation. But the team that took four of the top seven spots, with then freshman Andrew Milliron rounding out the top five in 12th place overall, figures to find runners to step up and be consistent contributors to the varsity squad.

Jefferson boasts three of the top seven runners on TriStateRunnur.com’s Preseason All-Region First Team.

And unlike Hampshire, which boasted only 18 runners on Monday – boys and girls combined – Jefferson is considerably deeper. Those spots could be filled by any grouping of Nicholas Ledden, Jimmy Meyer, Rhett Zillinger, Dillon Breeden, Hoff Lindberg, Curtis Chiswell, Jimmy Ross or Franco Posa.

Individually, it may come down to who had the best summer training. And you can bet the young men from Shenandoah Junction had a very productive summer.

Preseason First Team All-Region
(Region II, Class AAA)
1. Eric Graf, Senior, Jefferson
2. Ryan Graf, Junior, Jefferson
3. Samuel Munnis, Senior, Jefferson
4. Nick Bauer, Senior, Martinsburg
5. Matthew Dearth, Sophomore, Bridgeport
6. Andrew Milliron, Sophomore, Jefferson
7. Eli Lipps, Junior, Hampshire

Preseason Second Team All-Region
(Region II, Class AAA)
1. Nick Dyer, Junior, Robert C. Byrd
2. Zach Laing, Senior, Musselman
3. Karl Smakula, Senior, Elkins
4. Abraham Merinar, Sophomore, Bridgeport
5. Bryce Cook, Sophomore, Robert C. Byrd
6. Joseph Shreves, Sophomore, Buckhannon-Upshur
7. Holden Shockey, Senior, Hampshire

Trojans girls look to defend region title
Five of top seven runners returning

2010 Top Times

By Kevin Spradlin
TriStateRunnur.com

ROMNEY, W.Va., Aug. 1, 2011 – For the first time since 2006, someone other than Letitia Propst will be crowned girls champion at the West Virginia Region II Class AAA cross country meet.

There is a fair chance a contender – actually, more than one – comes from Hampshire High School. The Trojans have five of their top seven runners returning and have three of the top seven members on the TriStateRunnur.com Preseason First Team All-Region members.

Led by late-season specialist and senior Danielle Lewis, sophomore Rachel Lipps and senior Sarah Burkett aim to help the Trojans defend their regional championship. Hampshire once again has home course advantage. The regional meet will be staged in Romney for the second straight year due to ongoing construction in Elkins.

Fourth-year coach Craig Nething gathered his runners on the end of the football field on Monday morning, the first official day West Virginia teams could practice, for warm-up, stretching and plyometrics. The team took off for a 60-minute low impact run afterward.

Nething and his assistant coaches noted the runners entered the first day of practice with varying degrees of fitness. Nething focused on Lewis, who might not lead the top five runners on the squad early in the season. He worried little, though, as Lewis has proven to be in race shape by the time the big meets come along in mid-October.

Last fall, Lewis led Hampshire with a third-place finish at the region meet and led the Trojans to the team title with 33 points. Lost to graduation are Carissa Guyer and Holly Ruggles, but three of Hampshire’s top five runners are back.

The Trojans won’t have an easy time of it. Nething expects both Bridgeport and Buckhannon-Upshur – second and third, respectively, at last year’s region meet – to challenge for the team title.

For Bridgeport, four out of the team’s top five runners are back – all of whom placed in the top 30 in 2010. For Buckhannon-Upshur, all seven varsity runners are back. But for the Trojans, their largest obstacle might be internal. The team has only six runners. While displacers are important, staying healthy will be vital to the success of this year’s Hampshire harriers.

That’s why the start of Monday’s first practice, conducted on grassy, low-impact surface – is not just a fad but Nething’s season-long philosophy.

Preseason First Team All-Region
(Region II, Class AAA)
1. Morganne Phillips, Junior, Bridgeport
2. Danielle Lewis, Senior, Hampshire
3. Rachel Lipps, Sophomore, Hampshire
4. Erika Voreh, Senior, Bridgeport
5. Heather Jenkins, Junior, Musselman
6. Sarah Burkett, Senior, Hampshire
7. Desiree McCarroll, Junior, Jefferson

Preseason Second Team All-Region
(Region II, Class AAA)
1. Destiny Harrison, Sophomore, Washington
2. Shaina Kopelov, Senior, Buckhannon-Upshur
3. Anna Lizon, Senior, Hedgesville
4. Brittany Waltz, Junior, Martinsburg
5. Anna Kay Haddix, Junior, Bridgeport
6. Fallon Stone, Junior, Hedgesville
7. Shelby Williams, Sophomore, Buckhannon-Uphsur