Coaches Poll Week 1

RunningFan453

New member
Any thoughts on the new poll? It's out on the oatccc website right now. Not too many surprises but Coffman is a bit low to me.
 
 
I had the exact same first thought. Coffman looks like a Top-10 team right now. I would say the same thing about Loveland.

HD is #1 by a whole lot right now, but I loved the coaches that gave Louisville, Mas. Jackson, and Lancaster 1st place votes. Those teams could mix it up.
 
I had the exact same first thought. Coffman looks like a Top-10 team right now. I would say the same thing about Loveland.

HD is #1 by a whole lot right now, but I loved the coaches that gave Louisville, Mas. Jackson, and Lancaster 1st place votes. Those teams could mix it up.
The Northeast looks very well represented this year which is somewhat new. Usually we see the Cincinnati and Columbus schools take up the top 4-5 in the preseason poll. Love the shakeup this year with Louisville and Jackson as well.
 
If you add up the Woodridge Boys state finishes for the past 17 years and average them, They are right where they average. So, I guess it's a pretty good poll.
 
Any thoughts on the new poll? It's out on the oatccc website right now. Not too many surprises but Coffman is a bit low to me.
If Coffman is low, then so is Kilbourne. The two tied at Pick N.

Kilbourne's top 3 were all in the top 10, and their 4th beat Coffman's 4th by almost 40 seconds.

They also beat Jerome pretty handily at OHSAA. If they can find a consistent 5th, they'll be dangerous.

Also... I'd say Olentangy is ranked too high, and Orange too low. Orange is really deep, and Saketh R is a tough front runner.
 
If you add up the Woodridge Boys state finishes for the past 17 years and average them, They are right where they average. So, I guess it's a pretty good poll.
Well they have no business being ranked equal to Defiance. Defiance #2 runner last week was 17:49 doesn't sound like #3 team in the state, and how is Lexington still get votes with #5 guy running in the 19:00's and Wauseon's 5 guy was even slower last week. Voters need to check there calendars (and race results) and see it is not 2018 any longer.
 
Well they have no business being ranked equal to Defiance. Defiance #2 runner last week was 17:49 doesn't sound like #3 team in the state, and how is Lexington still get votes with #5 guy running in the 19:00's and Wauseon's 5 guy was even slower last week. Voters need to check there calendars (and race results) and see it is not 2018 any longer.
Woodridge #1 runner is a top 5 returner and beat the #1 returner convincingly. (I was wrong, Dutt is the #6 returner. Probably should have looked that up before spouting off)
Woodridge and Defiance have nearly identical splits between 1-5. I'd say if you really looked at it, Woodridge and Defiance should be tied at this point. Probably would have given Woodridge the edge based on the past 2 decades, but if you assume #1's are comparable, these are about as the same teams as you can get.

I would suggest going back to 2019 and see what the times Defiance ran would have done for them in that race, then go and see where Defiance ultimately placed at the state in 2019.

Uniota and Marlington bring back pretty good teams. Not sure how top 4 should be different than what it is.
 
Last edited:
I think Loveland didn't get much love (pun intended), 3rd at the Pre-Season Invitational but ranked behind a number of teams they finished ahead of. Really looking forward to this weekend, St. X had two freshman go around 9:50 in the 3200 this spring, will be interesting to see how that translates to XC. Davidson definitely has a great 1-2 but X might be deeper, will know a lot more about both teams tomorrow. Should be fun!
 
Woodridge #1 runner is a top 5 returner and beat the #1 returner convincingly. (I was wrong, Dutt is the #6 returner. Probably should have looked that up before spouting off)
Woodridge and Defiance have nearly identical splits between 1-5. I'd say if you really looked at it, Woodridge and Defiance should be tied at this point. Probably would have given Woodridge the edge based on the past 2 decades, but if you assume #1's are comparable, these are about as the same teams as you can get.

I would suggest going back to 2019 and see what the times Defiance ran would have done for them in that race, then go and see where Defiance ultimately placed at the state in 2019.

Uniota and Marlington bring back pretty good teams. Not sure how top 4 should be different than what it is.

Took you advice and pulled up Defiance results and as you can see they and no where close to same team as 2 years ago. Yes I know it was hot Saturday but would not make that big a difference. I don't know about the course Woodridge ran but Defiance is flat and quick. And in fact Defiance was only 8th at regional meet last year (I think Woodridge might have done a little better than that) I stand by that I don't believe they should be ranked equally.

2019 Defiance home meet
1630686496239.png

2021 Defiance home meet
1630686530360.png
 
Took you advice and pulled up Defiance results and as you can see they and no where close to same team as 2 years ago. Yes I know it was hot Saturday but would not make that big a difference. I don't know about the course Woodridge ran but Defiance is flat and quick. And in fact Defiance was only 8th at regional meet last year (I think Woodridge might have done a little better than that) I stand by that I don't believe they should be ranked equally.

2019 Defiance home meet
View attachment 20929
2021 Defiance home meet
View attachment 20930
So you are saying that Woodridge is better and that Defiance is the one ranked too high? I thought it was the other way around. Yeah, Woodridge is much better.
 
I think Loveland didn't get much love (pun intended), 3rd at the Pre-Season Invitational but ranked behind a number of teams they finished ahead of. Really looking forward to this weekend, St. X had two freshman go around 9:50 in the 3200 this spring, will be interesting to see how that translates to XC. Davidson definitely has a great 1-2 but X might be deeper, will know a lot more about both teams tomorrow. Should be fun!
I agree. Loveland is a top 10 team.

St. X vs. HD will be a great race. I bet that St. X will be right with them.
HD's 1-5 split was almost 2 minutes, and I am sure St. X will be much tighter than that.
 
Does anyone have any insight into the Riverside course Marlington ran on last week? Looks blazing fast.
If those times are even close to legit it looks like Marlington is head and shoulders above everyone else in D2.
 
Does anyone have any insight into the Riverside course Marlington ran on last week? Looks blazing fast.
If those times are even close to legit it looks like Marlington is head and shoulders above everyone else in D2.
The course is flat and mile 1 is fast with a lap on the track. Mile 2 slows them way down with a lot of tight turns. The times are legit.
SmartSelect_20210903-172839_Strava.jpg
 
Does anyone have any insight into the Riverside course Marlington ran on last week? Looks blazing fast.
If those times are even close to legit it looks like Marlington is head and shoulders above everyone else in D2.
They got beat by Unioto, so they aren't ahead of them.
 
I agree with BeaverNation on the Riverside course. I would also add they ran in the dark, 9 something start,(even though the course was lit up) so I would say they could run faster since many kids run more cautiously in the dark. They did also jump up and run with D1 competition so I am sure they ran with something to prove.
 
I agree with BeaverNation on the Riverside course. I would also add they ran in the dark, 9 something start,(even though the course was lit up) so I would say they could run faster since many kids run more cautiously in the dark. They did also jump up and run with D1 competition so I am sure they ran with something to prove.
I’m sure the course was fair, but I actually think those night meets are as fast or even faster with all the energy and excitement.
 
I’m sure the course was fair, but I actually think those night meets are as fast or even faster with all the energy and excitement.
And running on a track. Just look what the same kids ran a week before.

#1 -38 sec
#2 -34 sec
#3 -70
#4 -41
#5 -49

So, it's about 40-46 sec faster than the state meet course for Marlington.

Marlington would have to expect that they will drop from the times they ran at the state course to the times they ran the second race by the state meet.

I would say Riverside is on the faster side of courses.
 
Last edited:
(#5) St. Xavier with a huge win over (#1) Hilliard Davidson at HD’s home meet.
59-73.
St. X also beats (#7) Mas. Jackson who scored 113.

(#2) Mason beats (#14) Loveland at Loveland’s home meet, 36-50.
Zegarski runs great to win, 15:16.

(#12) Centerville has a dominant win at the Lebanon Invitational.
 
(#5) St. Xavier with a huge win over (#1) Hilliard Davidson at HD’s home meet.
59-73.
St. X also beats (#7) Mas. Jackson who scored 113.

(#2) Mason beats (#14) Loveland at Loveland’s home meet, 36-50.
Zegarski runs great to win, 15:16.

(#12) Centerville has a dominant win at the Lebanon Invitational.
HD's success is going to be determined by if they can get better at their #4 and #5 spots. X put 6 runners ahead of their #4 today; I can see at the state meet HD's top 3 runners coming in under 15 points, but if #4 and #5 are in the 50's or higher it's hard to see them winning. And yes I know it's early September, that's just a comment, not a prediction.

It looked like Solon didn't run the same team as they did at the Early Season Invite, not sure if injuries or just holding guys out. Probably would have challenged for 3rd but they don't appear to be at the same level as X or HD.

Mason put all 7 (actually 9 total) ahead of Loveland's #4 and had a 30 second 1-5 spread. Their top runner was 40 seconds behind Zegarski, they don't look like they have the top end runners HD has but they've got a lot of fast boys overall.

I expect it will be Mason and X at 1-2 in the next poll in some order, followed by HD, St. I and Louisville. Too bad the Moeller Invite got rained out last week, probably won't be until regionals when Mason and X match up together.
 
1 1 1860 Noah Graham 12 Marlington 16:18.2
2 2 1803 Ian Paul 12 Canton C.C. 16:39.9
3 3 1858 Colin Cernansky 10 Marlington 16:42.0
4 4 1818 Drennan Akins 12 CVCA 16:51.8
5 5 1855 Liam Blake 12 Marlington 16:55.0
6 6 1989 Josiah Hicks 12 West Branch 16:59.8
7 7 1863 Nash Minor 11 Marlington 16:59.9
8 8 1988 Michael Dorris 10 West Branch 17:08.8
9 9 1946 Zachary Vales 11 Streetsboro 17:24.4
10 10 1821 Ethan Brewer 12 CVCA 17:25.9
11 11 1856 Cohen Boyce 11 Marlington 17:27.1
 
1. Noah Graham 1 0:15:53.61 12 0:00:00.00
2. Colin Cernansky 11 0:16:27.45 10 0:00:33.84
3. Liam Blake 16 0:16:38.40 12 0:00:44.79
4. Cohen Boyce 30 0:16:58.27 11 0:01:04.66
5. Nash Minor 31 0:17:01.83 11 0:01:08.22

They must like running in the dark better than at home
 
1 1 1860 Noah Graham 12 Marlington 16:18.2
2 2 1803 Ian Paul 12 Canton C.C. 16:39.9
3 3 1858 Colin Cernansky 10 Marlington 16:42.0
4 4 1818 Drennan Akins 12 CVCA 16:51.8
5 5 1855 Liam Blake 12 Marlington 16:55.0
6 6 1989 Josiah Hicks 12 West Branch 16:59.8
7 7 1863 Nash Minor 11 Marlington 16:59.9
8 8 1988 Michael Dorris 10 West Branch 17:08.8
9 9 1946 Zachary Vales 11 Streetsboro 17:24.4
10 10 1821 Ethan Brewer 12 CVCA 17:25.9
11 11 1856 Cohen Boyce 11 Marlington 17:27.1
Interestingly, Woodridge put 5 in front of Streetsboro #1. Marlington put 4 in before him with number 5 real close. Looks like Marlington #1 and Woodridge #1 are similar based on margin over Akins. Marlington looks better through 4 than Woodridge. Will be interesting to see the progression through the season. I'd give the advantage to Marlington, but only because they have 3 meets under their belts and Woodridge just has the one.
 
I’m sure the course was fair, but I actually think those night meets are as fast or even faster with all the energy and excitement.
You posters must not run in the evenings too often. I know I run much better in the evening than in the morning, let alone the hottest hours of the afternoon (faster pace in the evening with equal or lower HR vs. similar paced runs at other times of day). The night atmosphere is worth something, and I'm sure they pulled out all the stops to maximize it. More importantly, it generally gets cool in a hurry after the sun goes down, and the relative humidity is often not as high in the early night hours as it is in the morning when the dew is evaporating off the ground. Lastly, I don't care if it's 10 feet or 100m, running on a track or a properly laid turf field (the field at my school is an example of a poorly laid turf field) is going to be worth something.

1 1 1860 Noah Graham 12 Marlington 16:18.2
2 2 1803 Ian Paul 12 Canton C.C. 16:39.9
3 3 1858 Colin Cernansky 10 Marlington 16:42.0
4 4 1818 Drennan Akins 12 CVCA 16:51.8
5 5 1855 Liam Blake 12 Marlington 16:55.0
6 6 1989 Josiah Hicks 12 West Branch 16:59.8
7 7 1863 Nash Minor 11 Marlington 16:59.9
8 8 1988 Michael Dorris 10 West Branch 17:08.8
9 9 1946 Zachary Vales 11 Streetsboro 17:24.4
10 10 1821 Ethan Brewer 12 CVCA 17:25.9
11 11 1856 Cohen Boyce 11 Marlington 17:27.1
FWIW, Marlington's invite is contested as 1 race (which often leads to the course being overcrowded) with the scoring broken down by division afterward. At least they finally added an open race after refusing to do so for many years, but teams could still enter up to 15 runners in today's varsity races. They ran alongside a handful of good DI kids again, but much of that course isn't meant to handle 224 runners at a time.

1. Noah Graham 1 0:15:53.61 12 0:00:00.00
2. Colin Cernansky 11 0:16:27.45 10 0:00:33.84
3. Liam Blake 16 0:16:38.40 12 0:00:44.79
4. Cohen Boyce 30 0:16:58.27 11 0:01:04.66
5. Nash Minor 31 0:17:01.83 11 0:01:08.22

They must like running in the dark better than at home
I'll wager that Riverside's course is flatter than their home course. Their home course isn't a hillfest, but it has some gradients and a rugged wooded area as well as some narrow stretches where runners are traveling in both directions.

At the end of the day, I don't care where Marlington is ranked or deserves to be ranked, and Unioto beat them in the brutal heat at the preseason meet. There will be enough head-to-head competition to sort out Marlington's lot, but they're definitely a team to watch. They usually go to Tiffin when they have a reason to go, so I imagine they'll see a few other good DII teams there like Shelby and maybe get a rematch with Unioto if the Shermans are making that trip. FWIW, I was more excited to see 1 of the runners in the results for Marlington's girls. She won Stark County and the DI GlenOak District 2 years ago and has been battling a chronic injury ever since.
 
Last edited:
A team to look out for is Salem’s girls in D2. They have two freshmen who went 5:17 and 5:23 in middle school last spring. After a couple of more contest they should take off. They go five deep. Half of their top 8 are freshmen.
 
You posters must not run in the evenings too often. I know I run much better in the evening than in the morning, let alone the hottest hours of the afternoon (faster pace with equal or lower HR vs. similar paced runs at other times of day). The night atmosphere is worth something, and I'm sure they pulled out all the stops to maximize it. More importantly, it generally gets cool in a hurry after the sun goes down, and the relative humidity is often not as high in the early night hours as it is in the morning when the dew is evaporating off the ground. Lastly, I don't care if it's 10 feet or 100m, running on a track or a properly laid turf field (the field at my school is an example of a poorly laid turf field) is going to be worth something.
Almost every time I see results and think "wow, that seems really fast", I look up the meet on MileSplit, and see pictures of a finish on a track or turf field.
 
A team to look out for is Salem’s girls in D2. They have two freshmen who went 5:17 and 5:23 in middle school last spring. After a couple of more contest they should take off. They go five deep. Half of their top 8 are freshmen.
Aren't they already ranked top 4 in the region? 11th in the state. Revere brings back a nice team that they are already ranked higher than. I don't understand Chagrin falls being ranked so high.

Do you think $V$M and Woodridge need to be worried? I don't.
 
Aren't they already ranked top 4 in the region? 11th in the state. Revere brings back a nice team that they are already ranked higher than. I don't understand Chagrin falls being ranked so high.

Do you think $V$M and Woodridge need to be worried? I don't.
I think SVSM and Woodridge should be worried about a number of teams. Granville, Salem, and Oakwood to name a few. Lexington graduated 3 out of their top 7 but always seems to reload. Oakwood only graduated their #3.
 
Top