| Division III State Preview: Looking at the D3 State meet, what amazes me is the great teams and the great individuals in the small school ranks. Everybody knows of the Seneca Easts and the Liberty-Bentons that are there every year. But now Minster is the new power and Fort Laramie is incredibly well balanced. The one thing D3 is lacking compared to D1 schools is depth. This year, outside of Minster and Fort Laramie, it drops off to the next tier, Hopewell-Loudon and Seneca East, after that, it's anybody's race. Up front individually I believe that D3 has 3 girls in particular who can run with anybody: Angela Homan of Spencerville, Sunni Olding of Minster, and Carime Rheinhart of Hopewell-Loudon. Last year, if you recall, and how could you not. Homan was leading the race coming into the stadium by a huge amount only to be overcome by her own effort and collapse coming down the home stretch. What ensued was a battle then between Olding and Rheinhart for first. Originally it was Rheinhart, then some said Olding, then they went to the video and Olding got the win. It was the closest finish I can remember. Now, back to Homan. If you also recall, in my review of the State meet last year I said "I would not want to race Angela Homan next year. It could really get ugly." Well, I still wouldn't want to race her. After watching her take it to her prime competitors, Olding and Rheinhart, so far this year and seeing her run away from Olding at the Tiffin Regional, she is my pick to win the D3 title. The way I see it, the only thing that could stop Homan is, as last year, herself. I don't doubt that she'll go right at it, just like last year, but after another year of experience under her belt, she should be able to avoid last years heart-wrenching final 200. In the team race. I see it as Minster's to lose. But, I also believe that Fort Laramie is a lot closer than some people think. The Troy course was altered due to the weather and Fort Laramie has a tough pack, with only 12 seconds separating the top five. The one thing that may hurt them going against Minster is Sunni Olding. Fort Laramie simply does not have a match for her. #2-5 they are just as tough, but if Olding is too far out front then it won't matter. Seneca East always runs well at the State meet and I pick them for third followed by Hopewell-Loudon. Other threats to finish top 5 are McDonald, which always runs well at the State meet, and Hawken who have really made a turn around from nobody to contenter under coach Kurt Komocki. Check the Top 7s below to judge for yourself! My Picks: Ind- 1. Angela Homan, Spencerville 2. Sunni Olding, Minster 3. Carime Rheinhart, Hopewell-Loudon Team- 1. Minster 2. Fort Laramie 3. Seneca East Divsion III Top 7s from Regionals heading to State: McDonald Hawken Gilmour Hopewell-Loudon Seneca East B B B T T 1. 20:15 21:09 20:48 18:51 19:56 2. 20:41 21:35 21:23 20:03 20:24 3. 20:46 21:42 21:44 20:36 20:40 4. 22:07 21:48 22:16 20:53 21:03 5. 22:20 22:28 22:50 21:33 21:12 6. 23:36 23:33 23:35 21:38 21:31 7. 25:40 24:30 23:46 23:07 21:36 Otsego Minster Liberty-Benton Spencerville Barnesville T T T T L 1. 20:39 18:46 19:26 18:21 20:18 2. 20:40 20:22 20:14 20:36 20:20 3. 21:11 20:27 21:10 20:58 21:31 4. 21:34 20:32 21:43 21:56 21:47 5. 22:25 20:34 21:56 21:58 22:10 6. 23:40 21:03 21:59 22:03 22:18 7. 24:47 21:12 22:38 23:48 22:38 Newark Catholic Fredrickstown Northmor Fort Laramie Versaille L L Tr Tr Tr 1. 21:09 21:27 21:32 20:34 20:57 2. 21:42 21:36 22:06 20:34 21:08 3. 22:09 21:52 22:17 20:36 21:11 4. 22:15 22:40 22:38 20:38 21:43 5. 22:39 22:57 23:14 20:48 22:33 6. 23:15 23:14 23:39 21:18 23:06 7. 23:43 23:30 23:50 22:28 Madiera Tr 1. 20:33 2. 21:19 3. 21:20 4. 21:29 5. 23:05 6. 24:01 7. 24:39 B= Boardman T= Tiffin L=Lancaster Tr=Troy |