Teams Competing:Annapolis, Arundel, Broadneck, Chesapeake, Glen Burnie, Meade, Northeast, North County, Old Mill,

The County Championship looks to be a repeat of last year. The obvious favorite would be returning champ Justion Marvel of Severna Park, but reports of an injury and inconsistent racing leaves a lot of doubt. Their are several other top returnees from last year as well as several newcomers that could make a splash. David Pickett of Meade was runner-up in 1999 and has been running well so far this year. Pickett took first place in the highly competitive Meade Autumn Classic and most recently won the North County Challenge at Old Mill HS. Stephen Weller of Broadneck placed third last year. He has raced sparingly this fall, taking first at a league meet at Chesapeake at the beginning of the year and placed well at the very competitive Bull Run Invitational at Hereford and the Lancer Invitational hosted by Linganore. Expect to see him up front in the post-season. Several other top returnees from last year have been running strong as well. Most noticably is Mike Hall of Severna Park. After placing 18th in '99, Hall has been a strong front-runner that could challenge for the County individual title. Other top returnees include Trent Slacum of Severna Park(8th in 99), Ryan Coughlin of Severna Park(9th in 99), and Shawn Strawbridge of Severna Park(15th in 99). With all of the depth that Severna Park has, they should have no problem in taking the County Championship again. There are several other individuals that could be in the running for the individual title. Jason Raforth of Arundel is the top new-comer. He has been up front all season including most recently winning the league meet at his home course. Jeff Blass is another front-runner from Arundel that should use his home course to his advantage. Broadneck and Arundel should fight for the top spot as well. Broadneck return with Jason Sparkman, Craig Schmidt and Matt Gray form last year's runner-up team. Arundel has Raforth, Blass and second team All-County runner Craig Haas returning. The surprise of this season would have to be Northeast. After placing 10th in 99, the Eagles are definitely a team to watch out for. Mike Adams, Brad Miller, and Ryan Williams form a strong front-three. After these four teams, the picture is not as clear. Meade and Annapolis should fight for a top-5 finish with Meade relying on front-runner Pickett and Annapolis lying on Andy Masterson. Other runners that could place well include Ryan Kirby of Old Mill, Tim Pratt of North County, and BJ Bonn of Glen Burnie. Whatever the outcome, this promises to be a fast race.

The girls race will be dominated by Broadneck and Severna Park. Both teams have incredible depth and look to challenge on the state level. Severna Park has a strong newcomer in Shannon McMurray. The ex-field hockey player is in her first season of XC and should challenge for the individual title. Along with McMurray, Severna Park has returning All-County harriers in the Funk with Rebecca looking strong so far. Broadneck should make it a dogfight for the team title. With Lauren Riesset, Danielle Vielluex, Sophie Thibadeau and Lauren Centrowitz running in a strong pack, these teams should dominate the other county teams. Annapolis looks to be the best contender for third. The Panthers have potntial county champ in 5:03 miler and 3A State Champion in the mile, Erin Masterson. Rachel Dalby also looks to be up front. Glen Burnie and North County also are fighting for a top-5 finish. Glen Burnie has to rely on a short time spread between their 1-5 girls. North County has Kelsey Scheitlin who most recently won the North County Challenge at Old Mill. The team battle should be a much closer fight between Broadneck and Severna Park in the girls race than in the boys race.

Boys Team Predictions:                           Girls Team Predictions:

1  Severna Park                               1  Broadneck
2  Broadneck                                  2  Severna Park
3  Arundel                                    3  Annapolis
4  Northeast                                  4  North County
5  Meade                                      5  Glen Burnie
6  Annapolis                                  6  Chesapeake
7  Glen Burnie                                7  Meade
8  Old Mill                                   8  Old Mill
9  North County                               9  Southern
10 South River                                10 Arundel
11 Chesapeake                                 11 Northeast
12 South River                                12 South River

Boys Individual Predictions:                 Girls Individual Predictions:

1 Hall, Severna Park                         1 MacMurray, Severna Park
2 Pickett, Meade                             2 Masterson, Annapolis
3 Weller, Broadneck                          3 Vielleux, Broadneck
4 Marvel, Severna Park                       4 Funk, Severna Park
5 Raforth, Arundel                           5 Riessett, Broadneck
6 Blass, Arundel                             6 Thibadeau, Broadneck
7 Strawbridge, Severna Park                  7 Centrowitz, Broadneck