The Ohio Trio
What: OHSAA Ohio State Cross Country Championship
Where: National Trail Raceway, Hebron, OH
Why: This is another truly amazing matchup this weekend between the top three runners in the state of Ohio: No. 15-ranked Chad Johnson from Colonel Crawford, No. 13-ranked Zach Kreft from Buckeye Valley, and No. 14-ranked Dustin Horter from Lakota East. The only downside to this matchup is none of these three guys will be racing in the same race, as each of them is in one of the three different divisions in Ohio.
Chad Johnson will up first to run in the boys DIII race at 1:30 PM (EST). Johnson has gone undefeated all season and like the other two guys listed here is looking to repeat as the state champion in his division. Johnson has run two times under fifteen minutes this season once in his first meet at the Colonel Crawford Early Bird Invitational, and the other at the Bucyrus Elks Invitational. His win at the Bucyrus Invitational was over Kreft by under 10 seconds. He's going to have to get after it and set the bar high if he wants to have the fastest time on the course at the end of the day.
Zach Kreft will be second to run in the DII boys race at 2:15 PM (EST). Kreft has not been undefeated all season as he lost to Johnson early on placing second at the Bucyrus Elks Invitational running 15:06.83. Since then he has had a win over Dustin Horter at the 2017 Midwest Meet of Champions at the end of September. Depending on how Johnson runs and what he's looking to do Kreft could beat Johnson's time.
Dustin Horter will be the third and final guy up to run in the DI boys race at 3 PM (EST). Horter's only loss came at the hands of Kreft at the 2017 Midwest Meet of Champions where he placed second by 7 seconds. One thing you can't argue with is Horter's consistency. He's run four races this year all under 15 minutes, and his three others 15:10 or faster. He will have the biggest advantage if he's shooting for the fastest time as he's the last race of the day.
This matchup will be a toss-up for who can get the fastest time, since all should go unopposed against their respective competition and classes. Weather may play a factor here, as there is some rain possible on Saturday evening. As we all know course conditions can get worse as the day goes on especially if they get rain in Hebron.
Related Links:
- OHSAA Ohio State Cross Country Championship 2017
- OHSAA Ohio State Cross Country Championship 2016 Results
- OHSAA Ohio State Cross Country Championship - Division III Preview
- MileSplit LIVE: Which Top Ohio Athlete Will Have Best Performance At State
- The Top Girls Athletes Contending For State Titles This Weekend