RETURNEES: Bryan Gordon, Jr.; Josh Bergeron, Sr.; Ben Kirchman, So.; Josh Dubois, Jr.; Jake Bergeron, So.; Andrew Castiglione, Jr.; Kevin Shuster Jr.
KEY NEWCOMERS: Jacob Bess, So.; Patrick Rodriguez, Jr.
THE SKINNY: Bess played football last year but gave it up to run, a decision that looks pretty smart right now. He's the No. 1 runner, placing 40th at Tuesday's Gator Invitational with a time of 19 minutes, 31 seconds. "Bess is amazing, he makes it look so easy," first-year coach Svagerko said. Gordon is a solid No. 2, finishing 11 seconds behind Bess at the Gator. Bergeron is third and Svagerko said that Castiglione, Kirchman and Dubois are closely bunched for the fourth spot.
RETURNEES: Bret Chatman, Jr.; Logan Emerson, Sr.; Mike Laird, Sr.; Mike DeVary (Belotti), So.; Clint Grubbs, So.
KEY NEWCOMERS: Thomas Mountain, Fr. (from HCA); Ben Martucci, Fr.; Andrew Martucci, Fr.;
THE SKINNY: The bar is always set high at Hernando, where repeat performances like last year's GCAC and district titles are expected. There's certainly no reason to think that this team can't get the job done, though coach Chatman said the team is a bit behind in mileage and is playing catch-up right now. Emerson and Laird are competent seniors but the loss of Zak Lukas, who died in a watercraft accident last year, continues to be felt teamwide. Bret Chatman put in the summer work worthy of a No. 1 runner but is having to build up stamina again after a virus. Grubbs and DeVary will need to step up and claim two of the five team scoring positions.
THE SKINNY: It's a foursome right now for the Lions and a busy one at that. All play on the fall soccer team, attending cross-country practice afterward. None have run competitively before. "It's kind of hard to train them the way I want to, but we do what we can do," Murphy said. Bowe is the fastest right now, clocking 18:33 and finishing 23rd overall at Tuesday's Gator Invitational.
SCHEDULE: SEPTEMBER: 20 - at South Sumter; 27 - Zak Lukas Invitational at Hernando. OCTOBER: 11 - at Citrus.
Nature Coast Tech
COACH: Vic Cervizzi.
KEY NEWCOMERS: Kyle Keene, Sr.; Juan Soto, Sr.; Josh Gambrel, So.; Jeremy Gambrel, Sr.; Michael Dudek, Fr.; Jon Cagan, Sr.; Kevin MacLeod, Fr.; Kevon Pratt, Fr.; Erwin Evelyne, Jr.
THE SKINNY: Well, this group might not scare too many teams this year on foot, but with a basketball the Sharks would be state qualifiers. Coach Rob Strong sent a number of his basketball players to Cervizzi for conditioning, if you're wondering why 6-foot-4 types such as Josh Gambrel and Cagan are running the streets. While at Central Cervizzi tried unsuccessfully for years to get Keene, a talented jumper in track, but finally has him here and for now Keene is the No. 1 runner. By midseason Cervizzi hopes to have 18-20 on the squad. There are a dozen right now.
KEY NEWCOMERS: David Borrego, So.; Stephen McManus, Fr.
THE SKINNY: Boldt has only three runners to work with at the moment, though early returns have been promising. At Tuesday's Gator Invitational, the runners were entered in the junior varsity race and McManus finished sixth in 20:44. "That was pleasant, he had never run anything more than a mile except in practice," Boldt said. In a few weeks sophomores Michael Main and Chris Greifenberger and senior Chuck Gerhardt should be returning to the team, allowing Springstead to record team scores in races.
THE SKINNY: The "key losses" are not all via graduation or transfers. Fritz and Ceccarelli are out for the season with hip and leg injuries, respectively, and Strally graduated early and is now at Stetson. With those members gone, a potentially promising year has become a rebuilding one. "Things happen in cycles," Davila said. "Some years you'll be good, some years you'll have to work harder than others." Costanzo returns off a fifth-place finish in conference, 16th at the region meet and 61st at state, Loew finished fourth, 17th and 67th in those races.
KEY NEWCOMERS: Anna Gray, Fr.; Michelle Kiefer, So.
THE SKINNY: Sullivan, Ernie Chatman's daughter, takes over the Leopards and said she's "blessed" to have a close-knit team with some talent. Hadsock finished 10th (22:28) at the Gator Invitational and is the No. 1 runner, Gray fell in the race though recovered to finish 24th (24:37). Once a few more runners get in paper work the team could number 12 to 13.
KEY NEWCOMERS: Janel Sanders, Sr.; Laura Dahmer, Sr.; Alex Livengood, 6th.
THE SKINNY: Like the Lions boys' squad, this trio has no running experience. "It's just something new for them, we're trying to build a program. None of the three put in any significant summer miles, and Sanders is balancing running with volleyball.
SCHEDULE: SEPTEMBER: 20 - at South Sumter; 27 - Zak Lukas Invitational at Hernando. OCTOBER: 11 - at Citrus.
THE SKINNY: Sharkey is the No. 1 runner with a most apropos name. She finished first among the Sharks at the Gator Invitational, finishing in 26:42. Like the boys team, this is an inexperienced team but one that should improve as the season progresses.
SCHEDULE: SEPTEMBER: 20 - South Sumter Invitational; 27 - Zak Lukas Memorial. OCTOBER: 4 - flrunners.com Invitational; 11 - Citrus Invitational; 18 - GCAC meet at McKethan Park; 25 - Districts (Nature Coast host at Anderson Snow Park).
Springstead
COACH: Marsha Eicholtz.
KEY LOSSES: Traci Gimbel, Emily Eicholtz.
RETURNEES: Melinda Robert, Sr.; Katie Hardy, Sr.
KEY NEWCOMERS: Caitlyn Clausen, So. (volleyball); Mia DeCristofaro, Fr.; Alex Kicker, Fr.
THE SKINNY: ... is a good adjective to describe this team, clearly in a rebuilding year. Eicholtz said the five runners tried to recruit friends and classmates to run, but that "too many people are just intimidated by running 3 miles, they don't know how easy it is." Clausen ran track last year and is also on the volleyball team, while DeCristofaro ran in middle school.
