N.C.S. Divison II Mid-Season Rankings

Trying to figure out the top teams in each division can be very difficult but when it comes to Divison II, there are two teams that stand above the rest. Petaluma will be the team to beat in the boys while Carandolet seems to be the lock of the meet when it comes to NCS time for the girls. Both teams are young and talented and their best running seems to lay ahead of them considering their youth.

Petaluma has the opportunity to claim their first section championship since 1978 as they return the best team in this division. With Maria Carrillo moving down to Division III, it appears that many fans will miss out on a great team battle in Hayward. How close are those two teams? In a head to head battle with Maria Carrillo, Petaluma defeated them 28-33 and at Stanford in different races, Petaluma had a team average of 16:37 and team time of 83:01 while Maria Carrillo recorded a team average of 16:37 (sound familiar?) and team time of 83:02! The battle here will be for second and it seems to be a tight battle between Montgomery, Eureka and making a return to Divison II will be De La Salle.

The individual battle will go through Blake McDowell of Santa Rosa who has established himself as the runner to beat in this division with some fine running in the big races including a victory at Stanford. Sterling Lockert and Brandon Felipe bested McDowell in league meet so don't count them out.

During the summer, I picked Carandolet as the team to beat in this division but in no way could I have predicted how good this team would be this year. In a short stretch of time, Carandolet has quickly established themselves as the best team in NCS, period. They are lead by a very talented freshman who runs with more experience than your typical freshman. The rest of the teams will be battling for second and those teams include Arroyo

In what should be a great individual battle, Nicole Hood of Carandolet and Jacque Taylor of Casa Grande will start what appears to be a great rivalry that we will get to watch for the next four years. Carandolet could finish with four in the top 10 with Ashley Chan of Arroyo somewhere in the mix of that group.

Division II Boys (Top 3 Advance to state)
1) Petaluma-Four freshmen on their varsity last year.
2) Montgomery-Everybody is back from 4th place finish last year.
3) Eureka-Watch out for them.
4) De La Salle-Success in past puts them here.
5) Santa Rosa-Returns 5 out top 7 runners.

Top 5 Individuals based on season so far:
Blake McDowall (12) Montgomery
Sterling Lockert (10) Petaluma
Miguel Castro (12) Alameda
Brandon Felipe (10) Petaluma
Alex Davies (12) De La Salle

Division II Girls (Top 4 advance to state)
1) Carondelet-Top team in NCS.
2) Arroyo-Ashley Chan leads the way.
3) Alameda-Not a stranger to Woodward Park.
4) Santa Rosa-Can break into top 3.
5) Montgomery Toss up with Santa Rosa.

Top 5 Individuals based on season so far:
Nicole Hood (9) Carandolet
Jacque Taylor (9) Casa Grande
Kellie Houser (9) Carandolet
Sara Alliotti (10) Carondelet
Beth Raymond (11) Washington

Feel free to comment on the above rankings. Division I is on the way.