NE 1s: CBA boys, Pennsbury girls

The Northeast Boys

By Paul Schmitz

A top heavy region with only a few teams that appear to be in the mix for the automatic NXN bid and only a couple teams that will be placed high in the early national rankings.  (Spoiler alert - Christian Brothers Academy will be one of them).  It will be fun to look for surprises to emerge in the region as the season progresses.  

1. Christian Brothers Academy NJ: Last years 2nd place Northeast region finisher finished 11th at NXN.  They return their top two runners (and 5 of 6) led by Blaise Ferro who finished 5th in the team scoring and 9th overall and Nike Cross Nationals in 2014.  

2. La Salle Academy RI: The Rams return their top three runners on a team that knocked off CBA in the Nike Northeast Regional last year and finished 18th at NXN.  They have a good chance to move up the national rankings if they can close the spread between 1-3 and 4-5.  

3. Don Bosco Prep NJ: They lose No. 1 runner but return six of the top seven.

4. Lowell MA: Lowell will be challenged by Rindge and St. John's Prep in Massachusetts but the defending large school state champions are still the team to beat. Lowell returns four of its top five and five of seven.

5. Downington West PA: It is very close at the top in Pennsylvania. Downingtown West gets the nod with their top 4 returning and 6 of 7 from their Penn State 4th place team.  Central Bucks West, Cardinal O’Hara and defending champion North Allegheny could all be in the mix.

Watch List:

Colt's Neck NJ

Cherry Hills East NJ

Old Bridge NJ

Cambridge Rindge & Latin MA

Central Bucks West PA

St. John's MA

The Northeast Girls

By Adam Kopet

Last year, the Northeast Region sent three girls teams to Nike Cross Nationals. They ended up finishing in reverse order from the Regional Championship. This year could see some new names come to the top of the leader board. However, last year's qualifiers will be in the mix again.

1. Pennsbury PA: The Falcons, led by NXN Northeast champion Olivia Sargent, are primed for a run at Portland. They return their top five. 

2. Cardinal O'Hara PA: The Lions return their entire squad from a group that was 10th at NXN Northeast last year. They should be in a close race for the second auto spot.

3. Coe-Brown Academy NH: The Bears graduated their top runner but have a solid five varsity returners coming back and are squarely in the picture.

4.  La Salle Academy RI: The Rams nabbed an at-large bid and finished ninth at NXN last year. They return six from last year's varsity, led by Eliza Rego.

5. Needham MA: The Rockets return five varsity runners, all seniors, from last year's Massachusetts All-State title team. Margie Cullen anchored Needham's victory in the DMR at New Balance Nationals Outdoor.

Watch List:

Red Bank Catholic NJ

Tolland CT

Rumson Fair Haven NJ

Hillsborough NJ

West Morris Mendham NJ

The Road to Portland and the Introduction of the 2015 Dyestat Nike Regional Rankings.

The DyeStat regional rankings offer a glimpse of who we think has the best chance to qualify for Nike Cross Nationals in Portland, Ore. on Dec. 6.

As such, the "regions" are established by the nine areas created by Nike for their qualifying purposes. There have been slight variations to this configuration over time but since 2008 they have remained consistent:  New York, given its dominance in the sport over the years, is a region unto itself.  California, given its massive population and success, is also a region and its qualifiers come from a power merge at the conclusion of the CIF state championships. The rest of the country is divided into 7 areas:

The Southeast:  Delaware, Maryland, Virgina, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia and District of Columbia.

The South:  Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas and Mississippi.

The Heartland:  Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

The Midwest:  Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan and Missouri.

The Northeast:  New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island and New Hampshire.

The Southwest:  Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona and Nevada.

The Northwest:  Wyoming, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Alaska and Hawaii. 

These regional meets are open to any high schools from its corresponding states. If there is high demand, selectors ensure that the top teams are guaranteed a spot in the championship race.   The top 2 teams in each of the eight regions and the top 2 teams from the California merge all automatically qualify for NXN.  Nike also invites the top five individuals from the nine regions.  In addition to the automatic qualifiers, there is a committee that selects the next four deserving teams in the nation, bringing the total of participating teams to 22 each year. 

Every two weeks on Dyestat, Paul Schmitz (boys) and Adam Kopet (girls) will examine each region and make predictions about which teams are most likely to auto qualify for NXN. It is a big country to cover and we welcome your feedback. DyeStatCal editor Erik Boal handles the California rankings.