FHSAA cross country 2022: Northeast Florida high school regional meet previews

The Florida High School Athletic Association holds 2022 regional cross country championships this week across Northeast Florida. All schedules are subject to change.

Qualification process: Top eight teams, top three individuals to state

Region 1-4A

At Santa Fe College, Gainesville

Saturday, 7:45 a.m. (girls), 8:15 a.m. (boys)

Boys team qualifiers: Bartram Trail, Creekside, Mandarin, Nease.

Girls team qualifiers: Bartram Trail, Creekside, Mandarin, Nease.

Girls individual qualifiers: Tessa Massa, Fletcher; Sierra Barrera, Oakleaf.

Outlook: Can Creekside bring home a regional boys title to go with their District 1-4A trophy? The Knights are extremely deep — five runners broke 16:15 in districts, headed by Tanner Simonds at 15:44. Oviedo Hagerty looks like their strongest opposition, although in the individual standings, Gavin Nelson (Mandarin) and Matt Ryan (Nease) are both overall contenders along with Buchholz's Emerson Miller, Chiles' Wyatt Townsend and Hagerty's Jonathan Leon. In the girls race, Creekside has the strongest chance to qualify for states, with Niceville and Buchholz the favorites, but all four local teams have a realistic top-eight shot. Creekside's Alyson Johnson and Oakleaf's Sierra Barrera are Northeast Florida's leading contenders for the individual top 10.

Region 1-3A

At Santa Fe College, Gainesville

Saturday, 9:45 a.m. (girls), 10:15 a.m. (boys)

Boys team qualifiers: Columbia, Fleming Island, Menendez, Ponte Vedra, Ridgeview, St. Augustine, Stanton

Girls team qualifiers: Fleming Island, Middleburg, Ponte Vedra, Ridgeview, St. Augustine, Stanton.

Boys individual qualifiers: Noah Looney, Clay; Kole Mussante, Middleburg

Girls individual qualifiers: Kaygen Williamson, Clay; Audrey Fender, Columbia; Salah Miller, Menendez.

Outlook: The district boys meet turned into a battle between Ponte Vedra and Fleming Island, and a repeat might be in the future, in spite of the efforts of District 1-3A champion Tallahassee Leon. Graham Myers won the individual title at districts for Fleming Island, but Ponte Vedra used excellent depth — Grant Doherty, Nicolo Fasanelli and Davis Brown all at 15:50 or faster — for the team title. Ponte Vedra is also favored in the girls race, with both Lindy White and Daisy Ross below 18 minutes in districts and five other runners inside 19:20. But St. Augustine's Lauren Voutour and Katelyn Lawrence, plus Fleming Island's Katie Thompson and Reese Scott, are firmly in the mix as well.

Region 1-2A

At New World Sports Complex

Friday, 8 a.m. (girls), 8:30 a.m. (boys)

Boys team qualifiers: Beachside, Bishop Kenny, Bolles, Episcopal, Keystone Heights, Suwannee, Tocoi Creek, Wolfson.

Girls team qualifiers: Beachside, Bishop Kenny, Bolles, Episcopal, Fernandina Beach, Suwannee, Tocoi Creek, Wolfson.

Boys individual qualifiers: Troy Winkler, Baker County; Jalen Taylor, Paxon; Bryson Lewis, Raines.

Girls individual qualifiers: Olivia Griffin, Keystone Heights; Monica Harrell, Raines.

Outlook: Bolles thoroughly dominated both the boys and girls district meets at Bishop Kenny, and there's no reason to expect that to change in regionals. Aidan Ryan and Chris Joost in the boys race, along with Jillian Candelino and Ella Mickler in the girls event, have the speed to threaten 1-2 finishes, and the overall team depth is outstanding as usual. Watch for Bishop Kenny to advance comfortably as well: The Crusaders' Juan Pablo Castillo-Zima is a potential top-five finisher, as is Episcopal's Lucrezia Gowdy on a strong Eagles girls lineup. The battle for the top eight in team standings looks tight for other Northeast Florida squads, but Tocoi Creek and Wolfson both fared well in the districts.

Region 1-1A

At New World Sports Complex

Friday, 9 a.m. (girls), 9:30 a.m. (boys)

Boys team qualifiers: Bishop Snyder, Christ's Church, Providence, St. Johns Country Day, St. Joseph, Trinity Christian.

Girls team qualifiers: Bishop Snyder, Christ's Church, Providence, St. Johns Country Day, St. Joseph.

Boys individual qualifiers: Roberto Torres, Florida Deaf; Corbin Ellis, University Christian.

Girls individual qualifiers: Avary Stricklin, Sydney Woods (both Harvest Community); Truth King, University Christian.

Outlook: The deep Providence boys team brought home a district title with top-10 finishes for Walker White, Sam Loftin, Sean Cunningham, Claude Loftin and Caleb Bost. Expect another high finish from the Stallions on Friday, with St. Joseph perhaps the next area team in line to qualify, although they'll have to overcome Pensacola Christian to top the podium. The entire girls field will be chasing Pensacola Christian and Tallahassee Maclay and their star sister pairs, RaeAnne and Jaimee Tutton for Pensacola Christian and Gracie and Lillian Koeppel for Maclay. Providence and St. Johns Country Day, second and third at districts behind Maclay, are the most likely locals to advance, while Providence's Kasey Davey, University Christian's Truth King and St. Joseph's Paige Brammer are top-10 individual candidates.

Clayton Freeman covers high school sports and more for the Florida Times-Union. Follow him on Twitter at @CFreemanJAX.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: High school cross country: 2022 Northeast Florida regional meet previews