District 8 and 9 Team Rankings

D8 AAA: (SQ Spots: 1)
1- Taylor Allderdice
Combined with District 10, Allderdice still looks favored to win yet another district title. Despite the loss of the two great runners in Ethan Hermann and Tavonne Davis, this is still a surprisingly complete squad. With 4 guys under 17:30, Allderdice may struggle to make an impact on the statewide AAA level, but they will most likely steamroll through D8 and D10.

D9 A: (SQ Spots: 2)
1- Elk County Catholic
Fresh off of a team win at the Bradford Invitational, ECC looks primed to return to Hershey for yet another year. Led by the 8th place finisher from last year's state championships, Ben Hoffman is primed for another district title. Isaac Wortman helped ECC put 2 in the top 3 at districts last fall, can he repeat this? No matter what questions there are about ECCs depth, if Hoffman and Wortman can deliver the kind of performance they put on last year, ECC should have no issues. Look for ECC to put possibly 4 in the top 10 of this district meet, but then struggle with their drop off at #5. The question becomes, can this team's solid top 4 help them replicate their podium finish from last year, or will their lack of a 5th man push them way back from the 2nd place they delivered last fall?

2- Cranberry
3- Clarion Area
With two teams fighting for the last spot out of District 9, it felt fitting to put them together, because they're so similar. Unlike ECC, both teams here utilize tight pack running and strong depth up through 7 guys. I gave the edge to Cranberry because of the big advantage they have with their #2 runner in Daniel Fisher. With likely 2 top 10 finishes, and then an even balance between the rest of the teams' scoring 5's, I foresee Cranberry just coming away with the second spot and headed to Hershey.

D9 AA: (SQ Spots: 1)
1- Bradford Area
Look for Bradford to take the lone state spot for another consecutive season. Led by Tyler Kraft, Bradford currently has their entire top 5 in the top 13 of the small district. As the only team with all scorers under 19, let alone 19:30, Bradford's focus will likely be on improving their 17th place finish at states last fall.