The Coach Benson Double Dip Invitational (Preview)
Marist School looks forward to hosting thirty schools this coming Saturday for the 19th annual Double Dip Invitational. The course will be tough, the competition fierce, the awards top notch, and early forecasts suggest the weather will be a bit warmer than usual for this week in September. Plan to arrive early, and consider carpooling or other alternatives provided on the meet page. Meet day shirts and a full line of concessions will be available to runners and fans. Admission & parking are free. Follow @MaristDistance on Twitter for live updates on race day.
What Happened Last Year?
Unseasonably cool temperatures and a stacked field led to some very fast times on the tough Marist course. Three girls crushed the previous course record, including Lindsay Billing's phenomenal win in 18:16. The girls from Winter Park (FL) beat home team, Marist, by 45 points, while setting the course record for team average (20:04). On the boys side, Marist scored the victory, beating Lambert by 55 points, again setting the record for team average (17:21). Notably, six runners from Double Dip made national finals at either Foot Locker or NXN (Frank Pittman, Lindsay Billings, Emma Grace Hurley, Rafaella Gibbons, Serena Tripodi, & Savannah Carnahan).
Coach Roy Benson
The Coach Benson Double Dip Invitational is named in honor of the legendary coach, Roy Benson. He coached at the University of Florida from 1969 to 1979 as the head cross country coach for seven years and head track and field coach for three years. Coach Benson was a senior contributor to Running Times magazine for 25 years, and founded and directed the Smoky Mountain Running Camp for 40 years. From 1993 to 2008, Coach Benson served as a community coach at Marist, where his girls and boys teams won sixteen state championships in cross country, and individual runners won a total of twenty state titles in cross country and track. He is now semi-retired on Amelia Island, Florida, where he serves as volunteer head cross country coach at Fernandina Beach High School. Coach Benson regrets that he will not be able to attend this year, but wishes everyone good luck. He looks forward to returning next year.
The Course
An up to date course preview can be seen here:
Girls' Team Race:
Marist School - (Atlanta, GA) The 8-time defending AAAA state champions finished a strong 2nd on their home course last year to the team from Winter Park. 5 of their top 7 return, including one of the state's best runners in Josie Wirtz, 7-time All State XC/T&F performer Kendall Nelson, and All State XC performer Kiki Popescu. Depth is this team's strong suit, so look out for Kathleen Maley, Morgan Geurts, Maggie Sjostrom, and newcomer Kathleen Schellman. The War Eagles opened with a 2nd place finish at the Battle of Atlanta, just 15 points behind a strong Landmark Christian squad.
Milton High School - (Milton, GA) The 4th place finishers in AAAAAA a year ago only return 3 from their top 7. Still, senior Marie Repasy has shown herself to be a top runner in GA this year, and a pair of freshmen, Faith Bobak and Abby Rindt, seem to have filled the gaps created by departing seniors. The Eagles were only 7 points behind Landmark at their opener at the Atlanta Classic. Milton finished 18 points behind South Forsyth at Bob Blastow, but without the services of Bobak. They surely would have been in the mix for the win with her there.
South Forsyth High School - (Cumming, GA) The class AAAAAA state runners-up lost 2 heavy hitters in Carnahan and Maisel, but keep on rolling with freshmen Caroline Patterson and Sophia Baker. Kaylee Dupont is one of the best runners in the state, and Milicent Bergey has been just ahead of Patterson so far this year. Perhaps the War Eagles have the best top 3 in the state. South Forsyth is undefeated this season, with early wins at the Pickens Preview and Bob Blastow Invitational.
Winter Park High School - (Winter Park, FL) 2-time defending class AAAA state champions came up from the Orlando Area last year to set the course record for team average. They only return 4 of their top 7, but all 4 were in the top 25 at Double Dip. Gibbons is a national class runner, and Herndon appears to be drastically improved from a year ago. Runners 3-7 are all within 20 seconds of one another. They won the DeLand Cross Country Invitational with 23 points, without Gibbons. The Wildcats should be considered the favorite to win the meet.
Other teams to watch: West Forsyth (#2 runner makes debut), Lovett (3rd at Berry without Hooper), Assumption (KY) (3-time NXN team finalists 2011, 2012, 2013)
Ten Girls to Watch (alphabetical):
Includes season's bests 1600/3200 from 2016 outdoor only
Milicent Bergey - (5:19/NA) The senior from South Forsyth has been a great #2 for the War Eagles to start off the season. Milicent ran 19:59 to take 3rd at the Pickens Preview, and was 4th at Bob Blastow in a time 18:57. Bergey was an integral part of the state record setting 4x1600m relay team this past spring, along with teammate, Dupont.
Anna Marian Block - (4:45c/10:39) The junior from Athens Academy is a 5-time state champion in cross country and track. She's the second fastest miler in state history, recording that time at New Balance Outdoor Nationals in June. Anna Marian opened her season last Thursday with a victory at North Oconee in a time of 19:04.
Kaylee Dupont - (5:06/10:59) The junior from South Forsyth ran sub-18 last year on the new, tougher McAlpine layout to finish 15th at Foot Locker South. She finished 2nd to Liz Galarza at the Pickens Preview, finishing in 19:05 (a bit faster than Carnahan in 2015). She then blew away the field at Bob Blastow, winning by 36 seconds in 18:02. Kaylee was 6th at Double Dip last year.
Liz Galarza - (5:17/10:58) The senior from West Forsyth hasn't shown the mile speed of the other girls on this list, and she missed most of the cross country season last year. But, she's on the list for a reason - she's arguably been the most dominant runner in the state so far this year. Winning the Pickens Preview by 26 seconds over Dupont was impressive, she also handily won the Providence Invitational on a hot McAlpine course over top runners from North and South Carolina.
Rafaella Gibbons - (4:55/10:35) One of the top runners in the Southeast since her freshman year, the junior from Winter Park (FL) was 3rd at Double Dip last year. She is a 2-time state champion in XC/T&F, and a 2-time national finalist at NXN. Gibbons has not raced yet this year.
Elizabeth Graves - (5:28/11:45) The winner of the first varsity race at Bob Blastow in 18:49, Graves is off to an impressive start to the season. The Riverwood senior placed 13th overall at Double Dip last year, and was 11th at the AAAAA State Meet.
Hana Herndon - (5:06/11:08) The senior from Winter Park (FL) would be the #1 runner on most any other team. She's finished top 10 in the state in cross country each of the last two years. Herndon finished 17th at Double Dip last year. Hana finished 2nd at the DeLand Invitational to open her season.
Marie Repasy - (5:28/11:27) The Milton Senior doesn't have the track times of the other girls on the list. Instead, look at her finishes - 6th place overall at the AAAAAA State Cross Country Championships. She's on fire this fall, with two 3rd place finishes in strong fields at both the Atlanta Classic and the Bob Blastow Invitational.
Serena Tripodi - (5:02/10:55) Lovett's senior phenom, Tripodi is a 7-time state champion and NXN finalist. Serena finished 4th at Double Dip last year, just behind Gibbons. She opened her season with an easy win on the always tough Kosh Classic course in 19:47. She was 2nd at the Berry Clara Bowl in 18:37.
Josie Wirtz - (5:07/10:54) 2-time state runner-up in cross country and 2-time state champion in track, the Marist junior will be most at home on the hills of Double Dip. Her 19:30 to open the season was good enough for 3rd at the Battle of Atlanta. Josie finished 7th at Double Dip last year.
Boys' Team Race:
American Christian Academy - (Tuscaloosa, AL) The #1 team in Alabama AAA ran well with the big schools at the Early Bird Twilight Classic, finishing fifth. They have a great one-two punch in Taylor Ray and Joseph Wohlers, who both ran 16:45 or better in their first meet, finishing 9th and 12th. They are the defending class AAA state champions, so expect the Patriots to give the Georgia schools a good race.
Marist School - (Atlanta, GA) The defending AAAA state champions return only 4 of their top 7 from last year, but things have gotten off to a great start in the early part of the season. The War Eagles dominated a very competitive field at the Battle of Atlanta, topping Berry Champs, Lambert, and Dyestat's #5 Southeast team, Auburn (AL). Right now it looks like Burden, Reteneller, and Andersen could be the team's #1 runner on a given day. After playing soccer in the spring, Knox Pittman is coming back strong, and was the #2 runner for Marist at State in his first two years. William O'Rielly has improved tremendously. Brian Faust, one of the state's top 800m runners, is always dangerous to pop a great time.
Milton High School - (Milton, GA) The Eagles of Milton were 4th place finishers last year in the state's highest classification, and they have returned to great form. They showed themselves to be the superior team at Bob Blastow, winning by 20 points and setting a team average of 16:20. The week before they ran a 16:28 average on the 3-mile course at the Atlanta Classic, in an easy victory. Sam Bowers is one of the best runners in the state, and he's followed by two quick classmates in Michael Malkowski and Ryan Beitzell. If Michael McCarthy (1:55/4:24) returns to form after missing Blastow, Milton could be very good.
South Forsyth High School - (Cumming, GA) After finishing a disappointing 18th in last year's AAAAAA State Meet, the War Eagles are soaring to begin the 2016 campaign. Already good on paper, we think South Forsyth is much better than the record shows. They cruised to a victory at the Pickens Preview. Matt Patterson has been amazing thus far, and younger brother, Michael, has been consistently very good. Here's where it gets interesting - Trevor Kane, Nicholas Warner, and Jake Morgan showed massive improvement from Pickens to Blastow (accounting for course adjustments), while their #2 runner Sean Catania seems to have run into trouble at Blastow. If he is back to form, they will be a much improved team at Double Dip.
Other teams to watch: West Forsyth, Lovett, Lakeside (Dekalb)
Ten Boys to Watch (alphabetical):
Includes season's best from 2016 outdoor only
Leif Andersen - (4:19/9:22) The 2-time state runner-up in track is only a sophomore at Marist. He opened his season with a 13th place finish at Battle of Atlanta in 16:44, only 2 seconds off his personal best from 2015. He'll be looking to better his placement on his home course.
Ryan Beitzell - (4:39/10:06) The junior from Milton has been strong in the early stages of the 2016 season. Ryan finished 6th in the Atlanta Classic on a 3-mile course in 16:22, and followed it up with an 8th place finish at Bob Blastow with a time of 16:28. He's been a consistent #3 runner for the Eagles this fall.
Sam Bowers - (4:25/9:22) Milton's leader on the course has been junior, Sam Bowers. This isn't surprising after playing the #2 man to Jack Bluth all last fall, and after an 8th place finish at the AAAAAA State Meet. Sam has won both of his races in convincing fashion - 1st at the Atlanta Classic in 15:38, and 1st at Bob Blastow in 15:36. Expect him to contend for another win at Double Dip.
Quinn Burden - (4:27/9:46) A senior captain for Marist, Burden showed the strength of his summer training with his 5th place finish at the Battle of Atlanta with a time of 16:31. He runs on the Double Dip course nearly every day, and is ready for the challenge.
Michael Malkowski - (4:25/10:01) Another junior from Milton, Malkowski has been a great #2 for the Eagles this fall. His debut was good enough for 4th at the Atlanta Classic in a time of 16:12. The next weekend he bettered his position by one, finishing 3rd overall at Bob Blastow in 16:08.
Wilson Moore - (4:29/9:42) The senior from Chapel Hill high school finished about 16 seconds behind Bowers at the Atlanta Classic to claim 2nd place. He also finished 3rd at Bob Blastow (just a different race), with a slightly better time than Malkowski, finishing in 16:04.
Matt Patterson - (4:33/9:42) The South Forsyth senior is the clear leader for the War Eagles from Cumming. Matt opened the season with a very strong 2nd place finish at the Pickens Preview in 16:46, just behind Sean Parker. He was 4th at Bob Blastow, finishing with a time of 16:10.
Jacob Poston - (4:22/NA) If they aren't reading this, Jacob Poston of Dawson County might just sneak up on the competition. The senior was the AAA 4th place finisher in the 800m, and 6th place finisher in the 1600m. His first race of the season was a victory at the War Eagle Invitational, garnering the win in 16:28, a full 35 seconds ahead of 2nd place.
David Reteneller - (4:38/9:53) The Marist junior flirted with playing soccer last spring before coming back to the track. He's never looked back. David is an aggressive runner who doesn't mind racing from the front. His 8th place finish at the Battle of Atlanta in 16:33 was a PR by 19 seconds.
Brennan Silliman - (4:37/9:59) Woodward's senior leader, Silliman finished 2nd in the Sandy Creek Kick Off with a time of 17:14. He turned around the next week and finished 14th at the Battle of Atlanta, just behind Andersen in 16:48.
RACE TIMES
7:50 a.m. Varsity Boys (7)
8:20 a.m. Varsity Girls (7)
8:55 a.m. JV Race Boys (10) - capable of running under 30 minutes for a 5k
9:30 a.m. JV Race Girls (10) - capable of running under 30 minutes for a 5k
*Varsity Team and Individual Awards to follow JV girls Race*
10:05 a.m. Freshmen/1st Year Runner Unlimited Coed - any 1st year high school runner
10:40 a.m. JV Unlimited Open Run Boys/Girls - any high school GHSA athlete