Summary:  The reigning champs of S9-A and S9-B are meeting up at Sectionals in what promises to be the a real showdown. Monroe-Woodbury led by Evelyn Gonzalez-Valle bested Karrie Baloga's Cornwall by 2 points at OCIAA, reversing last year's decision of the same margin when the Dragons went on from Sectionals to take the Class B state championship while MW was 4th in States A. Both the day and the field of teams will be a liitle different at Bear Mountain on Wednesday from the Orange County meet, and this race should be so close that a head-to-head straightaway battle between the teams' fifth-spot runners could decide it. Cornwall has a much higher speed ratings than the Crusaders, but alot of the difference is based on Karrie Baloga's huge 150 TR, and the Dragons' compression number is 56 while Monroe-Woodbury has a much tighter pack at 30. Cornwall was leading MW by 8 through the first three places at OCIAA, but the Crusaders gained back 10 in the 4th and 5th spots, so the team with the stronger performance at the back around 30th place where a mob of runners are finishing is likely to win at Sectionals. The projected virtual score is almost a tie:

**** Cornwall 50, Monroe-Woodbury 52, Washingtonville 110, Valley Central 131, Warwick Valley 139

So the race is a toss-up. Karrie Baloga is expected to replace last year's winner Sarah Trainor as the individual champ and notch her second Sectional title as a freshman after winning the B title last year.