Carpenter and Moss sat and hold one and two, Bolles' Rigdon and Chandler are still on the Horse Park, and Michael Gomez of FAU High moves past Aaron Ches's projection on a race a few seconds behind it.
Florida Class 2A boys cross country through four weeks: August 21-September 12, 2026
Nobody in the top six raced a rated course, so the top of 2A is last week's top of 2A: Noah Carpenter, Will Moss, Brantley Rigdon, Kayaan Ghaffar, Frederick Gunther, Aidan Chandler. Gunther was seventh at the Gulf Coast Stampede in 16:37.9, and Aidan Alam of McKeel and Cal Howard were second and third at Land O' Lakes in 16:27.9 and 16:41.8 on a course that reads fast. Luke Engels of Eastside was third at Buchholz in 16:27.3, beaten on the lean by Evan Kirby of Fletcher 4A, and sits eleventh. Michael Gomez of FAU High is seventh on his Pine Crest run, ahead of Aaron Ches's projection: a real result within a few seconds of a seed outranks the seed. Logan Haley, ninth a week ago as a Suwannee projection, races for Branford and is on the 1A list.
A runner is ranked on his whole season, with the most recent race counting most, and a race he won never counts against him. As always, this is data plus judgment, and we will miss somebody along the way. A (P) next to a name means that runner has not opened yet and we are going on last November. How we sorted everybody out is at the bottom. Races are not won until the kids have run. Enjoy.
The statewide lists: Week 4 boys top 10 and Week 4 girls top 10. The week 3 edition of this list is here, and the week 4 2A boys team rankings are here. The other classes this week: 2A girls, 1A boys, 3A boys, 4A boys.
1. Noah Carpenter, Nature Coast, Sr.
Has not raced since Whispering Pines on August 29, where he was fourth in 16:16.8, worth about 16:03 leveled. One race, and it is still the best mark in the class by three seconds. Two weeks without a start are not held against him.
2. Will Moss, Montverde Academy, Sr.
Did not race. The 2A state champion opened at the Horse Park with eighth out of 549 in 16:00.2, the fastest raw time by a 2A boy this season, and has not run since. Second to Carpenter by 2.7 seconds on the season, on a course that reads a little slow against Whispering Pines.
3. Brantley Rigdon, Bolles, Jr.
Did not race. 16:04.0 for 19th at Cecil Field and 16:12.6 for 16th at the Horse Park, the best one-two of any 2A boy this fall. Fifth to third without running, as Gunther and Alam slipped on their week-four races.
4. Kayaan Ghaffar, Gulliver Prep, Jr.
Did not race the varsity five; Gulliver sent a second group to King of the Hill. His 16:10.5 for 14th at the Horse Park is one race, and it is worth about 16:16. He ran 18:52.5 at state last fall, so that Horse Park run was a two-and-a-half-minute improvement.
5. Frederick Gunther, Pensacola Catholic, So.
Seventh at the Gulf Coast Stampede in 16:37.9 out of 258, the third Florida boy across the line, in his fourth race in four weeks. The others: the Pine Forest win on August 22 in 16:57.2, third at Pine Forest a week later, fifth at Pace in 16:50.1. The Stampede reads about ten seconds slow, so Saturday is worth about 16:28, the weakest of his four leveled, and it is weighted four times. Third to fifth on that arithmetic. A sophomore, and the only boy in the class who has raced every week.
6. Aidan Chandler, Bolles, Sr.
Did not race. 16:28.0 at Cecil Field and 16:18.5 for 20th at the Horse Park, Bolles' second man. Eighth to sixth without running.
7. Michael Gomez, FAU High, Sr.
Won the Kings Academy Invitational out of 166 in 17:13.9 by 45 seconds on Saturday, on a course we could not rate for the boys, so the run counts for nothing here. He is ranked on 16:22.8 for third at Pine Crest, worth about 16:29. Seventh, ahead of Aaron Ches, because a real result within a few seconds of a projection outranks the projection.
8. Aaron Ches, Episcopal (Jacksonville), Jr. (P)
Still has not raced. Episcopal has run Cecil Field and the Horse Park without him. He is entered on his 16:26.1 from state last fall, and Gomez's Pine Crest run is 2.5 seconds behind that seed and goes ahead of it.
9. Adrian Iziliaev, Gulliver Prep, Sr.
Did not race the varsity five. 16:28.3 for 26th at the Horse Park in his only race, worth about 16:34. Gulliver's second man, four seconds behind the state time he ran last fall.
10. Aidan Alam, McKeel, So.
Second at Land O' Lakes on Saturday in 16:27.9 out of 99, 14 seconds behind Skylar Manatt of Cypress Creek 3A. Land O' Lakes reads about 16 seconds fast on a thin boys' sample, so the run is worth about 16:44, and weighted four times against his Lake Region 16:46.8, which read 16:13, it drops him from fourth to tenth. The course reading is the thing to watch; on a neutral reading he is back in the top five.
Just missed
Luke Engels (Eastside, Sr.) is first out. Third at the Buchholz Bobcats Classic in 16:27.3, beaten on the lean by Evan Kirby of Fletcher 4A, after 16:33.0 at Cecil Field; Buchholz reads a shade fast, so the season lands at 16:38. Emilio Perez-Garcia (Gulliver Prep, Sr.) was 34th at the Horse Park in 16:36.6. Armaan Sharma (Bolles, So.) is on his 16:44.0 from Cecil Field and did not run in Ocala. Cal Howard (McKeel, Jr.) was third at Land O' Lakes in 16:41.8 and drops from seventh to fourteenth for the same reason Alam dropped. Lawson Phillips (Florida High, So.) ran 16:50.0 at Cecil Field and won the Yellow Jacket meet on a course we could not rate.
Logan Haley, ninth a week ago as a Suwannee projection, races for Branford and is on the 1A list.
How we ranked them
- Courses do not all run the same speed, so we do not compare raw times. Cecil Field is the yardstick; for other meets we use runners who raced both that course and last year's state meet to work out what a time was worth.
- A runner is ranked on his whole season, weighted toward the most recent race: this week counts four times, last week three, week two twice, opening weekend once. A race he won is never allowed to lower that figure.
- Where two ranked runners have raced each other and neither has raced since, the finish orders them. A real result within a few seconds of a projection outranks the projection.
- Runners who have not opened are ranked on last November and marked (P). A missed week is never held against anyone.
- Grades and classes are 2026-27, resolved against the FHSAA classification documents.