State cross country outlook

By: 
Jake Ryder

Here's a look at Saturday's state cross country races at Kennedy Park/Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge.
 
REMINDER: Parking has changed this year for the event. The $10 fee will now be paid to park and board a shuttle bus at one of four locations around Fort Dodge, which will transport spectators to the park. Spectators will not be allowed to park at Kennedy Park or any of the surrounding fields. Plan for 60-90 minutes of transportation time between the shuttle lots and Kennedy Park.
 
The four locations are:
Harlan Rogers Sports Complex, 1614 Nelson Avenue – Red Lot
Rosedale Rapids, 1111 North 32nd Street – Blue Lot
Fort Dodge Middle School, 800 North 32nd Street – Green Lot
Fort Dodge Senior High School, 801 North 25th Street – Black Lot
 
More information from the IAHSAA/IGHSAU
 
Class 3A Girls
 
Race time: Noon
 
Qualifiers: Iowa Falls-Alden/AGWSR (Aubrie Fisher, Ellie Meyer)
 
Last season: Fisher finished 25th in 19:45. Meyer, a student at Iowa Falls-Alden, was 123rd overall in 21:46.
 
Final Iowa Association of Track Coaches (IATC) Ranking: Fisher is listed sixth in 3A. Meyer is 22nd.
 
Outlook: Fisher is making her fourth appearance at the state meet while trying for her second top-15 finish. She was 11th in her sophomore season with a 19:24 finish, her best time in her first three appearances. It'll be a crowded competition for the top 15 with 10 medalists returning, in addition to freshman Ainsley Erzen of Carlisle, currently the state's top-ranked runner, and Janette Schraft of Glenwood, who was a top-15 finisher in her previous two seasons running with East Mills in 1A.
 
Class 2A Girls
 
Race time: 1 p.m.
 
Qualifiers: Aplington-Parkersburg (Elise Gjoeen, Lily Hovenga, Megan Johnson, Sophia Jungling, Ella Junker, Miranda Oldenburg, Sommer Stotler), Dike-New Hartford (Jadyn Bennett, Zoie Callan, Kaity Houts, Alexis Jensen, Taylor Kvale, Sierra Loger, Rachel Wardell); Grundy Center/Gladbrook-Reinbeck (Taylor Stahl).
 
Last season: A-P finished 14th in the team standings with a 318 team score. Sophia Jungling placed fifth overall in 19:03. Dike-New Hartford and GC/G-R have no runners returning.
 
Final IATC Ranking: Jungling is rated third. D-NH freshman Taylor Kvale is 11th. D-NH is 10th in the team rankings, with A-P coming in 12th.
 
Outlook: Seven of last season's 15 medalists are back this season, including Jungling, looking for her third-consecutive medal. Springville-Central City moves into 2A with Emily and Janelle Staal, who were both top-15 finishers last season (Emily won the 1A race in 2017). The team race is loaded – Mid-Prairie is back and is a heavy favorite to defend its title, led by Marie Hostetler, who owns the record for the fastest time in state meet competition. Crestwood, Cascade, Williamsburg, WC-KP and Panorama are just some of the teams that can compete for a team trophy on Saturday. Kvale has run well with some big names this season but her and Stahl will both be tested in their first taste of Fort Dodge.
 
Class 2A Boys
 
Race time: 1:30 p.m.
 
Qualifiers: Grundy Center/Gladbrook-Reinbeck (Brady Appel, Paul Brockett, Derek Ciddio, Soren Cleveland, Kenny Day, Marshall Day, Sam Schildroth), Dike-New Hartford (Sawyer Loger).
 
Last season: Derek Ciddio was an individual qualifier for GC/G-R in his junior season, finishing 90th overall in 18:19 at Fort Dodge last fall. D-NH has no returning state runners this season.
 
Final IATC Ranking: Loger ranked 27th in the final individual rankings. GC/G-R is rated 11th heading into the state meet.
 
Outlook: Bellevue and Treynor moving into 2A will make this a wicked class to weave through, and 9 individual medalists are back. Bellevue was 1A's runner-up last season. GC/G-R has done well at running together with their top runners at times this season, and they'll need that kind of tight spread and some good times to hang with some of the talent in this field, which also includes defending champion George-Little Rock/Central Lyon, Okoboji, Camanche, Sioux Center and Tipton. Loger is making his first appearance at state in his senior season after a strong race at the state-qualifer.
 
Class 1A Boys
 
Race time: 2:30 p.m.
 
Qualifiers: BCLUW (Henry Kaisand, Joe Mason, Tanner McLeland, Ruben Montoya, Neifer Ralston, Caleb Silver, Treye Teske).
 
Last season: BCLUW's Caleb Silver took 20th in his junior season in 17:03.
 
Final IATC Ranking: BCLUW is ranked No. 7 in 1A; Silver is 12th in the 1A individual rankings.
 
Outlook: With some of the classification changes, it's a bit more wide-open in 1A, but three-time defending champion Nodaway Valley will try and show its strength against surging teams like Madrid, Earlham, Calamus-Wheatland and South Hamilton, down from 2A last season. Silver's had his strongest season yet this fall, and is a strong contender for a top-15 finish this season. Madrid enters as the top-ranked team this fall, led by Sean McDermott who was individual runner-up a year ago. BCLUW's team success has been building momentum late in the season, which may give them a chance to surprise some in Fort Dodge on Saturday. The Comets' 2nd through 5th runners had a 27-second spread at Cedar Rapids in the state-qualifying meet.

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