Iowa high school state cross country 2025 preview: Scouting the individual and team races

FORT DODGE — Capsules for the state cross country meet Friday and Saturday at Lakeside Golf Course:

Class 2A girls

Time — 10:30 a.m. Friday

Top individuals — After finishing second and third last year, Van Meter junior Laura Struck and Albia senior McKenna Montgomery move to the projected front of the race. Struck won by 35 seconds at the Eagle Grove regional; Montgomery zipped through the Pella course in 18:07 and won by 78 seconds. Osage senior Scarlett Byrnes and Monticello freshman Mary Grace Lyons ran 1-2 at the Oelwein regional and appear to be good bets for top-five finishes, and Mid-Prairie junior Brooklyn Stutzman was the Iowa City regional champion by 28 seconds.

Charting the team race — Somehow, defending champion Mid-Prairie entered regional week ranked No. 9 (say what?), and the Golden Hawks responded by finishing three points behind No. 1 West Marshall at the Iowa City regional. Those two teams are certain title contenders, and you can never discount the Golden Hawks (winners of six of the last nine titles) in late October/early November. Van Meter was third last year, and should be a part of the championship equation after winning the Eagle Grove regional title.

How they'll finish — 1. Mid-Prairie, 2. West Marshall, 3. Van Meter, 4. Pella Christian, 5. Monroe PCM.

Class 2A boys

Time — 11:15 a.m. Friday

Top individuals — Senior Emerson Vokes of Grundy Center is back to chase a title repeat. He won last year’s race by 18 seconds (in 15:37), and rolled to a 30-second margin at the Iowa City district. Two of Vokes’ top challengers also hail from the North Iowa Cedar League: Denver sophomore Jesse Gomez (seventh last year) was the individual champ at the Eagle Grove district while Oelwein senior Keshaun Williams ran to victory by 29 seconds on his home course. Other district champions were Red Oak junior Emmanuel Grass and Western Christrian sophomore Ian Ten Napel.

Charting the team race — The fifth-place finisher last year, Chariton served notice with a 27-point output (2-4-5-6-10) at the Iowa City district, winning it by 79 points. Defending champion Oelwein doesn’t figure to relinquish its title without a skirmish; the Huskies claimed a district title at home. Forest City entered the postseason ranked No. 1 and claimed the crown at the Orange City district. Denver was fourth last year and captured the Eagle Grove district title by 52 points.

How they'll finish — 1. Chariton, 2. Oelwein, 3. Forest City, 4. Denver, 5. Unity Christian.

Class 3A girls

Time — 2 p.m. Friday

Top individuals — Pella senior Marissa Ferebee is a good bet for a third consecutive championship. She’s not quite at the eye-popping level as last year, when her 16:30 effort smashed the state-meet record by 18 seconds, but she’s still a considerable favorite. Maquoketa senior Izzy Hardin and Mount Vernon-Lisbon junior Evelyn Moeller waged battle at the Manchester regional, with Hardin running 18:05 and Moeller 18:07. That duo headlines the race for second, along with sophomore Elyse Erzen of Des Moines Christian and junior Elsie Brenneman of Pella (the 2024 runner-up).

Charting the team race — Pella is poised to run away with its fourth consecutive championship. A year ago, the Dutch scored 23 points and won by 119. They might not match that kind of dominance, but they’re still far, far ahead of the field. Ferebee and Brenneman paced a 1-2-3-4-5 regional masterpiece. The champion of the Manchester regional, Mount Vernon-Lisbon headlines the race for second place, along with Gilbert regional champion Des Moines Christian (15th last year). MVL -- along with Solon, Williamsburg and Center Point-Urbana -- could give the Wamac a quartet of top-eight teams.

How they'll finish — 1. Pella, 2. Mount Vernon-Lisbon, 3. Des Moines Christian, 4. Sioux Center, 5. Solon.

Class 3A boys

Time — 2:45 p.m. Friday

Top individuals — Friday’s last race is the race of the weekend. Seniors Quentin Nauman (Western Dubuque), Canaan Dunham (Pella) and Caleb Ten Pas (Des Moines Christian) ran 1-2-3 last year, and all are likely to traverse the course in less than 15 minutes. Dunham won the title in 2023, then Nauman took over last year in 14:59. Ten Pas ran 14:50 at the Gilbert district, and Nauman and Dunham both won their races by just shy of a minute. Mount Vernon-Lisbon junior Dawson Scheil is a top-five hopeful, as are a speedy trio from Gilbert.

Charting the team race — Young and hungry, Gilbert took the state meet by storm last year, scoring 33 points and winning by 45. The Tigers are poised to repeat. Their top three guys ran 2-3-4 at the Gilbert district, but the difference in their 28-51 margin over Des Moines Christian was a 20-point gap at No. 5. DMC and Pella finished second and third last year and comprise the primary chase pack again. Led by a 2-3-4-7 performance at the Manchester district, Mount Vernon-Lisbon certainly looks like a top-five team.

How they'll finish — 1. Gilbert, 2. Pella, 3. Des Moines Christian, 4. Mount Vernon-Lisbon, 5. Sioux Center.

Class 4A girls

Time — 10:30 a.m. Saturday

Top individuals — Dallas Center-Grimes senior Piper Messerly is the reigning champion; she ran 17:58 at state last year and won by 4 seconds. Messerly was the champion of the Council Bluffs regional, by 18 seconds. The third-place finisher from last year, sophomore Charlee Gall of Cedar Falls ran to a 24-second winning margin at the Marshalltown regional and carries the No. 1 tag. Freshman Laney Sundet of Waukee Northwest was the runner-up to Gall last week, and should figure into the mix, along with Pleasant Valley duo Maddie Millage (junior) and Sarah Foad (freshman).

Charting the team race — Pleasant Valley and Johnston ran 1-2 last year, and those two, along with Waukee Northwest, complete the short list of title contenders. Winner of five titles in the past decade, Johnston ran to a tidy 17-point regional total on its home course, sweeping the top four spots. Pleasant Valley also rolled at home, running 1-2-4-7-8 for a 22-point output. Northwest tallied 24 points at Marshalltown. If one or more of those teams falter, regional champions Iowa City High and Dallas Center-Grimes are capable of reaching the podium.

How they'll finish — 1. Johnston, 2. Pleasant Valley, 3. Waukee Northwest, 4. Iowa City High, 5. Dallas Center-Grimes.

Class 4A boys

Time — 11:15 a.m. Saturday

Top individuals — Jaden Merrick or Keegan Decker? That’s the preliminary debate. Now a senior at Cedar Falls, Merrick was the 4A runner-up last year, while Decker (a junior at Iowa City Liberty) was third. At the Mississippi Valley Conference meet Oct. 9, Merrick ran 14:48, Decker 14:49. Merrick built a 31-second margin in winning the Marshalltown district race; Decker pulled away late and won by 26 seconds at Iowa City. Challengers include sophomore Kuma Gutema of Sioux City North, junior Preston Johnson of Marshalltown, junior Jack Crossland of Johnston and the Cedar Rapids Kennedy senior duo of Adam Gray and Slader Buckheister.

Charting the team race — After ending West Des Moines Dowling’s three-year stranglehold on the title last year, Cedar Falls enters as a co-favorite Saturday along with Indianola. The Tigers ran away from the field at the Marshalltown district by 30 points. Indianola, meanwhile, is night-and-day improved from last year, when it finished 15th. The Indians ruled the Johnston district, beating the host team by 23 points and Dowling by 24. The other three districts were tight. Dubuque Senior won by 10 points at Iowa City, Norwalk prevailed by three at Council Bluffs, Pleasant Valley won at home via tie-breaker over Bettendorf.

How they'll finish — 1. Cedar Falls, 2. Indianola, 3. Dubuque Senior, 4. Iowa City High, 5. Norwalk.

Class 1A girls

Time — 2 p.m. Saturday

Top individuals — Lili Denton of Council Bluffs St. Albert breezed to the title last year by 29 seconds (in 17:59), and by the looks of things last week, the senior is an overwhelming favorite to repeat. She ran 17:36 at the Guthrie Center regional, building a winning margin of more than 2 minutes. Pekin’s Chloe Glosser ran third at state last year and took top honors at the Ottumwa regional. Madrid duo Katelyn Brandhorst (senior) and Madelyn Grothus (junior) ran 1-2 at the Jewell regional, and were 4-5 at state last year. The top area runner is Starmont-West Central junior Lauren Krogmann, who ran 18:47 at the Arlington regional and won by well over a minute.

Charting the team race — Earlham (2022, 2024) and Madrid (2023) have taken turns at the top through the past three years, and those two teams both won regional championships last week. Madrid returns three girls that finished in the top 13 a year ago. Sumner-Fredericksburg entered the regional meet as the No. 1 team, and delivered with a 31-point margin of victory at the Arlington regional. Never count out South Winneshiek, the fourth-place finisher last year and the 2022 champion. The Warriors were Mason City regional champions.

How they'll finish — 1. Madrid, 2. Sumner-Fredericksburg, 3. South Winneshiek, 4. Hudson, 5. Sioux Central.

Class 1A boys

Time — 2:45 p.m. Saturday

Top individuals — The top four placewinners from 2024 have graduated, meaning a new cast of contenders. Seniors Hayden Thompson and Knute Rogne give Lake Mills a formidable 1-2 tandem; they were fifth and 10th at state last year and ran 15:56 and 16:02 at the Mason City district. Haven Weers, a sophomore at Tri-Center, came into championship season ranked No. 3 and captured the title at Guthrie Center in 16:11, winning by 16 seconds. Alex Davis, a senior at Ankeny Christian, was the Jewell district champion.

Charting the team race — Lake Mills has won the last two titles, rolling to a 44-point winning margin last fall. Thompson and Rogne give the Bulldogs an unmatched duo at the front, and they posted a 23-point score (and 55-point margin of victory) at Mason City. Speaking of margins, Oakland Riverside won by 64 points at Guthrie Center, and Ankeny Christian went 1-2-3 at Jewell, winning by 89. Those three teams are good bets to be on the podium as the meet concludes Saturday afternoon.

How they'll finish — 1. Lake Mills, 2. Oakland Riverside, 3. Ankeny Christian, 4. Earlham, 5. Columbus Community.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com