Iowa high school cross country preseason rankings: Marion, Tipton boys, Solon girls among No. 1 teams

Three area teams are ranked No. 1 in the preseason cross country rankings, released Friday by the Iowa Association of Track Coaches.

The boys from Marion (3A) and Tipton (2A) claimed the top spots in their respective classes, as did the girls from Solon (3A).

Marion was the 3A boys’ runner-up last year and brings back five runners, led by senior Jedidiah Osgood, the top returning finisher after placing fifth last year.

Tipton’s boys and Solon’s girls both are reigning champions. The Tigers have four returners, including sophomore Clay Bohlmann, who placed ninth.

Solon has four varsity girls back, including fifth-place finisher Kayla Young, now a senior.

Other preseason top-ranked teams are the girls from Dubuque Hempstead (4A), Denver (2A) and Sibley-Ocheyedan (1A) and the boys from West Des Moines Dowling (4A) and Guthrie Center ACGC (1A).

Competition begins next week. State-qualifying meets are Oct. 19-20; the state championships are Oct. 28-29 at Lakeside Golf Course, Fort Dodge.

CLASS 4A GIRLS

1. Dubuque Hempstead, 2. Pleasant Valley, 3. Ames, 4. Johnston, 5. Des Moines Roosevelt, 6. Ankeny, 7. Ankeny Centennial, 8. West Des Moines Dowling, 9. West Des Moines Valley, 10. Dubuque Senior, 11. Linn-Mar, 12. Dallas Center-Grimes, 13. Cedar Rapids Prairie, 14. Iowa City High, 15. Waukee.

CLASS 4A BOYS

1. West Des Moines Dowling, 2. Iowa City High, 3. Norwalk, 4. Johnston, 5. Sioux City North, 6. Pleasant Valley, 7. Cedar Falls, 8. Iowa City West, 9. Urbandale, 10. Waukee Northwest, 11. Ankeny, 12. Dallas Center-Grimes, 13. Dubuque Hempstead, 14. West Des Moines Valley, 15. Cedar Rapids Kennedy.

CLASS 3A GIRLS

1. Solon, 2. Ballard, 3. Mount Vernon-Lisbon, 4. Western Dubuque, 5. Glenwood, 6. Gilbert, 7. Carlisle, 8. North Polk, 9. MOC-Floyd Valley, 10. Spencer, 11. Center Point-Urbana, 12. Harlan, 13. Pella, 14. Sioux City Heelan, 15. Clear Creek Amana.

CLASS 3A BOYS

1. Marion, 2. North Polk, 3. Pella, 4. Glenwood, 5. Carlisle, 6. Solon, 7. MOC-Floyd Valley, 8. Western Dubuque, 9. Mount Vernon-Lisbon, 10. Adel ADM, 11. Sioux Center, 12. Lewis Central, 13. Clear Lake, 14. Decorah, 15. Newton.

CLASS 2A GIRLS

1. Denver, 2. Jesup, 3. Mid-Prairie, 4. Monticello, 5. Tipton, 6. Van Meter, 7. Dyersville Beckman, 8. Williamsburg, 9. Cherokee, 10. Des Moines Christian, 11. Clarinda, 12. Roland-Story, 13. Albia, 14. Unity Christian, 15. Crestwood.

CLASS 2A BOYS

1. Tipton, 2. Des Moines Christian, 3. Waukon, 4. Okoboji, 5. Western Christian, 6. Oelwein, 7. Danville-New London, 8. Williamsburg, 9. Unity Christian, 10. Monticello, 11. Mid-Prairie, 12. Grundy Center GCGR, 13. Denver, 14. Anamosa, 15. Jesup, 16. Spirit Lake, 17. GLR-Central Lyon, 18. Albia, 19. Northeast, 20. New Hampton.

CLASS 1A GIRLS

1. Sibley-Ocheyedan, 2. South Winneshiek, 3. Logan-Magnolia, 4. Fort Dodge St. Edmond, 5. Woodbine, 6. Earlham, 7. North Linn, 8. Hudson, 9. Guthrie Center ACGC, 10. Iowa City Regina, 11. Council Bluffs St. Albert, 12. North Tama, 13. Wapsie Valley, 14. Mason City Newman, 15. Pekin.

CLASS 1A BOYS

1. Guthrie Center ACGC, 2. Bellevue, 3. Iowa City Regina, 4. Fort Dodge St. Edmond, 5. Ogden, 6. Woodbine, Valley Lutheran, 8. Maquoketa Valley, 9. Central Decatur, 10. Earlham, 11. Mason City Newman, 12. Council Bluffs St. Albert, 13. Madrid, 14. Hudson, 15. Clayton Ridge.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com