Cedar Rapids Invite stacked, as always

CEDAR RAPIDS - Locating excellent teams at the Cedar Rapids Invitational cross country meet is an easy task. They're everywhere.

Picking a favorite? Now that's the tricky part.

Nine ranked girls teams and nine rated boys teams - including the No. 1 team in 4A for both - will toe the line at Noelridge Park on Thursday.

The meet begins with middle-school competition at 3:45 p.m. Varsity girls run at 5:30, boys at 5:50.

Ames' girls and Pleasant Valley's boys are top-ranked among the big-school class. Pleasant Valley traditionally does not bring its top runners to Cedar Rapids.

After finishing second to West Des Moines Dowling at last year's state meet, Ames returns all seven varsity runners, including senior Caroline Marnin. She is expected to vie for the individual crown with Iowa City West's Emmie Skopec and Linn-Mar's Amber Decker. No. 5 West and No. 6 Linn-Mar figure to be Ames' toughest challengers.

With or without Pleasant Valley, the boys' field is stacked. Linn-Mar is ranked third, West fourth, Ames sixth and defending state champion Cedar Rapids Prairie ninth.

Top boys' individuals include Daniel Murphy and Dalton Gosch of Linn-Mar and Tysen VanDraska and Jake Moore of Prairie.

THE FIELD

Ames, Bettendorf, Cedar Rapids Jefferson, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Cedar Rapids Prairie, Cedar Rapids Washington, Cedar Rapids Xavier, Davenport Central, Davenport North, Davenport West, Dubuque Wahlert, Iowa City High, Iowa City West, Linn-Mar, Marion, Mason City, Muscatine, North Scott, Pleasant Valley, Waterloo West.

THE SCHEDULE

3:45 p.m. - Middle-school girls

4:10 p.m. - Middle-school boys

4:40 p.m. - Fresh-soph girls

5:05 p.m. - Fresh-soph boys

5:30 p.m. - Varsity girls

5:50 p.m. - Varsity boys

6:15 p.m. - JV girls

6:40 p.m. - JV boys

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@sourcemedia.net