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Early Season Girls Top 40 XC Teams 2024Published by
Mountain Vista Has All The Pieces Necessary To Win A National Title, Opens The Season At No. 1; Colorado And California Account For 10 Of The Top 14 By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor 2024 Girls Early Season National Rankings Colorado's grip on elite high school girls cross country is strong as ever after sweeping the Nike Cross Nationals podium last year. But California, also, is experiencing a moment of rare excellence as well. Those two states hold eight of the top 10 spots in the country in the first DyeStat national team rankings of the 2024 season. Some teams still haven't broken out of their shell yet this fall, while others are more than half way through their regular seasons. This weekend's Woodbridge Cross Country Classic presented by ASICS, in Irvine, Calif., will determine the pecking order in a fierce battle for supremacy in California. The No. 1 team in the country is Mountain Vista of Highlands Ranch, Colo., which competed as "Denver" at NXN last year and took third. All seven are back from that team and it also added a standout transfer in senior Keeghan Edwards, who was forced to sit out last season due to state association transfer rules. With Edwards in the lineup, Vista Nation will be very difficult to beat. The reigning NXN champions from Air Academy CO are at No. 2 and California powerhouse Buchanan is No. 3. Those two programs will collide on Saturday night at Woodbridge. Niwot, winner of six consecutive Colorado 4A championships, was second at NXN last year and brings back national champion Addison Ritzenhein to lead the No. 4 team. Another loaded California team, Santiago (Corona), is No. 5 and has standout Rylee Blade at the front. New York's Bethlehem Central has pushed ahead of Saratoga Springs as the top team in the Empire State and begins the season at No. 6. The Northeast champions from Union Catholic NJ are brimming with potential and still young, with sophomore Paige Sheppard leading the way. UC is No. 7. Two more California teams, J Serra Catholic and Trabuco Hills, are primed for big seasons and one of them could breakthrough at Woodbridge. Rounding out the top 10, Utah's Lone Peak remains the best team in its state and has placed fourth in the last two NXNs. The depth right now in the Southwest is unmatched, with 11 teams in the Top 40. The Midwest is next with seven, and its best team, Romeo of Michigan, is No. 12. The Top 40 25. Mt. Prospect (Prospect) IL
Top 40 Teams By Region Southwest: 11 Midwest: 7 California: 6 New York: 4 Northwest: 3 Southeast: 3 Heartland: 3 South: 2 Northeast: 1
Top 10 Teams By Region Southwest: 4 California: 4 New York: 1 Northeast: 1 More news |
