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South Region Girls Early Season Rankings 2025Published by
Rogers AR Rises Up To Challenge Flower Mound TX In The South By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor Girls NXR South Preview Two big meets last weekend in Texas offered a sneak peek into the top teams in the South. At the Southlake Carroll Invitational, Lilly Beshears and Rogers put together an excellent performance and defeated the No. 1 team in the region, Flower Mound, which sat out a couple of its top runners. Beshears won the race by 16 seconds and looks like the favorite to defend her individual NXR South title. But Flower Mound's depth should still ulimately prevail. The Jaguars seek a fifth straight trip to NXN and despite the loss of two seniors could move up from last year's 14th place at nationals. Southlake Carroll, which edged out Bridgeland by a single point for the second automatic qualifying berth last year (107-108), finished third in its home meet last weekend but still ran impressively and can't be counted out. SL went on to place 22nd at NXN, a rough outing that the Dragons will want to improve upon. At the Strake Jesuit Crusader Invitational, Bridgeland ran four of its top six and got a strong result and victory, while The Woodlands used the opportunity to show its own depth and earned the No. 5 spot on the early season list. Two-time Foot Locker champion and NXN third-place finisher Elizabeth Leachman of Boerne Champion TX hasn't competed yet this fall but was second to Beshears in the NXR South race. Senior Macy Wingard of Denton Braswell TX, sophomore Elin Latta from South Texas Heat Homeschool TX and senior Gabbie Bishop of Providence Classic Christian Academy AR were all in the top six of last year's race. 1. Flower Mound TX. Yes, Flower Mound took a loss last weekend to Rogers AR at the Southlake Carroll Invitational, but it wasn't as bad as it seems. Juniors Adeline Bennett and Liana Cluley-Garza, the team's top two, sat out and rested. At full strength, it's going to be difficult to beat the Jaguars, who have another impressive roster. Seniors Keira Primer and Mckayla Kohutek, juniors Eliana Rivera and Megan Schmidt, and sophomore Allie Driscoll should keep the momentum going for Flower Mound. 2. Rogers AR. The possibility of becoming the first Arkansas girls team to qualify for NXN took root last year with a group that enjoyed a breakout season and then finished fourth at NXR South.All seven return this fall ready to build on last year's success. Senior Lilly Beshears, the defending individual champion of NXR South, is running at a higher level. The three Scudder sisters, junior triplets, Katherine, Elizabeth and Anna give the team valuable depth. Senior Samantha Schmersahl, junior Kayla Eggers and senior Malaya Johnson are also big contributors. 3. Bridgeland TX. Senior Rowan Sacke won the Texas Class 6A 3,200 meters last spring and could be the top runner in the state this fall. Sacke and her teammates, in an ideal scenario, would love to qualify for NXN and join the boys in Portland in December. Seniors Susana Rawls, Marianna Salazar and Haley Hill, and juniors Kate Garrison, Hope Smith, and Brynlee Weston are the key players in that effort. 4. Southlake Carroll TX. At last weekend's Southlake Carroll Invitational, the Dragons' five scorers split 43 seconds and finished between 18:05.9 and 18:48.6. Seniors Luna Gutierrez and Liliah Gornell and juniors Abigail Perez, Megan Bergman and Grace McIlvain put together an effort that shows they will be competitive in November, finishing not far behind Flower Mound and Rogers. 5. The Woodlands TX. The Highlanders put five in the top 13 last weekend at the Strake Jesuit Crusaders Invitational in a big early season clash with Bridgeland. Despite coming up two points short (41-43), it was an impressive showing. Junior Naomi Weller led the team with a second-place finish (18:07) and reinforcements arrived about a minute later. Freshman Marta Linde Gomez, senior Stella Wilder, junior Sara De Los Santos, junior Emily Kacher and senior Olivia Winiesdorffer were all split by 21 seconds. WATCHLIST More news |
