MileSplit50 Girls Team Rankings Countdown

Analysis: Four out of seven return for the Huskies, who finished a surprising third at Nike Cross Nationals in 2017. What may be surprising, however, is how Battle Mountain accomplished that feat, finishing its top five within 37 places of each other--even though its top runner, Naomi Harding, was 55th overall. 

But the blueprint for success at NXN is well known: Have enough depth to combat the tough course environment in Portland, Oregon. Battle Mountain certainly came away with a great performance, though the Huskies are hoping 2018 continues in that trend. Along with Harding, the squad returns her sister, Lizzy, who formed a good tandem with Naomi and ran a best of 17:54.00 in 2017. Junior Grace Johnson ran a best of 18:31.00, while four other returners all split times at 19:42 or faster a year ago. Battle Mountain enters the season with a team average of 18:35.07 and a compression of 88 seconds.