6A PREVIEW | 5A PREVIEW | 4A PREVIEW | 3A PREVIEW | 2A PREVIEW | 1A PREVIEW
Eudora Girls, Buhler Boys Chasing History While Other Contenders Hoping To Prevent It
- - -
A year ago, McPherson's Caleb Muehler stormed to a big-time win over a field loaded with experienced upperclassmen. Muehler dipped below 16:00 at Wamego, stopping the clock at 15:58.8. This year, Muehler will have a few guys on his hip, including Chapman's Drew Elliott, Wamego's Peyton Parker, and Buhler's Henry Trumpp.
Elliott is the lone runner with a season best under 16:00, sporting a fresh PB of 15:48.97 from regionals. However, Muehler, Parker, and Trumpp have all ran 16:09 or faster, more than likely setting up a four-man race.
On their home course, with less-than-ideal racing conditions, and a very good team, Wamego is the clear favorite, but Buhler would love nothing more than to win their sixth title in seven years.
With a sizable gap between the top two teams and the rest of the state, that leaves McPherson, Tonganoxie, Augusta, and Chapman more than likely fighting for that final spot on the podium.
Across the 4A ranks, only Eudora's Hanna Keltner, Baldwin's Irelyn Kennedy, and Clay Center's Kylie Pfizenmaier are the only girls to run sub-19 this season, but that doesn't mean that they're the only contenders tomorrow morning.
Keltner is the winner of six straight, including the Wamego Invitational, Missouri Southern Stampede, and the Rim Rock Farm Classic. She's gone toe-to-toe with some talented athletes, but time and time again she's came out victorious. Although she hasn't beat her yet, Kennedy is a very realistic threat to upset the K-State-bound senior, especially based off of the momentum she's gained over the last month.
Even though she missed about a month of racing, fellow Clay Center Tiger Lauren Smith seems to be back to her old ways, making the duo of Pfizenmaier and herself a dangerous one, possibly dangerous enough for a 1-2 finish.
While Eudora has won back-to-back-to-back state titles, Baldwin and Holton have seemingly closed the gap on the pre-season favorites, with both teams beating the defending champions head-to-head last month. Kennedy and the Bulldogs did it at both regionals and the Frontier League meet, while Holton did it for the first time by a single point last week at regionals.
Tomorrow, just like a lot of the team races around the state sites, one of these three teams will have to have their best day to hoist the trophy.