Everything to help prepare you for the upcoming 2024 cross country season from rankings to predictions to runners to watch!
Radek Molchan (Knoxville Catholic)
Radek Molchan has always been a force in Knox County cross country and track, whether it was his 2:05 and 4:36 PRs as an 8th grader, or his 5th place finish at the TSSAA XC state meet last fall, or even a 26th place finish at the Foot Locker South Regional race. Now a rising junior, Radek has established himself as the #2 runner on Knoxville Catholic, who is looking to win their first KIL title since 2017. His success will be key for the Fighting Irish as they make a push for a state title and an NXN bid. Since Catholic is lacking in depth, any injury to any varsity runner could be crippling. They will have to rely on the strong 1-2 tandem of Keegan Smith and Radek Molchan in order for this team to succeed.
Evan Beeler (Farragut)
When it comes to the range of distance runners in Knoxville, Evan Beeler is 2nd only to Keegan Smith. In KIL rankings this past spring Evan Beeler was ranked: 7th in the 400 (51.10), 2nd in the 800 (1:54.36), 11th in the 1600 (4:22.02), as well as 1st in the 2000 steeplechase. Beeler did not run a 3200 this spring but did run 9:39 in the fall at the KYA High School Time Trials, and his best 5k XC time was ranked 7th (15:30). With Farragut graduating multiple of their top runners, Beeler has the chance to develop into a true #1 runner and low stick that will be crucial for the Admirals as they eye a 3-peat KIL and State Championship.
Gabe Allen (Hardin Valley)
Gabe Allen made a big jump in his junior track season, specifically at the KIL Champs 1600 where he placed 3rd in 4:10, behind only Colin Eckerman and Matteo Tonnos. Allen would also run 1:55 at the Parilla Thrilla 800 and is now HVA's clear-cut #1 runner after the graduation of standout Carson Long. Gabe placed 7th at KIL XC last fall and 21st at the TSSAA AAA State Meet. While it is unclear how much of a jump Allen will make in the longer distance events (he did not run a 3200 this spring), he has always been a strong cross country runner, and this breakthrough in track seems to indicate he's now primed to perform at a higher level this fall.
Alexandra Vesser (Hardin Valley)
Alexandra Vesser ended her 9th-grade year as KIL's top freshman distance runner, placing 13th at the AAA Cross Country State Meet, and on the track becoming the 14th freshman girl ever in the state of Tennessee to break 11:00 in the 3200. With the departure of Emma Cissna from HVA, the Hawks are now projected to take third behind Webb and Farragut and Vesser is left as HVA's #1 runner. Despite these troubles, Vesser leads a team whose 3 out of the top 5 are sophomores, which gives high hopes for the future.
Hannah Kramer (Karns)
Karns' Hannah Kramer is the fastest runner in KIL not from HVA or Webb and has always performed well during the championship season. Her top two times ever and her season best last year were all run at either KIL or the TSSAA meet. Kramer placed 4th at KIL and the AAA state meet in 2022 with a PR of 18:31. If she can repeat the success of that season, she could place highly this year in a strong KIL field.
Webb Girls
The Webb Spartans were already the defending TSSAA DII-AA champions and the best team in Knoxville entering this year. Led by Carolina Areheart and the Garmer twins, the Lady Spartans had a 1-5 team average of 17:53 in 2023, the best in the MileSplit database of any team all-time. There were some questions about how the Spartans would replace Anna Graves and Lauren Davis, and those questions were answered with the addition of HVA freshman standout Emma Cissna. While Cissna's eligibility for the entire fall season is uncertain, even without her presence, Webb is still the heavy favorite to win their third consecutive KIL title. Regardless of her TSSAA eligibility, Cissna will be able to run at all postseason meets, which will be critical for the Spartans if they wish to qualify for NXN.
Farragut Boys
The Farragut Admirals are competitive year after year in Knoxville, placing top two in KIL each year since 2017. The Admirals are coming off a very strong two-year run in Cross Country: Two KIL and TSSAA Titles, an NXN appearance as well as back-to-back individual State Runner-up performances by Matteo Tonnos (2023) and Trevor Coggin (2022). However, with their top three runners graduating, Farragut will have to trust in the development of key depth runners like Ross Tootle, Tanner Coggin, San Shagan, as well as Tyson Ebbert, and Nick Deguira. Developing depth pieces into top tier runners is Coach Chelsey Osborne's specialty, and is one of the main reasons that the Admirals have been so strong over the past decade. While it's not a stretch to believe Farragut's top 5 could improve across the board, it is still unclear if they could beat DI-AAA favorite Brentwood or KIL favorite Knoxville Catholic. Brentwood's top 4 might be too much for Farragut to handle and Catholic's top end firepower in Keegan Smith and Radek Molchan will present a serious problem, but Farragut has always found a way to be competitive or outright beat teams that are better on paper.