The Cougars lost their #1 runner, but they have a candidate to replace her and plenty of depth to help the team be even stronger in 2018.
The Cougars lost their #1 runner, but they have a candidate to replace her and plenty of depth to help the team be even stronger in 2018.
The Lancers are young and talented and looking to make it to the state meet this fall.
After struggling through a difficult 2017 season, the Blue Devils are looking to rebound with young talent.
Moving up to D2 didn't dent the Bearcats' state meet plans, and now they have a bunch of talent returning for a run at the top 10.
Despite the loss of a star up front, the Comanches will be returning a strong back based on a proven record of year-to-year improvement.
Can the Apaches return to the program-wide form that made them not only a yearly state meet team, but a regular title challenger? They're closer than some may think.
Losing your #1 runner is always tough to overcome, but recent history indicates the Red Devils will still be a force in D5 this year.
Will this be the year the Cardinal develops into more than just the big fish in the small pond of the San Francisco Section?
When a team doesn't lose any seniors after a very successful season, it's noteworthy. The Bobcats have sometime far more rare going on, and it makes them contenders in D4.
The best returning team in the Central Section may be in Division 3, and they have already proven they can bring their best at the right time in the season.
The Dolphins didn't quite bring everything together last fall, but they have 6 of their top 7 returning for another run at a section title and a chance to make a splash at the state meet.
Overlook the Northern Section favorites at your own peril: this is a team with urgent motivation for success in 2018.
Despite some significant losses, expect Audrey Suarez to power the Cubs back into contention in Division 4 again.
The defending D5 state champs may have won earlier than expected, but that just means they have enough talent back to win a repeat title.
It looks like the Cougar girls, often overlooked in the shadow of their storied boys' team, are set to take the spotlight in 2018.
Can a team that finished 20th in the Southern Section in 2017 be in the top 30 for the whole state in 2018? The Lancers can.
The Pioneers return their entire top five from 2017 and have enough talent to be a force in Division 2.
The competition for the 7 spots that advance out of the Southern Section D1 race will be INTENSE, and something like the extra motivation of a HUGE senior class can make all the difference.
With their entire top 12 returning intact and huge motivation to break through to the state meet, the Mustangs are oh-so-close to being a top 10 team in Division 1.
It's hard for a Division 4 team to make the top 30 in state-wide absolute rankings - but when you're in serious pursuit of back-to-back titles, you belong in the preseason countdown.
Most teams would settle for a rebuilding year after winning a State Title & graduating 4 of their top 5 runners, but some programs have proven they can reload from year to year. This is one.
We're posting every day for the next 30 days, highlighting some of the teams to watch for the upcoming fall season. Today: the squads that just missed our top 30.
We kick off a thirty-day buildup to the start of the fall season with a list of teams that just missed the cut for the top 30, but are worth watching.
If any girls team in the Southern Section can challenge the dominance of the Wolfpack, it will be Sydney Hwang's Claremont squad.
Defending Division 1 champ Great Oak doesn't top either the 3 Mile or the 5K returning rankings - but the Wolfpack had the best crew of returning 1600 runners in California this spring.
Will Granada be the team to challenge the dominance of the Southern Section girls' squads in 2018?
Dana Hills has five of their seven runners back from the squad that finished 3rd in division 1 - more than enough talent to be a contender for the title this fall.
2017 could have been the season to end the Great Oak streak, but Tori Gaitan and Fatima Cortes slammed the door shut on their challengers (and it might not open again for a while...)
St. Francis (Mountain View) has a load of talent back to defend the Division 2 title. Who else looks like a contender this far out from the start of the season?
It's now a summer tradition! We will count down the days to the start of the fall season by spotlighting one boys and one girls team each day.