The Class 1A and 2A cross country squads will get the spot light in the state qualifying meets today. Pella Christian and PCM will head to Williamsburg. The PCM girls have been listed as a team to watch in the latest rankings, and will try to pull off the upset against ranked teams in number on Mid-Prairie, number two Williamsburg and #15 Danville/New London. Mustang sophomore Paige Steenhoek will go for her second straight individual appearance after finishing 11th in last year’s qualifier, which was also at Williamsburg. As the Pella Christian squads enter the field of ranked foes today, the Eagles do so knowing they have to run their best races of the year to have a shot to make it to Fort Dodge. Head Coach Mike Buchheit says the field will be tough, but he and the coaching staff have done all they can to get the teams ready.
Buchheit:
“On the boys side, we still have three pretty highly ranked teams in Williamsburg, Mid-Prairie Wellman, and Danville/New London. Danville being number one, and Williamsburg in that five spot. On the girls side they’ve got the one and two. Based on where the boys are, we need to drop off a minute from our average runner’s time, which sounds like a lot and it is.”
The Eagles boys are seeking their first bid to the state meet since 2010. Meanwhile, the PCM boys have improved throughout the season after struggling to field a full team. The Mustangs face three ranked opponents in number one Danville/New London, number six Mid-Prairie and number eight Williamsburg. Senior Beau Webb will look to make it as an individual after just missing the cut last season. In class 1A the Twin Cedars Cross Country Squad will try to reach the state meet today as the Sabers head to Ottumwa and run on a course hosted by Pekin. While the Sabers have had a solid season, they have one more goal in mind and that is to get to the State Meet. Sophomore Runner Rylee Dunkin, who was All-State last season, tells KRLS Sports the team has stayed together even with a shut down early in the season…
Dunkin:
“That was really bringing the team closer together, and that whole time we didn’t run separately. We ran together and we went to Cordova Towers, and Pella, and we just didn’t jog. We pushed hard so we were ready to come out in that first meet.”
Melcher-Dallas’s J’Lyn Knutson is looking for a four-peat, as in a fourth consecutive trip to the State Cross Country Meet. Knutson has spent the better part of the calendar year dealing with a hip flexor injury and now that it is nearly healed up, she tells KNIA Sports, she is ready to qualify and make a move to the front of the pack.
Knutson:
“If and when I get there, I hope to get a medal and a higher place medal, because I’ve never medaled at cross country and I hope to this year.”
Knutson will run at Mount Ayr, where she ran last week in her final regular season meet. For Pleasantville the key names to know are seniors Hailee McCormick and Emmie Kenyon for the girls, who will both contend for a top 20 finish. The lone boy with a great chance is Junior Devon Luing, who has had consistent top ten finishes when healthy. Today’s action starts at 4:00 in Guthrie Center. The action gets going a little earlier in Mount Ayr as the first race will get underway at 3:30. Action at the Pekin State and Williamsburg Qualifiers get underway at 4:00pm.