By Tony Chapman – For the Nebraska School Activities Association
The 65th NSAA boys state cross country championships and 45th girls edition take their place in the championship rotation on Friday, October 25 at the Kearney Country Club. Through district qualifying last Thursday, 859 individuals qualified with most runners a part of the 114 teams that advanced to the state meet.
In Classes A and B, there are 12 teams in both boys and girls races with individuals that also were in the top-15 at one of the four district meets advancing. For Classes C and D, 18 teams qualified in six districts with the same rules for individual qualifiers advancing. The Class B boys race will begin the championships this season when it starts the eight race event at noon. (Full race schedule)
New to cross country? Team scoring works just a little bit different in each class. In Class A, teams run seven runners and count the finishing place of the top-five for the team score. This changes to six count four for classes B and C and then moves to five count three for Class D. Team ties are broken by the highest placing of the first non-counting team member. Individual medals are awarded to the top-15 finishers in each race.
Up-to-date championship information will be delivered via the NSAA Cross Country Championship HQ page with live results on athletic.net via Black Squirrel Timing.
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
RACE DAY ESSENTIALS: Returning State Medalists | State Meet History
Gonzalez, Fremont with eyes on final prize
For the Fremont boys and coach Sean McMahon chasing a 12th state championship goes with the territory of not really thinking about winning a 12th state championship. It’s more about the training and the process. The Tigers are chasing their fourth title in the past five years after losing to Omaha Creighton Prep in a tiebreak last October.
“For us, the state meet, we try to treat it just like any other meet,” said McMahon, in his 26th season as the Tiger mentor. “We try to instill in our runners a love of the process. So we are just trying to keep our training and improve this week from our district race.”
The process has worked well for the Tigers, who are eyeing their seventh title since 2010. And, it’s also worked for standout, two-time defending champion Juan Gonzalez. A win on Friday for the senior speedster would make him just the sixth ever three-time champion and fourth in Class A.
While the state is just a few years removed from four-time champion Carson Noecker of Hartington-Newcastle, it’s not out of the realm of possibility to say that a Gonzalez win would put him among the greatest distance runners in state history.
Last spring he set Class A and state records in the 1,600 and 3,200 meter runs on the track. A run near Noecker’s 14:58.3 from 2022 – which also occurred in the second race of the day like Gonzalez will run Friday – would spark conversation. Earlier that fall, Noecker ran a 14.51.0 at the UNK Invite.
McMahon isn’t worried about his star, who he says will be more focused on leading the Tigers to a team championship.
“He’s just so unique in a lot of ways,” McMahon said. “He is the most talented runner we have ever had come through our program, but the way he works is probably more impressive. He has become a very knowledgeable student of running and racing. He is very diligent with his nutrition, he hasn’t missed a single mile of any workout we have ever done.”
Gonzalez and the Tigers medaled all seven runners at the A-1 district meet last week as a perfect primer for the state meet. Their closest chaser – and it’s a good one – is Lincoln North Star. The Gators took four of the top-5 spots at the A-2 meet. It could be a race that comes down to the 4th and 5th runners for each team.
McMahon knows his star and his teammates will be as ready as they can be.
“There is just nothing about what he does that is a comparison to something or someone else,” McMahon said. “One of the great things about Juan is his ability to rub off on others. As a teammate, he is all in. He wants our team to be the best it can be.”
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
CLASS B: The senior trio of Braden Lofquest (Gretna East), Tommy Rice (Omaha Skutt Catholic), and Austin Carrera (Hastings) have separated themselves from the pack for most of the season. Lofquest – a new Duke University commit – is undefeated. Carrera’s only losses are to Lofquest, and Rice’s losses are from both Lofquest and Carrera.
Lincoln Pius X – with fourth-ranked David Kier and fifth-ranked Joe Majerus – moved down from Class A and could be in line for a team title that would break the Lexington, Omaha Skutt stranglehold that has been in this class for the past seven years (five Skutt titles and two Lexington, with the other runner-up each time).
Pius topped Lexington in the B-3 district race with Elkhorn, Skutt, and Hastings the other district champions.
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
CLASS C: Gothenburg won their first ever title in 2022 and again in 2023. In 2024, the Swedes have been just as dominant, losing only one team race to Class B No. 4 Lexington. A third straight state title may take a duplicate performance of the district win over Holdrege (31-35). Top-ranked sophomore Tyler Hetz with freshman Bryson Neels also ranked in the top-10 after a second place district finish.
In a race where two other underclassmen are behind Hetz – Trevin Opp of Lincoln Chirstian and Avery Carter of Milford – could some experience maybe pull an upset? Aurora senior Charles Evans and Arlington senior Kolby Tighe are right behind the top-3 and may also have a say in the individual race.
Holdrege has just freshman Samuel McQuistan ranked in the top-15, but they medaled four at the C-5 district meet and would need to beat Gothenburg with their depth. District champions Aurora and Lincoln Christian could also factor in the team race.
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
CLASS D: Teammates Mason McGreer and Elijah Goodell from Perkins County have traded off the top spot all season in Class D. But, it’s McGreer who is the defending champion. A 1-2 finish from the Plainsmen duo may be a must for them in the five count three team race as well.
Along with Perkins County, North Platte St. Pat’s, and Doniphan-Trumbull bring a pair of top-10 ranked runners to Kearney and the team race could very well come down to which team’s third runner makes it home first. D-T has third-ranked Kaser Johnson and fifth-ranked Tice Yost while St. Pat’s has eighth-ranked Colton Ham and tenth-ranked Dimitri Pettit.
Perkins County edged St. Pat’s at districts (12-15), while Nebraska Christian, with third-ranked Jacob Swanson, defeated D-T and will also factor in the team race. Freeman, with sixth-ranked Jobjosiah Muthiani, scored 18 points to win the D-1 district meet.
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
Super teams Elkhorn North and Norris battle for B title
In winning each of the past three Class B team titles, the Norris girls have been pushed by Eastern Midlands Conference mates each time. In 2021 and 2022 it was Bennigton. And, last year came Elkhorn North.
In 2024, the Wolves now have their eyes square on a title that can match Norris’ depth. They have defeated the Titans head-to-head three times this season, most recently at the EMC meet in Lincoln. Wolves coach Jordan Fuglestad knew his team might have a chance to close the gap this fall.
“Our girls had a great summer of workouts,” Fuglestad said. “And, I think we knew we’d have a chance to be a good team but you just never know how things will workout. We have had plenty of kids step up for us throughout the year.”
Health has been the biggest obstacle for the Wolves most of the year.
They just got South Dakota commit Ella Ford back at the conference meet. After suffering a leg injury during the summer, state will be her third meet of the season. She finished second last year to Norris’ Kendall Zavala. Junior Paityn Christoffels battled pneumonia mid-season as well and returned for districts.
With Norris bringing the top-two ranked runners to Kearney – Zavala (committed to Nebraska) and Atlee Wallman (committed to Crieghton) – the Wolves will counter with talent and depth. They have five runners ranked in the top-13 in the class with a chance at all six medaling in the race.
During the season, Elkhorn North holds a 3-2 head-to-head advantage with third-ranked sophomore Leah Robinson defeating Zavala and Wallman at the UNK Invite earlier this fall.
“Some of these great teams you have seen the past few years like Norris and Lincoln East and Millard West it’s just not a normal situation,” Fuglestad said of team depth. “We have told runners entering our program to focus on your training and getting better each day. For us, everyone trains with the whole team.”
In a competitive B team race, each point could matter which makes the individual race worth watching as well. Fourth-ranked Annah Perdue (York) and fifth-ranked Sophia Reynolds (Hastings) will also be running with their teams in Kearney and will factor into the points race.
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
CLASS A: Nine of the 15 medalists from 2023 return for this season and eyes have been on Kate Ebmeier, a senior from Millard West. She finished 4th last year and has run a personal best of 18:31.9; however, her only Class A loss all season is to Abigail Burger of Kearney. They have been ranked 1-2 most of the year, with Burger winning the UNK Invite.
Ebmeier has a powerful team alongside her that will aim for the team title. They haven’t lost a single invite this season and look to continue that streak. It would be the first team title since 2017 for the Wildcats and fourth in program history.
Lincoln Southwest, Kearney, and Omaha Marian – with third-ranked freshman Mabel Henningsen – were the other district champions.
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
CLASS C: One of the most tightly contested team races will come near the end of the day in Class C. Auburn, the 2023 runner-up, looks to contend. Young Gothenburg is just as talented. And, Columbus Scotus, with some heartbreak last fall is back with a deep team as well.
Despite the three most powerful teams, Hailey O’Daniel, a senior from Arlington, is top-ranked and looking for her first individual state title. She is undefeated on the season coming in with a personal best of 19:36.9. The Swedes and Rocks are both led by their freshman Scout Bell and Avery Heinrich. Auburn is led by junior Liston Crotty who has been impressive since her freshman year, and freshman sister, Olivia.
Does a surprise exist, too? Minden medaled four in the top-11 at the C-4 district with Aurora also a possible contender with a bit of depth behind third-ranked Alexis Ericksen.
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
CLASS D: The Class D girls race may answer the simple question of would you rather have experience or young talent that doesn’t know any better at the state cross country meet. In race seven, we may find out. Experienced teams like two-time defending champion Hemingford, fourth-ranked Mullen and fifth-ranked Pender all have plenty of state meet experience.
Young talent comes from McCool Junction and Sandy Creek. They are ranked first and third in the Class D coaches poll after going 1-2 at the D-4 district meet. McCool Junction freshman Kayleigh Betka is ranked third and sophomore Leah Dawson is seventh. SC has just three runners, but all were in the top-9 at the district meet led by eighth-ranked freshman Madison Shaw.
Top-ranked Delani Runnels, a sophomore from Niobrara-Verdigre, is coming off a sixth place finish at state last year as well as an excellent track season where she finished first in the 3,200, second in the 1,600, and third in both the 800 and 4×4 relay. No. 2 Ashley Robertson from Wallace has raced nine times and won six of those races. Tri County freshman, Sage Holtmeier, who won the UNK invite in a photo finish, figures in to the individual title as well as the experience of Dakota Horsman of Hemingford and Payton Paxton of Mullen.
RACE ESSENTIALS: District Results
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
Tony Chapman is a freelance writer based in Grand Island. He has written for multiple Nebraska daily and weekly newspapers. His weekly Harvest Sports Newsletter covers a wide variety of Nebraska prep sports.