Preseason XC Countdown: Girls #2

<p> Texas MileSplit is counting down the 12 days until the first full weekend of cross country meets. &nbsp;Each day we will highlight one boys team and one girls team, with the idea that they are &quot;programs to watch&quot; for the upcoming season. &nbsp;This series is not intended to be a true ranking of the top 12 teams in the state overall, but instead an opportunity to highlight schools that have had strong recent success or have lots of talent returning for this fall.</p>

One of these teams had the best 5-girl results from track season, plus very low turnover due to graduation, a formula for success.

 

Kingwood is the stat-head's choice to win a 6A title ove the next two seasons.  In addition to having a strong set of returning 5K PR's - 7 girls under 20 minutes, a 2-7 split of under 30 seconds - the Mustangs had the best team results from outdoor track of any Texas girls' team.  5 girls are coming back with timed of 11:40 or faster for the 3200 (with 6 and 7 just over 12 minutes) is astounding depth, ranking 1st in the state by a big margin, and it gets even better: this team put 7 returning girls at 5:30 or faster!  No other team in the state has more than 5, meaning Kingwood is the top-ranked squad in that event, too.  The Mustangs had significant year-to-year improvement ove the last two seasons; with Abby Guidry up front and that kind of depth, this team will be a force.  Did I mention that they only lost one senior last year, and only lose one more from the projected top 7 this fall?  That gives Kingwood a 2-year window to capitalize on all their talent.

 

  Kingwood High School (TX)
  1) Abby Guidry   18:23.70
  2) Erin Gallagher   19:17.26
  3) Amy Berg   19:29.53
  4) Olivia Thompson   19:30.40
  5) Kayla Russell   19:35.30
  Average Time: 19:15.24 Total Time: 1:36:16.19 1-5 Split: 1:11.60
  6) Brianna Nolen   19:37.67
  7) Valentine LeBon   19:45.87