28. Emma Wade (Vista Ridge)

In the championship season, she claimed silver at the 6A District 25 Championship then followed it with a third place finish at the Region 4 Championship. A 35th place finish at the 6A state meet certainly was not the peak of her potential, but it did not impede her progression into the track season. 

Where she came up short on the grass, she shined on the track. At the regional meet, her competitors raised the bar to the extent that to qualify for state, Wade needed to run significant personal bests in the 1600 and 3200 meter finals. In the 3200, she gave San Juanita Leal of Edinburg North a fierce battle as the two ran away from the rest of the field. Wade's runner up performance brought her a ticket to state and lowered  her previous 3200 personal best of 11:10 by 10 seconds.

In the 1600, Wade flipped the script on Leal. This time around she edged out the sophomore by two seconds to secure her first regional title. In Austin, she gritted out an eighth place finish in the 3200, nearly matching her personal best in the process. It was in the 1600 where she capped off her freshman year in fantastic style. Though her fifth place finish left her off the podium by one second, it was a valiant attempt which rewarded her with a personal best of 4:54. 

The finish to her freshman year certainly indicates she is on the right track heading into the fall. With the first experience at every UIL Championship out of the way, it will be all about summoning her best on the right day this November. 

27.) Mikaela Garza (San Antonio Brandeis)

Her fall campaign got off to a winning start at a smaller local meet, then truly got going two weeks later at the TAMUCC Islander Splash. Though Shewaye Johnson ran away with the win, Garza put up a remarkable fight against Aubrey O'Connell- finishing just one second behind the eventual 6A state runner up. She secured one more win at a local meet before moving into a lengthy championship season. In a district race she was expected to win, she could only manage third. However, she responded in a big way at the Region 4 Championships. Defeating the two girls who beat her at district, she finished fourth to comfortably qualify for the state meet.

Her only previous race at the state meet was a 40th place finish as a freshman in 2019. In 2021, she rounded off an incredibly consistent season on the grass with a 16th place finish in Round Rock. She was ninth among non-seniors in the race and third among girls from Region 4. Her postseason included an impressive 40th place finish at the Eastbay South Regional and a top 10 finish in the silver race at the Garmin RunningLane Championships with a time of 18:02.  

It is unknown what kind of shape Garza will be in this fall, but any doubts over her capability to race at a high level against big names were dispelled by her performances last fall. 

26.) Alexandra Walsh (Southlake Carroll)

The young Dragon went from struggling to break 21:00 to running at the state meet, where she finished 75h overall. Carroll's lack of complacency as a team makes intrigue of another jump for Walsh pretty much imminent.

In the outdoor track season, Walsh wasted no time putting her fitness to use. At the North Texas Winter 3200, she dropped her personal best by 55 seconds as she was fourth in 10:58. Her big opportunity to prove that dip under 11:00 was no flash in the pan came in the Elite 5000 at the Texas Distance Festival. It is one thing to speculate about one's 5000 meter potential based on a new 3200 personal best, but it is an entirely different challenge to actually go out and run to that potential. Simply put, Walsh produced her best performance of her career to claim sixth in the prestigious race and run another staggering personal best of 17:26. Though her championship season ended at the regional meet, she came away with personal bests (4:59, 10:48) that make her one of the most exciting prospects this fall.

If Walsh translates the track 5000m to the grass, then watch out!

1. 25.) Sophie Wollan (Austin Westlake)

While her track season was brief, what matters most is Wollan's outstanding freshman cross country. Her first big performance was in early September when she was ninth at the Garmin Milesplit XC Invitational.

She dominated her next three races, winning each by 52 seconds or more including an 81 second victory at the 6A District 26 Championship. Wollan finished runner-up at the 6A Region 4 Championship and was heading to the state meet with aspirations well beyond gaining first year experience. 

In Round Rock, she met every expectation that could have been placed on her as she finished 13th overall and second best among freshmen in the race. As impressive as her state meet was however, she saved her best performance of the season for last. There is no race environment in the Texas high school cross country season more competitive or chaotic than the NXR South Championship race. The rapid stampede along the flat turf fields to start the race combines with the narrow, winding path through the woods to create a crowded, frantic and deceivingly taxing climax to the Texas cross country season. Amidst the panicked start and sustained chaos in the woods, Wallon kept her cool and found herself 18th against the south region's best.

24.) Penelope Gracey (The Woodlands)

In our Houston preseason rankings, we actually had a different order for the Gracey and the next two members of the fourth team.  In Gracey's first full cross country season, sheled The Woodlands to the 6A State Championship podium and secured individual medals for herself at every UIL championship meet in the process.

After third place finishes at the Atascocita Invitational and Region lll Preview, she guided The Highlanders to winning the 6A District 13 Championship by claiming the individual crown herself. Ten days later, she was fifth at the 6A Region 2 Championship as she helped to secure another team title.

At Old Settlers' Park, she produced a truly outstanding performance to compete with an incredibly strong contingent of runners from Region 1 along with the four girls who beat her at the regional meet. Once again, Gracey rose to the occasion as she managed to flip two girls who beat her at regionals and overcome several standouts from North Texas. Her ninth place finish was fifth best among non-seniors and a crucially low eight points that helped The Woodlands hold off Southlake Carroll for team bronze.

Her sophomore track campaign included personal bests in high level races, more district medals and experience at the regional meet. Her fastest times came at the Victor Lopez Classic where she ran 10:30 for 3000 meters and 4:53 for 1500. She was second in the 1600 at her district meet and ran an official 1600 personal best of 5:13, then concluded her UIL season at the Region 2 championship where she finished seventh in the 3200 with a personal best of 11:10 and eighth in the 1600. 

As one of the top returners in the region and state, Gracey demonstrated in her first full high school cross country season that she knows how to execute at a high level on the big stage and can be expected to be firmly in the mix at the front of the 6A State Championship this fall. 

23.) Emily Ellis (Bridgeland)

The Bridgeland senior has been a star in the state since she began running during her sophomore season. In the spring, she qualified for her second consecutive track and field state championships last year in the 3200 and she did so by running a 10:38 PR to win Region 2-6A in the process. She also has qualified for two consecutive cross country state championships although getting to participate in last year's event only. Nevertheless, this year, it's expected for her to have a much improved performance in Round Rock.

The versatile runner only has one event to concentrate on, unlike during the track season. She has already been putting in the base to prepare for the season. That could pay dividends as her leg speed is as good as girl in Texas and the ability to hang in races with the state's top girls until it's time to turn over is an advantage.

Ellis' track success is proof she belongs on this list. She has the potential to blow this preseason ranking out of the water.

22.) Madison Peters (Pearland)

Her sophomore cross country season ended before the climax which seemed to be on its way, but the season she did have was filled with success. From August 21st to October 14, she raced eight times and only lost once. A seventh place finish at the Southlake Carroll XC Invite was her first 5000 meter race of the season and it kick started the winning streak that ensued for the following six weeks.

Peters won the College Park Invite and Region lll Cross Country Preview where she defeated runners from The Woodlands such as Penelope Grace, who finished 9th at the state meet. Her season ended with an individual district title where she won by over two minutes.

In the spring, she gave a clear idea of how she may have fared at the 6A State Cross Country Championship. Her 3200 meter performances improved throughout the season, including title winning runs at the district, area and regional meets, then culminated with a sixth place finish in the historically fast 6A state title race where she ran a personal best of 10:58.

Her success was nearly mirrored in the 1600, as she won district and area titles in that event as well. She was second at the regional meet and seventh at the state meet. The Pearland star's personal best of 5:00 came at the Texas Distance Festival where she was eleventh. 

While there is no way of knowing where she would have finished in the 2021 6A State Cross Country Championship, her ceiling is extremely high and has proven she can execute at the state championship level.