Region 1-4A Girls Race
Who: Teams: Cumby Miller Grove, Blum, Nazareth, Roby
Why: Could this be the year of the repeat for the Cumby Miller Grove girls? It sure could be, especially since they are returning six of their top seven from last year's championship team. The team will be led by Cassidy Seaney and Aleigh Bessonett who both could be in contention for individual medals as well.
They have to come ready to hold off the girls from Blum. The Blum squad finished second to Cumby at the Region 3-1A Championship with a difference of 26 points. Blum will be led by freshman, Emma Rodriguez, and senior, Hope Thomas.
Nazareth, led by junior, Caitlin Kleman, could be in the hunt for a podium spot. They come in as the Region 1-1A Champions and are looking to improve on last year's fifth-place finish.
The Region 2-1A Champions, Roby High have been running well and could contend for a spot on the podium as well. This fairly young team is led by freshmen, Caitlin Benson and Kolby Gilbreath. Also looking to improve on last year's finish and could be in the mix are O'Donnell, who finished second and Hartley, who came in third at last year's State meet.
Individuals: It very well could be Sienna Collins from Saltillo High School at the top of the podium for a second year straight. She is the only 1A girl who ran under 12:00 minutes at the regional races. However, several other girls from Region 3 could be in the hunt. Alex Evans, Cassidy Seaney, and Aleigh Bessonett are all running strong. Spur's Izabelle Smith took third at State last year and could finish back on the podium again this year, especially after her championship run at the Region 1 meet a few weeks ago. Region 2 Champion, Shailyn Kendrick is a freshman with a good shot at making the podium. She has the third-fastest time coming out of the regional meets.