Individuals
The boy's individual race has a mix of runners who can take the 4A title!
As with every race, it'll all come down to who shows up on Saturday.
We'll start with what we've seen this season, then dive into some speculations...
Battle Mountain's Will Brunner and Porter Middaugh have been on fire this month. On two separate occasions the duo has dipped under 15 minutes - Brunner took the win on both occasions.
Both own a 14:56 PR.
And on both occasions the juniors shared the same second, so if that tells us anything, it's that if this race goes down to Brunner or Middaugh, it'll be an exciting kick-finish into Penrose.
They're coming off a 1-2 finish at the Colorado 4A Region 1 Cross Country - their second consecutive time under 15-minutes, and their second consecutive 1-2 finish.
Add Jacob Sushinsky to the list of potentials - he did finish third to Brunner and Middaugh in that blazing region meet, running 14:58 - being a stride back definitely puts you in the mix.
Sushinsky has been rather quiet this season. He owns one victory - the Windjammer Invitational, though he's finished in the top-five of his last five races.
What makes him another runner to keep an eye on is his finish at regionals - that shows that he's peaking right in time for State.
And then there's Niwot freshman Rocco Culpepper.
Younger brother of two-time state champion Cruz Culpepper.
Rocco Culpepper is coming off three great races - and more recently his victory at the Colorado 4A Region 3 Cross Country. He was the top 4A runner at the Desert Twilight XC Festival, where he finished seventh, and he's run a 15:18 PR from the Longs Peak League Meet.
Culpepper hasn't raced anyone else mentioned in this article, so he's a bit of a Dark Horse heading to State.
But his performances over the past month beg the question:
Can a freshman win the 4A state title?
We'll know Saturday...
And on the topic of questions and speculations.
The Cheyenne Mountain senior was the fastest-returner from 2021, and the top-returner as well. He's been battling injury, however.
He's raced sparingly this season, though he's clocked a season-best of 15:24 from the Nike Hole in the Wall XC Invitational three weeks ago - that tells us that he still has the wheels.
His finish Saturday could be vital in the team race, because - unlike the girl's race - it's not entirely tide up and done.
Teams
With Levings healthy, and in the lineup, Cheyenne Mountain could make a run at Niwot.
These two squads - who have squared off several times over the past three years - haven't raced each other this season.
On paper, Cheyenne Mountain has the faster squad. They're coming off a big Colorado 4A Region 5 Cross Country victory, where they tallied 34 points - and raced without Levings.
They've put five under 16-minutes this fall, and their six and seven are just on the other side of the mark.
Likewise, Niwot trounced the field at the Colorado 4A Region 3 Cross Country meet, tallying 25 points and putting all five scoring runners inside the top-nine. They've put three under 16-minutes this season, with their 4-5 just over.
Both squads look eerily similar to each other, save a few seconds here or there. By the looks of it, we'll have a battle on our hands...
Coronado - a young squad - also looks to be in the mix. They've got a solid four under 16-minutes - and a great pack.
Likewise, Summit has a fairly tight 2-5 after Dominykas Remeikis.
The boy's race is scheduled for 2:20 p.m.