There are favorites in the individual races, and tight battles on tap in the team competition...
The 2023 edition of the 2A Colorado State Cross Country Championships looks to be exciting!
For those of you who can't make it to Penrose this Saturday -- MileSplit Colorado has you covered! We'll be live streaming the finish line: WATCH LIVE
TEAMS
We've got a battle brewing in the team race!
Heritage Christian, Banning Lewis Prep, and defending state champs Lake County are all in the mix.
On paper, Heritage Christian looks to have the edge - they could potentially put three inside the top-10. Likewise, Banning Lewis could do the same, which would send this race to the fourth-runner. Both squads have 1-2-3 that look eerily similar to each other.
Heritage Christian is coming off a perfect-10 score at regionals, while Banning Lewis also claimed their region title in dominating fashion, tallying 27-points.
But you can't count out Lake County. A year ago they headed to Colorado Springs as an underdog, but they knew they weren't.
One thing that warrants a second-look with Lake County is the fact that besides King, most of their varsity squad didn't run at Liberty Bell, which Heritage Christian and Banning Lewis did. In other words, that "on paper" which ranks teams based on personal bests isn't exactly showing an accurate lineup.
Lake County is coming off a stellar 13-point region title, meaning they're sharpening up right in time.
Either way, this race has the potential to go into the single digits. As with every race Saturday, it'll go down to who shows up.
Photo by Jen Jardeleza
INDIVIDUALS
Can anyone run with Nadhia Campos?
The two-time defending state champ is in prime position to make it a three-peat.
The Vanguard junior heads to Colorado Springs with four victories (out of five races), including a 17:43 season-best from the Tri Peaks/Black Forest Cross Country Championships. More recently she ran away with the 2A Region 2 title, clocking 18:27 - 1:15 victory.
She's been undefeated against 2A competition all fall.
Last year she ran away with the 2A Colorado State Cross Country Championship title, running 18:37.
Beyond Campos the race opens up a bit.
Banning Lewis Prep's Alexia Gonzales and Lake County's Keira King have raced on the same course once this season - at the Liberty Bell Cross Country Invitational.
On that day Gonzales came out ahead, running 19:09 to King's 19:16.
Editor's Note: Gonzales and King actually didn't race each other at Liberty Bell - Gonzales ran in the D3 race, and King was in the Sweepstakes race.
Gonzales just finished second (to Campos) at Regionals, while King claimed the 2A Region 4 title.
Wildcards in the girl's race look to be Banning Lewis Pre's Olivia Bell, and Heritage Christian freshman Mikaela Kendall.
The girl's 2A race is scheduled for 9 a.m.
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