Alex Mead took the 3A 100 meter record down to 10.62 in rainy conditions. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Loveland's Taylor Buschy ran down Littleton in Friday's SMR8, just one of five impressive relays for the Loveland girls. Photo by Ashley Green.

Miguel Barajas stunned the favored throwers to win the 3A boys shot put today. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Sometimes you can tell athletes all you want about holding back a little on the first day of state, and adrenaline still takes over. Maybe that explains what happened at state today.

You'll have four chances to see Courtney Mills perform at the state meet. Make sure you don't blow them all. Photo by Alan Versaw.

La Junta's Zerek Jones and Buena Vista's Daniel Carr were two of the day's big winners in La Junta. Photos by Alan Versaw.

Jared Blake's times said he was one of the best hurdlers in the state. As of Saturday, there are a few more believers in Colorado Springs. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Zac McCoy didn't have the lead coming off the final turn of the 400, but he finishes better than most. Photo by Paul Jaeger.

Abby Simpson and Jordan Chavez gave Pueblo County a sweep of the 400 titles at the Banana Belt Classic. Photos by Alan Versaw.

Great relay races are a highlight of almost any track meet, but nowhere more so than at state. Colorado Track XC file photo.

At two miles into the race, Erin Hooker challenges Sarah Fakler for the lead. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Louisville (Monarch) fell to Fort Collins by one point at last year's NXN-SW regional. Both teams return this year to battle again. Colorado Track XC file photo.

Tabor Scholl led almost the entire 3A girls race but was never able to fully shake the pursuit of Shelby Stableford and Regan Mullen. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Faith Christian's Evan Fortney held off the late charges of TCA's Joshua George and Conner Wilburn to claim the 3A individual title. Photo by Jeff McCoy.

Garrett Coles is one of the contenders in a wide-open battle for the 3A boys individual state title. Photo by Alan Versaw.

The 3A Region 2 girls get things started. Photo by Paul Jaeger.

Jeff Abbey leads the Fort Collins finishers at the Front Range Conference meet just over a week ago. Photo by Jeff McCoy.

Katie Rainsberger and Lauren Gregory ran shoulder-to-shoulder most of the 3.5K of the middle school state championships, but Rainsberger eventually pulled away for the win. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Leaving the pursuit in her wake, TCA senior Shelby Stableford ran to a winning time of 18:26. Photo by Paul Jaeger.

Kiah Leonard, Mercy Bowen, Betzabeth Garcia, Victoria Milano, and Birdie Hutton stake out an early lead at the Wiggins Invitational. In the end, Hutton would lead them all. Photo by Mario Garcia.

Elena Slavoski battled her way to a Tri-Peaks League title on Friday afternoon. Photo by Alan Versaw.

As we near the state championship, there are still a few teams making their moves.

Things are starting to settle in at the top as the end of invitational season draws near. Free content.

Monarch's girls and a few bold enough to run with them pass under the shade of an enormous tree at Saturday's Pat Patten Invitational in Boulder. Photo by Jeff McCoy.

Griffin Hay's 15:44 was just a whisker off the course record at the Fountain Creek Regional Park course. Photo by Alan Versaw.  

When you start looking at the top talent in Arizona, it's hard to miss Carter Macey and his Desert Vista teammates. And, although they took this past weekend off, they are taking the desert by storm. Photo by Margot Kelly.

Another week of action, and a little bit of rustling in the rankings...  Free Content.

Matt Galley and Ian Boucher controlled things at the front of the Salida Invitational throughout nearly the entire race. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Shea Martinez, Sarah Feeney, and Summer Harper work the front of the pack at the Murray Invitational in Utah. Photo submitted by Corbin Talley.

Liberty Bell brings a few teams up in this weeks rankings.

Although it's way too early to make hard predictions about who will get bids to the NXN-SW championship races, it's not at all too soon to look and see what's happening in the various states that may have implications for who might make it to the big dance.

There was a little bit of turmoil in the polls this week as some unexpected performances (both positive and negative) rolled in from the meets.

Niwot's Nick Harris chased down Broomfield's Ben Forsee for the individual title, but Broomfield won the boys' team title going away. Photo by Alan Versaw.

It's still early, very early, but it's time to start looking at which teams are positioning themselves for a bid to the championship races at NXN-SW.

Take a look at how our panel of coaches read the results of opening weekend.   Free Content.

You already know who you think the top teams are. Check out who our panel of coaches felt were the top teams in each classification. Free content.

Colorado Springs has been home to a lot of top cross country talent for a long time. Hannah Everson and Bryce Gregoire run in that tradition. Colorado Track XC file photos.

Rebecca Hermann has been part of three consecutive state titles at Nederland. It's Hermann's sayonara season this fall. Can the Panthers make it four? Photo by Alan Versaw.

Taylor Floming returns to help key another very strong Monarch team this fall. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Lindsey Stindt is one of the big reasons that neither Lyons nor Akron may come in as the 2A girls favorite next spring. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Sierra Williams of Cedaredge starts to establish a lead at about 40 meters into the 3A girls 100. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Last year, Andrew Proebstle and his Rifle teammates were competing in 4A. This year, they threaten to take over 3A. Contributed photo.

Following the scent of last year's trail that led to a state title, Clint Myers won the Tri-Peaks League shot put title. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Jose Salazar and Taylor Webb give Rifle a formidable 1-2 punch in both hurdle events. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Courtney Mills is currently creating a lot of concern for 3A rivals in the 200 meters, and a few other events as well. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Javonte Walker-Reese nails down the first of his three individual titles in the 110 Hurdles. Photo by Paul Jaeger.

Double Trouble: There aren't many places to hide when Markesh Woodson and Solyde Bankston take the track together. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Meredith Sloan came back from last year's state meet with three medals and steps into a big leadership role for TCA this spring. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Remember the big stories of 2010? This should help jog your memory.

Andrew Walton came on strong for Mountain Vista this fall, strong enough to be named the Colorado Track XC Male Freshman of the Year. Photo by Alan Versaw.  

Adam Avischious of The Classical Academy will be next fall's top returning finisher from the 3A state meet. Photo by Paul Jaeger.

Natalie Anderson led a stellar freshman class for Hotchkiss that brought the school its best finish at state since 2002. Photo by Alan Versaw.

A little bit of Portland in Phoenix... Tait Rutherford negotiates the water hazard at Toka Sticks Golf Course. Photo by Alan Versaw.

They're back, and they're relentless. They're the Fort Collins girls. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Cheyenne Mountain's boys executed a near-perfect patient pack strategy to dominate the Colorado 4A boys state championship. Photo by Alan Versaw.  

Late in the race, Josh Simkins and Adam Avischious (partly hidden behind Simkins) made the surge that would overtake Alamosa in the team race. Photo by Alan Versaw.

The lead pack early in the race looked like a Who's Who of 3A Girls Cross Country. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Danny Carney and Will Kincaid battle for position late in the 5A boys race. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Kirk Webb leads Monarch's boys to a regional title and into the state meet. Photo by Jeff McCoy.

Check out the final coaches' poll of the season!

Colleen Koenig's third-place finish helped to lead Arapahoe to the Centennial League title on Thursday. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Once Sydney Harris broke free from Kaiti Davis, there was no mystery about who would win the Tri-Peaks girls' title. Photo by Alan Versaw.

The Alamosa boys have consistently produced a great pack time this season, helping to make them a favorite for the 3A title. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Desmin Ramierez, Alex Pawlak, Gerardo Rodriguez, Nic de Herrera, and Jack Burger mix it up at the front of the pack at Friday's Pat Amato Classic. Photo by Kelli Noto.

It was a Who's Who of Colorado female high school cross country runners at the start of the Pat Patten Invite on Friday. Kelsey Lakowske, second from lett, sneaked away for the win. Photo by Jeff McCoy.

Early in the race Bryce Gregoire (center) had to wait for the excess energy of a few usurpers to burn off. Once that happened, he took over and never looked back. Photo by Alan Versaw.

New leaders in 4A and 5A girls highlights the changes in this week's rankings.

Rio Rancho's Caleb Rubalcaba had the weekend off, but has been running the competition ragged in New Mexico this fall. Photo contributed by Sal Gonzales.

Some of the year's surprising programs are working their ways steadily upwards in the rankings.

Josh Noriega continued his stellar season by winning the individual title at the Salida Invitational. Photo by Alan Versaw.  

Teams are starting to settle into places in the rankings just as Liberty Bell threatens to disrupt it all.

Columbine's Will Kincaid made it look easy at the Lori Fitzgerald Memorial. Photo by Alan Versaw.

TCA's Adam Warren and Fountain Valley's Sam Olvera took home the individual titles at the Joe Davis (Vista Ridge Invitational). Photos by Alan Versaw.

Check out where coaches across the state have top teams ranked!

Brandi Krieg is one of several seniors looking to take ownership of the 3A girls individual title in 2010. Photo by Alan Versaw.  

Following two consecutives years of disappointment at state, Sam Yeager leads Faith Christian in the quest to discover if three really is a charm. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Desert Dust Storm: Due to dessicated park conditions last fall, the start of the NXN-SW girls race raised a serious cloud of dust. Colorado Track XC file photo.

Rounding the final turn of the 800, it was Samantha Berggren and Emily LaValley. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Ben Hinckfoot opens a huge gap on the third leg of TCA's 4x400 relay. Photo by Alan Versaw.

It was fun and games last week as Adam Sinda offered up a little impromptu celebration at the end of the Jeffco 5A 800, but the intensity will be a few notches higher when the athletes next step onto the track. Photo by Clif Jurgens.

Garrett Smith and Lori Weirich of Eads have been on a roll of late. Each is atop of the 2A discus rankings. Photos contributed by John Weirich. Rocky Ford's Amber Lowther is a legitimate threat to win all three jump titles in 2A girls. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Cheyenne Mountain drops the first sub-8 4x800 of the season at the Coronado Cougar Classic. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Lindsey Hubbard, shown here en route to winning the 300 hurdles at last spring's state meet, is one of those athletes who will have to make some event choices prior to the state meet. Colorado Track XC file photo.

Beth Jones of Eaton is the defending state champion in both horizontal jumps, but is still waiting for the wind to cooperate for a legal long jump mark this season. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Geordan Brewer makes Cedaredge a threat in both hurdle events and in the sprint relays. Colorado Track XC  file photo.

Jonathan Wright and Stuart Shrum of Grand Junction come off the turn en route to a 1-2 finish in the 200 at the Sand Creek Invitational. Photo by Alan Versaw.

 From left; Alex Herring (Sr., Albuquerque NM,) Mile; Jaide Stepter (So., Canyon del Oro), 300 Hurdles; Riley Crosby (Sr., Centennial), Pole Vault and Shayla Simpson (Sr., Desert Vista) Pole Vault.

Cassidy Madison of Platte Valley, center, staged a mild upset to win the 100 meter dash in 11.73/-1.1. Photo by Alan Versaw.  

For the second week in a row, Fountain-Fort Carson's Solyde Bankston took home 100 meter honors for the Trojans. The timing system demons were caught napping this time, so the time counts. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Ben Hinckfoot, left, of The Classical Academy is the top returner in 3A in both the 110 and 300 meter hurdles. Colorado Track XC file photo.

Among 3A girls, nobody tosses the shot put farther than Megan Patterson. Colorado Track XC file photo.

 A quick little tour of the best of cross country and track and field in Colorado for the year 2009. Colorado Track XC file photo.

It will be a new set of legs going by next fall, but it's still the same sport scored the same way. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Colorado has sent a lot of individuals, and a lot of teams, to Foot Locker Nationals and NTN/NXN. More than you might think. Photo by Jeff Bliven.

Erin Hooker enjoyed the brightest moment yet of a very promising high school cross country career at NXN. Photo by Alan Versaw.

One week from now, 44 teams will be in Portland, and each with the dream of contending for the national championship of high school cross country. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Wade Meddles (Sierra Lutheran, Nevada) dominated the boys championship race at NXN-SW. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Eleanor Fulton starts to pull away from Julia Foster of Albuquerque Academy at 2.5 miles. Photo by Alan Versaw.

             

  Photo courtesy: John Olson, South Carolina Runner's  

Scott Fauble of Wheat Ridge finished an unbeaten season with a remarkable run to the 4A Boys title. Photo by Paul Jaeger.

Jordan Montera of Pueblo West battles Chad Palmer of Alamosa for position in the final quarter mile. Photo by Eric Flores.

After this, it's all about doing and nothing about what anyone thinks. Take a look and see how close you think the coaches are to getting it right!

Scott Fauble (Wheat Ridge), David Perry (Niwot), Connor Winter (Arapahoe), and Dusty Solis (Coronado) each rank among Colorado's top male runners. Photo by Cliff Jurgens.

Still undefeated on the season, Boulder's Kelsey Lakowske posted a huge win at the Front Range Conference meet in Loveland. Photo by Jim Lewis.  

An interesting phenomenon this week--every girls #1 team is a unanimous pick. Only Rocky Ford (2A) is among the boys.

Trophy Hunters - The Xavier Prep girls have been filling the case this fall. Photo by Margot Kelly.  

Rikki Gonzales of Rangeview posted a 15-second victory at Friday's Dave Sanders Invitational. Photo by Cliff Jurgens.

The matchup between TCA and Fort Collins was supposed to be a good one. It did not disappoint.. Photo illustration by Alan Versaw.

Sierra Lutheran's Wade Meddles, shown here at last year's NXN SW meet, had the NXN SW performance of the week, posting a 15:03 at the Stanford Invitational. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Coronado's Dusty Solis and Arapahoe's Connor Winter break away from the pack at Thursday's Coronado Cougar Classic. Photo by Mark Weeks.

William Kincaid of Columbine applies the heat to Denver South's Kidane Berhane as the first big climbs of the open space portion of the race begin. Photo by Alan Versaw.

It wasn't long into the girls race before Boulder and TCA were locking horns. Photo by Alan Versaw.

The preseason rankings for the Colorado Track XC Coaches Poll are in!

Chiara Del Piccolo, Johanna Reed, and Brandi Krieg gave western slope cross country fans plenty to cheer about last fall. They're all back this fall. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Nick Taylor, the top freshman in 3A boys cross country last fall, returns to key the hopes for Colorado Academy in his sophomore season. Photo by Alan Versaw.

The school year is over, and the final results are in. Check and see how your school did!

As meet officials look on, Boulder's Kelsey Lakowske nips Eleanor Fulton at the finish of the 5A 3200. Photo by Rick Wilson.  

This is what .006 seconds of difference at the finish line looks like. TCA's Emily LaValley and Kara Slavoski of St. Mary's will go at it again in the 800 at state. Photo by Paul Jaeger.

Briotto Niuller of Manitou Springs edges ahead of Rye's Jake Van for the Tri-Peaks 100 meter dash title. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Laura Tremblay split what is likely the fastest girls 800 in the state this season to take Thompson Valley to a 9:04.94 4 X 800, second fastest in the nation this spring. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Castle View's Aldric Brown goes low before going high over 6-6 on his way to clearing 6-9 on Friday evening. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Widefield's GinAsia Hamilton negotiates the turn of the 200 and heads toward victory. Photo by Alan Versaw.

Miss Diversification: the triple jump is just one of the things that Beth Jones does well for 3A power Eaton. She also runs a mean 800 and runs legs on relays. Photo by Alan Versaw.

The standings are compiled through all fall sports and spirit competitions. Check to see where your school stands!

The first thing you learn after the gun goes off is that this isn't just like any other race.

Eleanor Fulton raised a few eyebrows with a 17:45 finish for third place. Photo by Alan Versaw  

Muscle Activation Techniques (MAT) specialist Brad Carlson plies his trade on the muscles on one athlete's lower back...

The St. Vrain Invitational on September 6 offered the first glimpse into how special this team could become.

What do you do to keep things interesting while stretching down somewhere in the middle of your sixteenth week of formal cross country practice? Making snow midgets is good therapy...

 It doesn't get closer than this! Colorado senior Laura Tremblay (pictured left) edges out Arizona junior Jessica Tonn (pictured right) at the finish.  More photos and race video's coming soon!

Dart Schwaderer (Wheat Ridge, CO) passes Jon Nelson (Timpview, UT) on the final stretch to win the individual title of the boys championship race at NXN SW.

Each week here at MileSplit we will be giving you a quick look at four of the nation's best runners. Featured this week are Joash Osoro (ND), Alex Dunne (CA), Andrew Springer (RI) and Kaitlin Hanenburg (CO).

On the strength of its record-setting performance in winning the Sweepstakes race at the Mt. SAC Invitational, Saugus (CA) moves past Fayetteville-Manlius into the top spot in the team rankings.

Without a lights-out performance from sophomore Josh Simkins, TCA goes home with second place in 3A boys. Other state-champion teams have similar stories.

Coming off the hill at 1.8 miles, Walter Schafer and Evan Appel hold a small lead over Bobby Nicolls in the 5A boys race.

Late in the race, Kaitlin Hanenburg holds a slim lead over Kara Slavoski of St. Mary's in the 3A Region 2 girls race.  

At a meet where most competitors were running okay, but not spectacular, times, Joseph DeMoor took the Tri-Peaks League championship with a 15:51.

Amos Bowen of Brush is one a several top talents in the ranks of 3A boys.

Movin' out... Anna Marshall (far left) of Pueblo West and Emily Husted, Kassie Mazzocco, Shelby Stableford, and Kaitlin Hanenburg of The Classical Academy establish position at the start of the TCA Titan Thunder Invitational.

Falcon got a solid 2-3 finish from Wes Rickman and Kevin Johnson, above, but it wasn't enough for Falcon to prevent Fairview and Niwot from slipping into the top two places of the team standings.  

Frank Socha, Aaron Friedland, Sam Feldotto, and Victor Montoya go through the mile in the lead group at the Fountain-Ft. Carson Invitational.

Each Monday this fall we're going to bring you further highlights and results, as well as national news stories, that all are making an impact on the national cross country scene. Check out our first Weekly News & Notes of the season. (picture above by Alan Versaw)

TCA's Sam Feldotto opens up an early lead that he would never relinquish en route to winning the St. Vrain Invitational in 16:16.

Joseph Demoor, Steven Stoot, and Shawn Dubbs build an early lead together at the Vista Ridge Invitational.

  The committee coaches representing all classifications has cast their ballots and Colorado Track XC is pleased to present the 2008 preseason rankings.

Salida's Josh Noriega took another step in an already stellar season by winning the 3A Region 2 boys title in 16:31. Photo by Alan Versaw.