Katie Bearup is one of several returning Ralston Valley Mustangs who threaten to upset the established order of things in the Jeffco 5A League. Photo by Paul Jaeger.
A generation ago, schools like Green Mountain and Wheat Ridge made the Jeffco League the most feared group of cross country teams in the state. More recently, the dominance of the Jeffco League has subsided, but there are signs afoot that the Jeffco League programs are once again on the rise.
At the 5A level, that evidence centers primarily around Lakewood, Dakota Ridge, Ralston Valley, and Arvada West. Dakota Ridge has been perennially strong over the last decade or so, and even owns a couple of state championships, but for the other schools, the prominence is a more recent development.
As week look ahead to 2014, there appears to be a very tight battle between Ralston Valley and Dakota Ridge shaping up at the top of the Jeffco 5A League. Ralston Valley actually finished well ahead of Dakota Ridge at s...