Individuals
There isn't much of a question that Niwot's Zane Bergen will want to cross the finish line first this year.
While he is the defending state champ, last year a sprint-finish trip led to Bergen crossing the finish line second. Though, the inevitable DQ moved him up to his rightful spot.
Needless to say, it's highly likely that Bergen will want to taste the sweetness of crossing the finish line before anyone else this year.
This year Bergen has run the fastest time in all-classifications - a 14:42 clocking at the Longs Peak League Meet just over a week ago. He backed that up this past weekend with a 15:19 4A Region 3 victory. Additionally, he's won every time he's run at full-strength.
But he'll have company.
Kaden Levings has put together an impressive season as well. The Cheyenne Mountain junior had a breakout race at the Liberty Bell Cross Country Invitational, which he won in 15:00. He added Pat Patten to his list of wins. Recently he finished fourth at the 4A Region 5 Championships, where teammate Erik Le Roux took the title.
Le Roux looks to be finding his stride right in time. He's long-sense been a threat in 4A, and while he's run as Cheyenne Mountain's 2-3 runner twice this season, he's coming off a victory at the 4A Region 5 Championships. He's run a season-best of 15:24 from Liberty Bell, and he's the No. 3 returner from the 2020 state meet.
Jackson Shorten chased Bergen at the Longs Peak League meet, and he was rewarded with a personal best of 14:59 - the No.2 time in the state. When Shorten and Levings raced at Liberty Bell, Shorten led much of the race before Levings kicked to claim the title. Recently Shorten ran away with the 4A Region 4 title in dominating fashion. He's won four out of six races this season, and is the No. 2 returner from the 2020 state meet.
If there is a Dark Horse, it's Connor McCormick.
The Longmont senior spent much of the season racing full-speed one week, then pumping the breaks for a workout the next. This ying/yang style of racing has sort of kept him off the radar, though when he's really raced at full-speed, there's no denying he's a threat. His best performance to date is his 14:55 runner-up finish at the Desert Twilight XC Festival, which was just five-seconds behind Bergen's winning time of 14:50. Add McCormick's 15:13 course record at D'Evelyn Dash as another impressive result. When you look at his season, his "on" races, he's never finished worse than second. He recently finished second to Shorten at the 4A Region 4 Championships.
Jake Bach is another runner who could be considered a Dark Horse. He finished third at Liberty Bell, five-seconds behind Levings in 15:05. He's won his last two races, including the 4A Region 2 title.
Two more runners in this long list of Who To Keep An Eye on are Durango's Land Lambert and Damian Frausto. They've been dominate on the western slope all season, and they finally went head-to-head with the best on the front range, finishing 2-3 at the 4A Region 5 Championships behind Le Roux.
Teams
It's not exactly a normal Saturday morning when the US No. 2 squad goes head-to-head with the US No. 3 squad (unless you live in Colorado...)
But that's what's tap for 12:20 p.m. this Saturday.
Two of the top-three squads in the entire country will battle for the boy's 4A team title, as US No. 2 Cheyenne Mountain and US No. 3 Niwot will clash at full-strength for the first time this season.
On paper - based on season bests - this one looks like it could be close.
Cheyenne Mountain recently won the 4A Region 5 title by putting their entire top-seven inside the Top-10, tallying 23 points. Add that their 1-5 split was an impressive 29-seconds.
Meanwhile, Niwot won the 4A Region 4 title by going 1-2, and putting their seven inside the Top-10 to tally 22 points.
These two squads have not raced each other at full-strength this season, adding a little more intensity to Saturday's clash.