Top 5 Teams
1. Lowell: Five of the seven runners who helped Lowell finish a Region-best 11th at the 2017 state meet are back, including the 1-2-3 punch of senior Jordyn Boyer, senior Annalise James and junior Brooke Hayden. Additional depth from senior Claire Mitsch and junior Alexia Bibakis should have the Red Devils near the top of the team standings all season.
More Top Picks Flare
2. Valparaiso: Logan Ferngren, who finished eighth at state last year, is now at Butler. But coach Boomer Nellessen still has plenty of talent coming back, including junior Ava Gilliana, who was a 2017 semistate runner-up in cross country and a state runner-up in the 1,600 meters during track. Sophomore twins Emily Worthington and Sarah Worthington, along with classmate Hannah Fitzgerald, return after all three were varsity fixtures as freshmen.
3. Crown Point: Senior Anna DeMars, junior Maddie Russin and sophomore Jaelyn Burgos give Bulldogs coach Ali Florek a consistent, reliable top three. Key to Crown Point’s success will be completing the top five from returning runners like junior Victoria Bozinovski, sophomore Catherine Koteski and sophomore Elizabeth Leitzel.
4. Chesterton: Senior Shelby Bullock leads the way after a breakout junior season that ended with a 13th-place finish at the state meet. With the rest of its top four — senior Kara Krol, sophomore Nalani Malackowski and sophomore Taylor Edwards — all in the lineup again, the Trojans could improve upon their 16th-place finish at state.
5. Lake Central: At last year’s New Prairie Semistate, Lake Central finished seventh, just one spot shy of qualifying for state. But six of the seven runners from that team return, including the top three of junior Hannah Roth, junior Rachel Kujawa and senior Gabrielle DeVries.
Top 10 Runners
Maria Blaesing, Munster, junior; Jordyn Boyer, Lowell, senior; Shelby Bullock, Chesterton, senior; Jaelyn Burgos, Crown Point, sophomore; Ava Gilliana, Valparaiso, junior; Brooke Hayden, Lowell, junior; Annalise James, Lowell, senior; Hailey Orosz, Wheeler, sophomore; Maddie Russin, Crown Point, junior; Holly Shaginaw, Hobart, senior.
Dave Melton is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.