10 CLASS 2A GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY RUNNERS TO WATCH IN 2024
 

 
AVERY BOYDSTON, ELLIS

Boydston was a contender for a state championship last year as a sophomore. She was runner-up at the 2A state meet with a personal-best 19:16.10 with Madison Howland from Smith Center winning in 18:38.40. Her performance at state was a school record. Boydston won or finished second in all eight of her races last year. Her victories came at Hoxie, Ness City, Larned, Trego and Quinter. She took fourth at state in cross country as a freshman. In track, Boydston was the 2A runner-up in the 1,600 and 3,200 last spring.
 

 
ROSE BUCK, EUREKA

Buck backed up a solid freshman season with an even stronger sophomore campaign in 2023, winning four races and finishing sixth at the Class 2A state meet for her second career top-10 finish in the season finale. One of two individual state qualifiers for the Tornadoes along with classmate Britta Mongeau, Buck got there by resetting her 5K school record with a time of 19:06.94 to win the Southeast-Cherokee regional. She opened last fall with a win at the Clearwater Invitational, and added victories at the Eureka Invitational and Tri-Valley League meet. Buck, who finished ninth at the Class 3A meet as a freshman, has battled shin splints during the preseason, according to coach Tony Denner, and could miss an early meet or two.
 

 
ELLIE CALLAWAY, REPUBLIC COUNTY
 
Callaway has made leaps and bounds improvement throughout her first three years at Republic County. She went from not being a state qualifier as a freshman to finishing 48^th as a sophomore. Last year’s jump was even more significant as not only did Callaway earn a state medal, but she cracked the top 120 with a seventh-place finish in Class 2A. Callaway’s time of 20:13.40 was a PR by 27 seconds and was just the second time she’d gone under 21 minutes in her career. She had only gone under 23 minutes twice as a sophomore, but spent her entire junior year with times of 21:41.70 or better, including a victory at the Ellsworth Invitational and runner-up finishes at the Buffaloes’ home meet and her 2A regional.
 

 
QUINLYN FUNK, HILLSBORO

Funk has been the Trojans’ lead runner each of her first two seasons, helping Hillsboro finish eighth in Class 2A in 2022 and ninth last fall. She earned her second individual state cross country medal, finishing 11^th at Wamego Country Club in 20:41.50 – almost 27 seconds faster than her state debut, when she finished ninth. The addition of Riley Richert last season gave Hillsboro a solid 1-2 punch. Funk ran a personal-best time of 20:39.30 in a runner-up finish at the Sterling Invitational, just ahead of Richert, whose 20:39.90 was the best of her freshman season. Both have the potential to target Hillsboro’s school record of 20:04.30 set by Quinlyn’s older sister, Emersyn, in 2021.
 

 
MIA HAMILTON, SACRED HEART
 
After two straight third-place team showings in Class 2A, Sacred Heart broke through for its first state title since 2004 with Hamilton leading the way. A freshman a year ago, Hamilton only raced in three regular-season races, taking seventh at the Abilene Invitational to start the season before missing a month with a injury. She returned in early October as strong as ever and finished the season by improving her time in every single race. Hamilton finished fifth at her Class 2A regional in 21:47.50 and then took nearly a full minute off that time at state with a 20:49.20, earning her a 14^th-place finish. She was Sacred Heart’s only medalist and with Sacred Heart’s next three state finishers all having graduated, Hamilton will be the unquestioned leader as the Knights go after a repeat.
 

 
MADISON HOWLAND, SMITH CENTER

Howland was simply outstanding in her freshman season, emerging as one of the top distance runners in the state. She won seven of her eight races with a runner-up at the Rim Rock classic. Howland capped things off with a 2A state championship, finishing in a personal-best time of 18:38.40, which is a school record. She won by 38 seconds over runner-up Avery Boydston from Ellis. Howland continued her big freshman year by excelling in track as well, winning the 1,600 and 3,200 titles in 2A. She was undefeated in the 3,200 and 1,600 as a freshman and was runner-up in the 800 at state. This summer, she competed with the Kansas Flyers at the USATF Junior Olympics and is the national champion in the 1,500 (4:35) and 3,000 (10:03) for the 15-16 year old division.  

 
KATIE INWOOD, STERLING

Inwood’s arrival last season helped Sterling climb from a seventh-place finish at the Class 2A state meet in 2022 to third last October. She was one of three Black Bear individual medalists with a 10^th-place finish, behind now-graduated standout Faith Ekart (4^th) and ahead of returning junior Julia Kilgore (15^th). Inwood finished second to Ekart in her first high school meet, the St. John Invitational, with a sub-21 minute time and bookended her freshman campaign with another (20:30.80) at state. Sterling keeps school records for all of the courses it runs, and Inwood set program bests for freshmen at Stafford Country Country Club and Lawrence’s Rim Rock Farm. She was part of Sterling’s 1,600-meter relay team that finished fifth in 2A at the state track meet.
 

TAEGAN LINDENMAN, HOXIE

Lindenman is one of several strong runners in the Mid-Continent League, putting together a solid sophomore season last year. She finished in the top eight of all eight of her races last season. She crossed eighth in the 2A state meet with a personal-best time of 20:13.50, finishing in that spot for the second straight year. Lindenman delivered runner-up showings at the Quinter and TMP-Marian invites last year. She took third at the 2A regional meet in Meade. Lindenman has one career race victory, capturing the Norton meet as a freshman.

 

 
CHELSEA WILLOUR, REMINGTON

Consistency has helped Remington’s girls finish second at the Class 2A state meet each of the last four seasons, and Willour’s contributions in her first two years have aligned perfectly. Despite tripping on a downhill stretch in her state debut in 2022, Willour recovered to finish 12^th. She again led the Broncos at state last October, finishing ninth in a time of 20:14.30. The junior’s personal best of 20:09.01 came a week earlier in a third-place finish at the Southeast-Cherokee regional and helped the Broncos take the team title. It also put her about 31 seconds shy of Remington’s 5K record. Willour posted her first career victory at the Bennington Invitational and was runner-up to Sterling’s Faith Ekart at the Heart of America League meet. Willour, whose average 5K time was 20:54 last season, set Remington’s school record in the 3,200 (12:03.03) at the state track meet and was part of the Broncos’ school-record setting 3,200-meter relay team in 2023.
 

 
PAYTON WURTZ, WABAUNSEE
 
What was supposed to be a coronation season for Wurtz last fall instead turned into a bit of a disappointment. The Class 2A state runner-up to Stanton County’s Chesney Peterson – one of the state’s all-time greats in any classification – Wurtz went into the 2023 as arguably the favorite to be the heir apparent to the crown. But she battled physical injuries as well as some mental hurdles and though she had a strong season, it wasn’t quite what she nor anyone really expected. She did come away with wins in four of her five meets leading up to state, but was nowhere near her best times from her junior season when she ran a personal best and school record 19:21.93. Wurtz’s best last year was more than 30 seconds slower, a 19:53.80 that earned her fifth at the 2A state meet. Wurtz bounced back with a big spring that saw her win the first state golds of her career, three in fact as she won the 2A 800 and led Wabaunsee’s 1,600 and 3,200 relays to wins.