CLASS 1A GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY RUNNERS TO WATCH IN 2025
 

 
AVERY BOYDSTON, ELLIS

Boydston is the reigning Class 1A champion, clocking a 19:32 to win the state title as a junior. She took fourth in 2A as a freshman and was the runner-up in that class as a sophomore before Ellis moved down to 1A last year. She dominated last year’s state meet in Wamego, winning by nearly a minute over runner-up Harper Newcome from Hutchinson Central Christian, while Northern Heights’ Ellei McCory took third after winning the 1A title as a freshman in 2023. Boydston won every race of her junior season with the exception of the Wamego Invitational when she took second. Her personal best (18:44.67) came at the regional meet in Great Bend. She delivered a tremendous track season last spring, winning the 1,600 and 3,200.
 

JAILYN BRANDL, GREELEY COUNTY

Brandl was one of several standout freshmen in Class 1A last season, securing a state medal with a 12th-place finish in Wamego. She was the Northwest Kansas League champion and also took first in the Greeley County Invitational. Her personal record of 20:42.70 came in the Central Prairie League meet in which she finished second. Brandl placed in the top five in all seven regular season races last year.
 

MIA CENICEROS, ASHLAND

Ceniceros will look to get back into medal position this year as a senior. She slipped back to 30th at the 1A meet last year after taking 13th in 2023. She set her personal record at the regional meet at Brown Thrush Park in Wichita with a 20:12.75. That was one of six top-five finishes for Ceniceros last year. In track, Ceniceros has broken the school record in the  3,200-meter run – currently 11:54.30 – five different times and also owns Ashland’s 1,600 record (5:27.35).
 

 
JACEE DEGES, SOUTH GRAY

Deges has played an instrumental role in South Gray’s run of three consecutive state championships. She has captured a state medal in each of her three high school seasons – eighth as a junior, sixth as a sophomore and 15th as a freshman. The Rebels will rely heavily on Deges after graduating two key leaders from last year in Kylie Stapleton and Gywn Jantz. Deges delivered four top-finishes last year and was the runner-up at the SPIAA meet. Her personal record is a 20:24.90 she ran as a sophomore.

 

 
STEPHANY ESPARZA, NESS CITY

Esparza has been a model consistency for the Eagles, placing 14th at the state meet in each of the last two years. She finished in the top five in every race last year besides the state meet. Esparza delivered her personal record at the regional meet in Great Bend with a 20:12.29. The Eagles will get a big boost from the addition of Taegin Liggett, a track and field state champion who has opted to join the cross country team for her senior season while also playing volleyball. Esparza and Liggett are expected to form a strong 1-2 punch.
 

 
TRYSTAN HARROLD, PRATT-SKYLINE
 
Harrold, a senior, scored her Class 1A state cross country meet breakthrough last season, finishing 19^th in the rain and mud at Wamego Country Club. It was the first individual state medal for Harrold, who finished in 22:19.48 a week after she ran a personal-best 5K of 21:30.39 while taking seventh at the Wichita regional. Harrold, the Thunderbirds’ lone girls qualifier last season, ran in her third state meet. She finished 39^th as a freshman and 30^th as a sophomore. Harrold is coming off a season in which she posted seven top-10 finishes, matching her regional finish with seventh-place efforts at the Smoky Valley Invitational and Larned’s Abby Trapp-Prescott Classic. 
 

 
CADY HEMPHILL, ATTICA
 
Hemphill, the Class 1A runner-up to Northern Heights’ Ellei McCrory in 2023, had a disappointing end to her junior season. She was unable to finish her third state meet on the rainy, muddy day and headed to the medical tent at Wamego Country Club. Hemphill was on the short list of contenders after finishing third a week earlier in the Wichita regional. Hemphill, who runs with Chaparral in a cooperative arrangement, also had the start of her senior campaign delayed by a running-related injury, but coaches are hopeful she can start workouts in early September. Hemphill is a two-time 1A cross country medalist, finishing 19^th as a freshman. 
 

 
CHEYENNE HOETING, STOCKTON

Last year was a breakthrough season for Hoeting, who earned her first state medal with a 15th-place effort in Wamego, finishing in 22:09.93. She clocked her personal-best time of 20:38.70 at the Beloit Invitational. Her best finish was a runner-up showing at the Smith Center Invitational.
 
 

 
BRECK LOHR, ST. FRANCIS

After missing out on a state medal by one spot as a sophomore in 2023, Lohr made sure she didn’t leave Wamego empty handed last year. She secured her medal with a 17th-place showing, finishing in 22:13.99. Her personal record is a 22:13.99, which she set at the regional meet in Great Bend. Lohr’s best finishes last year were sixth-place showings at meets in Hoxie and Oberlin.  ELLEI MCCRORY, NORTHERN HEIGHTS
 
McCrory burst onto the scene as a freshman in 2023 when she went undefeated the entire season and ranked among the state’s top runners, posting a career-best time of 17:48.02 at the Osage City Invitational. McCrory left the 1A field far behind in capturing the state title that year, winning by nearly a full minute in 18:30.70. With the bar set extremely high for her sophomore year, McCrory saw a battle with RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport) hamper her throughout the season. She competed in just five meets and though she won three of them, including her second straight titles and the Wamego and Osage City Invitationals and Class 1A regional, her times were considerably slower than her freshman season. She battled her way to a third-place finish at state, running nearly two minutes slower than her winning time as a freshman. McCrory continued to battle RED-S during track, but hopes to be ready to return to her freshman performance level this season.
 

 
ADILYN MEIER, GOLDEN PLAINS

Meier was one of two standout freshmen last year for the Bulldogs, along with Elizabeth Weiner. She joined Weiner in the top 10 at state, placing ninth with a 21:37.69. Meier produced six top-five finishes last season and set her personal best with a 21:14.14 at the regional meet in Great Bend. Her top finish was a second-place effort at the Hoxie Invitational. Meier and Weiner will look to form another strong 1-2 punch as sophomores.  

 
HANNAH NELSON, THUNDER RIDGE

Nelson made the most of her first trip to the state meet, securing a medal with a 16th-place finish in 22:10.53. Her personal-best run was a 21:46.90 at the regional meet in Sabetha. Now a junior, Nelson also earned a pair of top-five finishes at the Smith Center and Stockton meets.

 

 
PEYTON SCHMIDT, COLONY-CREST
 
While classmate Josie Walter has unquestionably been Crest’s No. 1 runner each of the past three seasons, Schmidt has pretty much been her shadow in the No. 2 spot and somewhat quietly put together a very successful career. Schmidt is a three-time state placer, taking 14th as a freshman before moving up to 10th as a sophomore. Last year, she moved into the top 10 and finished seventh in 21:17.86. Schmidt finished as the Three Rivers League runner-up to Walter and finished her junior season with top 10 finishes at every meet except for the Rim Rock Classic and ended up with five top fives. Her career-best time came during her sophomore season when she posted a 19:53.49 in winning the title at the Pleasanton, Invitational, her only career victory. Schmidt and Water led Crest to a runner-up team finish to South Gray in Class 1A each of the past two seasons and with two other qualifiers also returning this year, the Lancers could make a push for the crown this fall.
 

 
LILLY SKALSKY, OLPE

A dual-sport fall athlete who also doubles as one of the Eagles’ top volleyball players, Skalsky makes the most of her limited opportunities in cross country. She only ran in five races last fall and placed in the top 10 at each of them. Skalsky won the title at the Burlington Invitational and took fifth at the Eagles’ 1A regional meet before capping her season with a 10th-place finish at state. Skalsky didn’t run as a sophomore in 2023, but was fourth at state as a freshman in 2022, winning three races including the Lyon County League title that season. Her career-best time also came her freshman year with a 20:13.
 

 
JOSIE TIFFANY, NORTHERN HEIGHTS

Even though she ran 11 seconds slower at state last year than she did in 2023, Tiffany went from being just a state qualifier to a state placer, climbing 15 spots from 33rd as a freshman to  18th last year as a sophomore. Tiffany had a trio of top-10 finishes last season with her third-place showing at the 1A regional meet her best outing of the year. Not just in place, but also in time as she posted a career-best mark of 20:59.60. Tiffany and classmate Ellei McCrory, the 2023 individual state champion, give Heights a strong combo at the top of its roster and with two others returning from last year’s state team, the Wildcats could make a move up the team standings this fall.
 

 
JOSIE WALTER, COLONY-CREST
 
Walter has been one of the best runners in Class 1A since her arrival as a freshman in the fall of 2022. She finished third at state that year, capping a standout freshman season in which she won two races and never finished lower than fourth at any meet. Walter avoided the sophomore slump and captured her first Three Rivers League crown and finished top five at seven of her eight meets and top 10 at all of them, placing fifth at state. Walter picked up two more victories last year, defending her league title and also winning the Fort Scott Invitational. She capped the season with her second straight fifth-place finish at state, helping lead Crest to its second straight Class 1A runner-up finish to South Gray. Teaming with classmate Peyton Schmidt to give the Lancers a strong 1-2 punch, Walter will look to lead Crest to its first state title this fall.
 

 
ELIZABETH WEINER, GOLDEN PLAINS
 
Weiner will look to build off an impressive freshman season that ended with a sixth-place state medal. Adilyn Meier gave the Bulldogs another top-10 finisher by placing ninth. Weiner’s personal best is a 20:14.66 that she set at the regional meet in Great Bend. She finished in the top five in every meet besides the 1A meet last season. Weiner won the Quinter Invitational with a 21:57.86.  NOTE: Classifications for the 2025-26 school year had not been released at the time of publication. Runners featured could potentially fall into a different classification once those have been determined.