1. Dana Payonk, Lake Central
Payonk has been the rock on which the surging Lake Central dynasty was built. The senior has only been an All-Stater once but finished 26th as a sophomore. Payonk is the top returner by virtue of her fourth place finish at the state finals last year, though her track season (fifth in 4x800 and fifth in 3200) wasn’t as impressive as Waverly Neer of Culver, Alex Chitwood of Carmel or her teammate Megan Plenus. Still, Payonk’s dominance in many big races last year should give her status as the favorite entering the season.
2. Waverly Neer, Culver Academy
Neer is a three-time state runner-up on the track. There’s been a lot of hype regarding her cross country prowess since she was in eighth grade, though injuries have hampered her success a bit during her first two years of high school. Nevertheless, Neer has still finished in the top 25 at the state finals (23rd in ’07 and 14th in ’08) both seasons. Neer had arguably the most impressive track season of any distance runner in the spring but has yet to translate that success onto the grass.
3. Renee Wellman, Carmel
Last year’s freshman phenom, Wellman lived up to the hype she entered high school with. Wellman is used to running from the front. She won the ultra-competitive Carmel Sectional and Brebeuf Regional races before finishing fourth at the semistate and fifth at the state finals. Wellman’s track season was also fruitful as she turned a 1600/3200 double at the state meet, finishing seventh and tenth respectively. While she looks to be a legitimate title contender, Wellman may not even be the number one runner on her team every meet.
4. Jordan Chester, Boone Grove
Quietly among the best in the state, Chester is the number three returner from state meet results behind Payonk and Wellman. After a 16th place finish at the state meet as a freshman, Chester was even better in her sophomore campaign, finishing eighth in cross country and eighth in the 3200 in track.
5. Brianna Johnson, Fort Wayne Carroll
Johnson had a monster state meet, placing tenth after being absent or well back in most results through the season. In fact, despite the difficulty of the Laverne Gibson course at Indiana State, Johnson ran her best time of the postseason by 22 seconds. Johnson certainly has the talent to run with anyone in the state as she was fifth her freshman year in ’07. A fully healthy season and a loaded team could make her tough to beat.
6. Jasmine Al-Anzi, Franklin Central
Another star freshman from last season, Al-Anzi was setting courses on fire in the regular season. The Flash star also won a big duel against rival Siri Retrum at the Conference Indiana meet and placed second in the semistate. Al-Anzi suffered a bit of an off-day at the state meet, but still placed 17th. She could certainly challenge up front but a track season in which she didn’t advance to the state finals raises some questions.
7. Kate DeSimone, Fort Wayne Canterbury
DeSimone is the biggest wildcard heading into the season. She is the defending 1600 champion from the spring, and isn’t too bad on grass either, finishing 19th at last year’s state meet. Was the state title in the spring season the boost she needs to make the leap in cross country as well?
8. Kaisa Goodman, West Lafayette
Goodman takes over the reins at West Side after the graduation of two All-State teammates. She has finished 21st and 13th in her first two years. Like Al-Anzi and Johnson, Goodman was also absent from the state finals in track. How well she adapts to running without her former training partners will be interesting.
9. Siri Retrum, Columbus North
The more important the meet, the better the Bull Dog star seems to run. Retrum was 12th in the semistate and 15th in the state finals as a sophomore then fifth in the semistate and 11th in Terre Haute as a junior.
10. Autumn Beachy, DeKalb
Beachy was not an All-Stater in her junior campaign but was dominant at the New Haven Semistate. A solid regular season made Beachy appear to be among the five best runners at the state before a disappointing performance in Terre Haute. If Beachy can return to the form that made her the New Haven Semistate champion, she should be among the upper tier of girls in Indiana.
11. Ali Hochstetler, Bethany Christian
A two time All-Stater (19th in ’07 and 16th in ’08), Hochstetler is making her way up the totem pole of the state’s elite. Strangely enough, Hochstetler has been absent from tournament track results her first two years of high school. Still, the Bethany star always runs her best in the biggest races.
12. Alex Chitwood, Carmel
Chitwood had a good cross country campaign (ninth at the semistate and 25th at the state meet) and a phenomenal track season last year. The Greyhound mid-distance star anchored home the winning 4x800 meter relay in Bloomington, then returned to finish sixth in the 1600. With the ‘Hounds favored to win another title, Chitwood should be seen through most races with teammate Wellman.
13. Makayla Schultheis, Fishers
One of the best kept secrets in Indiana girls cross country, Schultheis doesn’t get a lot of attention among the message board faithful. Still, the Fishers frontrunner was brilliant in her freshman season, advancing solo through the rounds of a loaded path that culminated in a 23rd place finish at the state finals. Look for her sophomore season to be even better.
14. Molly Winters, Brebeuf
Winters advanced individually to the state finals last year, placing 20th. A star in both seasons, Winters just missed finishing All-State in the 1600 with a tenth place showing. Like Schultheis, Winters has to be on at every level of the tournament because her road is so competitive and she may not have a team to help her advance.
15. Kaylee McClanahan, Fort Wayne Carroll
One of the best sidekicks in Indiana, McClanahan should serve as a great second banana to teammate Johnson. She just missed finishing All-State in cross country (27th) and track (13th in 3200). With Carroll another podium contender, McClanahan looks likely to end her All-State drought.
16. Katelyn Devries, Valparaiso
The daughter of the legendary coach, Devries becomes the next in a line of legendary Valpo frontrunners like Marchand, Hardesty and Ranegar. As a freshman, Devries was hobbled at the end of the season but still finished 31st in Terre Haute as the Vikings returned to the podium. A healthy Devries could lead Valpo to another team title.
17. Dani Sullivan, Franklin Central
Sullivan was an important part of the Flashes’ third place team last year at the state finals but certainly wasn’t a star. That turned around in the track season when Sullivan finished fourth at the state meet in the 3200. There’s no way of knowing exactly how that success will translate on the grass, but Sullivan should certainly finish better than 54th as she did in Terre Haute last year.
18. Mary Davis, Indianapolis Chatard
Davis just missed All-State honors as a freshman, finishing 26th in Terre Haute before a solid track season. With the experience of two state meets, Davis looks to improve on her freshman campaign.
19. Nicole Lucas, Bloomington South
Lucas didn’t run very well at the state meet (36th) but was the semistate champion of the south. The South sophomore was also a state finalist in the 3200.
20. Helen Willman, Noblesville
Willman was one of two highly-touted freshman last season and didn’t disappoint, leading Noblesville back to the state meet. As an 800 specialist in track, Willman doesn’t have a lot of results base her progress on from the spring. She should be the number one runner on a potential state championship team.
21. Megan Plenus, Lake Central
Plenus had a rough season last year due to some injuries, but was able to persevere enough to lead Lake Central to another runner-up team finish. She had a great spring season, finishing second in the 800 at the state finals. Though her junior campaign was less than ideal, Plenus is a two-time All-Stater (23rd in ’06 and 25th in ’07).
22. Alissa Peterson, West Noble
Peterson was 29th in ’07 and 35th in ’08. Could this be the year she finishes in the top 25? A sixth place finish in 18:35 at the semistate illustrates a lot of potential. Peterson has a great training partner in twin sister Rachel, who was 28th in the state meet in ’07.
23. Sofie Etienne, Heritage Hills
By virtue of her 29th place finish at the state meet, Etienne was the top finisher from the south. However, she was absent from track results.
24. Terra Norman, Portage
Norman had an off-race at the state meet but was eighth at the New Prairie Semistate, ahead of Waverly Neer and Katelyn Devries. She ran decent track teams but fell victim to a highly competitive sectional.
25. Skylair Hilton, Northridge
A newcomer last year, Hilton was an All-Stater in her first year. However, she was absent from track results and word on the street is that she may not be on the roster this season. If she does run and is in the same shape, Hilton should once again be in the top 25.