Breaking Down the Class 4A Girls State Cross Country Meet
Class 4A
Where: Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge
When: Friday, 2 p.m.
Qualifying teams: *Waukee Northwest; West Des Moines Valley; Ames; *Dubuque Senior; Dubuque Hempstead; Cedar Falls; *Ankeny Centennial; Dallas Center-Grimes; Davenport Central; *Pleasant Valley; City High; Waukee; *Johnston; Ankeny; Des Moines Roosevelt
*-state qualifying meet champions
Individual state qualifying meet champions: Ella Jones, Fr., Waukee Northwest; Charlee Gall, Fr., Cedar Falls; Piper Messerly, Soph., Dallas Center-Grimes; Ani Wedemeyer, Sr., Pleasant Valley; Alyx Woodley, Jr., Johnston
2023 top five: 1. Johnston; 2. West Des Moines Valley; 3. Dallas Center-Grimes; 4. Pleasant Valley; 5. Dubuque Senior
Last five team champions: 2023 – Johnston; 2022 – Dubuque Hempstead; 2021 – Dubuque Hempstead; 2020 – Johnston; 2019 – Johnston
Returning state placewinners: 4. Nakia Ollivierre, Jr., Waterloo West; 5. Drew Beason, Sr., Ankeny; 6. Piper Messerly, Soph., Dallas Center-Grimes; 8. Claire Helmers, Sr., Ames; 9. Anika Mohrhauser, Sr., Ankeny Centennial; 12. Ani Wedemeyer, Sr., Pleasant Valley; 14. Michelle McConkey, Jr., Waukee; 15. Klaire Lietz, Sr., West Des Moines Valley
Top ranked teams: 1. Pleasant Valley; 2. Johnston; 3. Dubuque Senior; 4. Ankeny Centennial; 5. Waukee Northwest
Ranked area teams: No. 7 City High
Top ranked individuals: 1. Piper Messerly, Soph., Dallas Center-Grimes; 2. Anika Mohrhauser, Sr., Ankeny Centennial; 3. Charlee Gall, Fr., Cedar Falls; 4. Nakia Ollivierre, Jr., Waterloo West; 5. Alyx Woodley, Jr., Johnston
Ranked area individuals: No. 28 Abigail Burns, Jr., City High
Team title race: This is shaping up as a showdown between defending champion Johnston and top-ranked Pleasant Valley.
Johnston has ruled 4A for much of the last decade winning three of the last five and six of the last 10 4A titles.
Pleasant Valley was fourth a year ago and has been impressive all season, including last week when it had the top four finishers and scored a 4A-best 17 points at the state qualifying meet.
Look for City High, Ankeny Centennial and Dubuque Senior to battle for the final spot on the balcony at Lakeside Golf Course.
Individual title tracker: The Class 4A girls race should be among the best of the weekend with as many as five individuals (and possibly more) fully capable of vying for the 4A crown.
Waterloo West junior Nakia Ollivierre is the top returner after placing fourth last season.
Dallas Center-Grimes sophomore Piper Messerly was sixth in her state debut a year ago and enters top-ranked while Ankeny Centennial senior Anika Mohrhauser was ninth last season and is ranked second.
Cedar Falls freshman Charlee Gall has already beaten Ollivierre twice in the last month including at the state qualifying meet last week and should be right in the title mix. Area breakdown: City High has come on strong at the right time posting consecutive runner-up finishes at the Mississippi Valley Conference Super Meet, the Valley Divisional and the state qualifying meet.
City High was eighth at the state meet last season and will look to improve on that finish with four of its top five finishers from last season returning.
Junior Abigail Burns was 41st at the state meet last season and will look to push for a top-15 finish.
Seniors Nina and Nicole Petersen have been multi-year contributors for the Little Hawks and will seek strong finishes to their careers.
Keep an eye on sophomore Grace Hamann who made her state debut a year ago and freshman Eliza Doster and Calissa Fruin who have come on strong down the stretch for City High.
West High and Liberty High each have a pair of individual qualifiers.
Liberty High sophomore Chelsea VeDepo and senior Mimi Marquardt will each make their state meet debuts on Friday.
West High sophomore Susanna Olson returns to the state meet after placing 73rd a year ago while junior Kate Van Waning is back at state after placing 100th last season.
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