Southeast of Saline. They have more titles than any program in 3A history. Their fans travel better than anyone in all classes. Their program is as good as it's ever been. Their ace is undefeated on the year, challenged only by his own teammates.
And yet, they're the underdog.
This is in reference to their boys, who stand in the shadow of a looming giant. Their girls are a juggernaut themselves, touting many of those same accolades, and will be the favorite at Rim Rock this weekend. The boys, however, are the David to the Goliath of Wichita Trinity.
The Trinity Knights, when fully healthy, are the greatest small-school team ever assembled. Led by the #3 runner in the country, Clay Shively, it's hard to imagine a world where this team doesn't win a 3A title. The Achillies heel this season has been staying healthy, though. To start the season, Wes Ferguson and Caleb Tofteland were out. Tofteland has returned to form, but Ferguson's status remains in question. When your school has less than 300 students, you can't just go find another 16:30 guy. Trinity needs all of their best runners this postseason, and if they don't, that leaves just enough of an opening for David to take his shot.
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Southeast of Saline will counter with a lethal lead pack of their own. After going 1-2-3-4 at the Council Grove Regional, and not losing a meet all year, this team carries a big stick, too. Brayden Walker is now 8-0 on the season, making him a certain low-stick in the team points. Levi Allen, Cayden Walker, and Jacob Bircher are all within 20 seconds of him, and their #5, Ben Grauerholz, is only another 30 seconds back from that, so their spread stays under 1:00.
The clear #3 team is Holcomb, who took care of business at the Great Bend Regional. The Longhorns, led by Brody Deniston, are the best of the West, and are also undefeated on the year. It's unlikely that they will fall to Marysville or Girard this weekend.
The top teams bring a lot to the individual race, too. Clay Shively and Sam Ferguson are the favorites to go 1-2. Walker & Deniston will likely be among the leaders, with Nemaha Central's John Langill, Collegiate's Will Meyer, and Marysville's Silas Miller alongside.
Now, back to Southeast of Saline's girls. They have embraced the Olathe West strategy of burying everyone with depth and not worrying about a frontrunner. Their performance at regionals was evidence of this, where at one point they had the 7th-14th spots. Nobody up front, but very clearly the best team. They didn't quite finish as compact, but still had a 36-second pack time with 3 in the top-10. Notably, that Council Grove Regional had most of the best individuals, so it wouldn't be shocking for the Trojans to closely replicate that this weekend at State.
Along with the Trojans, Cheney, Norton, and Riley County were crowned regional champions. Each of them will challenge for the podium, along with West Franklin & Wichita Trinity, who finished runner-up to SE Saline & Cheney, respectively.
Individually, Bree Allen of Prairie View is a heavy favorite. After winning XC, the 800, 1600, and 3200 last year, she's the face of 3A right now. Her two best races of the season were at the Rim Rock Classic and regionals this past weekend. Late-season success combined with excellence at Rim Rock could lead to something special on Saturday. Joining her among the 3A elites are Cimarron's Janae Fugitt and Wichita Trinity's Emily Hein, both crowned regional champions last Saturday. Hesston's Ashley Lehman was runner-up to Allen at state last year, and Osage City's Emory Speece also has top-10 experience at the state level.