2023 KSHSAA 2A State Cross Country Preview

It's been the story all year long.

The 2A saga in 2023 has been one for the ages, with teams from every corner of the state dominating their territory all season long. Now, the postseason has arrived, and those empires have started to clash. Hoxie & Meade, the boys' contenders from the Northwest and Southwest, locked horns at the Meade Regional, where the home team emerged victorious.

Central Heights similarly took care of business with Berean Academy & Kansas City Christian at the Southeast Regional. Hutchinson-Trinity dominated the Regional at Buhler, setting those 3 regional champions up as the podium favorites.

The highly-regarded Marion boys found themselves on the outside looking in after falling to 4th place by 1 point at the Council Grove Regional. Chase County took advantage of the upset and was crowned regional champions. The final showdown at Wamego will be one to remember.

Central Heights looks to be a slight favorite, followed by Meade, then Hutch-Trinity, but each of these teams have had success all year long. They all have the 'it' factor, but only one can be state champions.

2A Team Computer Rankings    |    2A Individual Computer Rankings

For the girls, the major clash lies in the individual battle. All four regional champions have a reasonable claim to the best runner in 2A. First up is the heir to the throne: Wabaunsee's Payton Wurtz. She finished runner-up to Chesney Peterson eight times at the state level. With Peterson gone, Wurtz was the heir-apparent to 2A. She started the season with a bit of an injury, but has returned to form, most recently with a win at the Council Grove Regional. Her ascension won't go unopposed, however, as others have entered the fray seeking the title of 2A Queen.

Hotshot freshman Madison Howland of Smith Center just had her best race of the season at the Meade Regional. She is the only one this year to defeat Avery Boydston of Ellis, and has only lost to 5A standout Ryin Miller of Seaman. It isn't out of the ordinary for freshman girls to perform well at state, so watch out for this one.

Dropping to 2A at the midpoint of the season, Eureka brings in sophomore Rose Buck. The Tri-Valley champion has only lost to 3A standout Bree Allen, and handily won the Southeast Regional on Saturday. Buck is a gutsy runner, and will certainly be in the mix late in the race. Her style may even thrive on the tough Wamego course.

Another thing that thrives on tough courses? Strength. Who has strength? 800-meter runners. That includes the Buhler Regional Champion, Faith Ekart of Sterling. The one event that Wurtz didn't finish runner-up in was the 800. That silver medal belonged to Ekart. The Sterling girls are strong, and Faith Ekart has the speed to finish the job at the end. She just needs the aerobic ability to be in the neighborhood for the final kick. After winning her regional race by over a minute, it looks like that could be a very real possibility.

Team-wise, Sterling is in the mix for the podium, too. There are one of four teams that have gone back and forth during the second half of the season.

Remington beat Sacred Heart. Then Berean Academy & Sterling beat Remington. Then Sacred Heart beat Sterling and Remington beat Berean Academy. If that tells anything, it's that this one's anybody's race.

The boys individual race will feature a variety from each region, similar to the team race. Three pairs of teammates went 1-2 at various regions in 2A. Ell Saline's duo of Carson Fouard and Garrison Zerger, KC Christian's duo of Andrew Schumacher and Spencer Mumford, and Meade's 1-2 punch of Logan Keith and Ryker Vieux. All of those have a shot at top-10, along with the fourth regional champion, Silus Hernandez of Chase County, and the Central Heights pack of Owen Miller, Cody Hammond, and Connor Burkdoll.