Full 2015 Kansas Coaches' Cross Country Jim Maska Pre-season Poll - click here

The cross country season gets underway on Thursday for some area teams and in anticipation of the season the preseason rankings have been released and six Northeast Kansas area teams will start the season ranked in the Classes of 4A, 3A, 2A and 1A, while 10 more are receiving votes to start the season. 

Plenty of top notch area runners return in all the classifications and Class 1A will be filled with many solid runners hailing from the Twin Valley League. The lady Panthers of Centralia are starting this season preseason ranked third in the Top seven in Class 1A after coming off a third place team performance at State last year. Junior, Sadie Jones returns to lead the Panthers after placing eighth at State last year. For the boys the Frankfort Wildcats will start the season preseason ranked fifth, after finishing fifth last year at State and will be led by a returning sophomore in Broderic Shirley who finished sixth at State last year. 

The Valley Heights and Wetmore boys each received votes in the opening 1A boys cross country poll and both teams bring back a Top 20 State finisher from last year as juniors, Adrian Pishny and Aaron Achten are back from the Mustangs and Cardinals, respectively. Valley Heights also finished seventh as a team at State last year. (Axtell Eagle junior, Burke Deters also returns after placing 14th at State last year) The Clifton-Clyde Eagle boys and girls cross country teams both picked up votes in the initial Class 1A polls. 

Going into the season Class 2A won't have any area teams in the Top seven of the rankings but both the Washington County and Jefferson County North boys teams are receiving votes to start the year after finishing ninth and 11th at State last year. (JCN and Washington County girl/s teams also made State last year)

Class 3A is loaded with top notch area cross country teams and teams that did well last year that return key runners this year. On the girls side three Northeast Kansas teams are in the preseason Top seven with Hiawatha leading the way as they are preseason ranked second after a second place finish at State last year. ACCHS and Maur Hill-Mount Academy girls will head into the season preseason ranked fifth and tied for seventh, respectively. The Tigers finished last year with a fifth place finish at State and senior, Madison Bissell returns after placing eighth at State last year. 

For the boys in Class 3A the Pleasant Ridge Rams notched a second place finish at State last year and are preseason ranked third to start this year, as ninth place State finisher sophomore, Luke Oatney returns for the Rams. (Hiawatha senior, Brandt Houk also returns after a fifth place finish at State last year and Sabetha junior, Keegan Cox returns after a 18th place at State last year)

Both the Sabetha girls and boys are receiving votes in the 3A polls to start the season, while the Pleasant Ridge girls are picking up a few votes, also. 

In Class 4A no area team will start the season ranked and only one team is receiving votes to start the year and that is the lady Red of Atchison. Atchison finished seventh as a team at State last year and senior, Sarah Jaloma returns to lead their team after placing third at State last year. 

The cross country season sets up to be another highly competitive one in Northeast Kansas and many runners and teams expect to challenge for top spots in the classification at the end of the season.