The ACGC girls cross country team is looking strong, even after just one meet in the 2018 season. The Chargers placed three of the top ten runners in the Class B race at the Gilbert Invitational last Thursday. The three included Kate Crawford, Lauryn Embleton, and a runner who’s regaining her footing on the fields.

Sophomore Rylee Sloss placed tenth at the meet, less than a year after her 2017 season was cut short due to a broken leg. Head Coach Colin Shawgo believes there are big things ahead for Sloss. “We knew that she had extreme amounts of talent. So her being able to show up and have such a good race in what is kind of a continuation of her freshman year is awesome. She doesn’t have quite all that experience yet, so her being able to go out there and have such a good race is awesome to see.”

Despite Crawford claiming the individual title in that race at the Iowa State University Cross Country Course, the girls team surprisingly fell out of the Class 1A rankings. They held the 11th spot in the pre-season. The ACGC boys moved up a spot from number eight in week one to number seven in week two. Individually Crawford is currently ranked second for the girl in Class 1A, trailing only Emma Lucas of Bedford. On the boys side, Noah Nelsen is currently ranked number six.

Both teams will bring some individuals to the Pella Invitational at Central College in Pella on Saturday.