Pella Girls Reload, Add Depth After First-Ever State Title
2023 Could Be Even Better for the Defending Cross Country Champs
There’s no doubt October 29th, 2022, was a day of triumph for a long-contending powerhouse program as Pella finally broke the ceiling to win the school’s first ever girls team championship. But it also had the feeling it could be the start of a dynasty.
Excitement is abuzz as the Dutch girls cross country team comes off a remarkable run of wins to end last fall, especially as all varsity members return. That, along with two incoming freshmen who can contend for varsity spots and a wealth of athletes who just missed the main roster, makes the Dutch a heavy favorite to repeat. Also, it doesn’t hurt that the main contenders from the Class 3A field all lost significant contributors to graduation.
Coach Cutler discusses 2023 team:
That being said -- nothing is a given, and Pella will have to stay healthy while maintaining or even improving on their speed, and handle the pressure that comes with being a known commodity -- the girls didn’t factor into too many preseason predictions at the top last fall, but will be considered likely unanimous choices by the experts to claim 1st place this year. All teams at every meet will be gunning for the green and white, but let’s call a spade a spade -- the Dutch have a ton of veteran runners and speedy newcomers that will make them extremely hard to beat in Class 3A and beyond.
Key Athletes:
Marissa Ferebee, Sophomore - Class 3A All-State, 5th Place in 2022; Preseason #1
There was a great shot that this then-freshman could make an impact as the season started late last summer, but even the Dutch coaching staff didn’t have a top five finish and the school’s all-time best 5K time penciled into their preseason notebooks. Ferebee took the 3A distance racing scene by storm, and while the 2022 Dutch initially formed as a pack, Coach Cutler and company let Marissa loose near the end of the fall, and she emerged as the 5K school record breaker and a top-five finisher in Class 3A at Fort Dodge. Ferebee was equally impressive in leading the Dutch track and field team to a 3rd place trophy in the spring, earning top three finishes in the 1500 and 3000 meter races and grabbing those school records, too. Considering all-time great Paityn Noe was the one in front of her most days, and several seniors were vying for position side-by-side, Ferebee has a chance to compete for more than the team title. Marissa enters the 2023 season as the top returning distance runner in 3A. If she can get to her 2022 times (or better) by season's end and with good health, Marissa is a favorite to claim individual gold as well.
Autumn Blink, Senior - 17th Place in 2022, Preseason #11 (IATC)
Coach Cutler, arguably, may have never had a three-year varsity runner as steady as Autumn has been. I highlighted her consistency in the August 2022 preview, and she was a constant presence in 2023, establishing herself as the No. 2 runner and the queen of even performances from meet-to-meet. Blink is a three-time state qualifying member of this team, and on a squad where competition for spots will make every race a premium, it would still be shocking if Autumn didn’t factor into the final group heading to Fort Dodge this October. She is coming off of a season-ending track injury, but all indications are that Blink is back and ready, and should be a contender to pick up an All-State bid for the first time in her stellar career.
Raegan Snieder, Junior - 29th Place in 2022, Preseason #22 (IATC)
Snieder burst onto the scene as a freshman in 2021, nabbing a 6th place finish as an individual at the state meet. Who knows how high she could have soared last fall, but a foot injury threatened to end her season, as well as Pella’s title hopes. While the Dutch kept churning with meet trophies and wins, Raegan’s absence would have meant a much tighter situation with Ballard, ADM, and Mt. Vernon heading into the finals on October 29th. But Snieder was able to be ready for the final race, and pulled off a truly remarkable performance, getting a top 30 spot despite not having competed for several weeks prior to the state meet. Raegan injured the other foot in the spring track season, which put a damper on a potential bid for Pella to contend in the top two at the state meet. Healthy and motivated, Snieder wants to show why she was one of the top 9th graders in Iowa two seasons ago. If she can capture even just some of the magic from her debut campaign, Pella goes from heavy favorites to possible runaway champions.
Lizzie Neumann, Sophomore - 35th Place in 2022, Preseason #27 (IATC)
While she didn’t reach the heights of her Class of ‘26 counterpart, Lizzie very quickly became a staple in Coach Cutler’s lineup, especially after the injury to Snieder. Neumann dropped under the 20 minute mark at state qualifying and navigated a tough pack to get to 35th in Fort Dodge. Lizzie was a key member of both the state qualifying soccer and 3rd place track and field teams. Neumann also knows there’s a pack of teammates she’ll be contending with, but if she finds the higher gear she found in October last year, she’ll be a safe bet to compete on the final seven and have a key role in pushing the Dutch back to the top of Class 3A.
Macy Schroeder, Senior - 49th Place in 2022
While the cross country course may not be her favorite spot to compete -- I’ve been told and have seen she prefers the track, Macy has been a strong member of the group for the past few seasons in distance running. Schroeder had a late season surge that not only secured her spot in the varsity lineup, but helped push the Dutch to their first ever title. Macy’s 20:35.23 race at state was a huge difference in contrast with the No. 5 runners from the other contenders. This fiery competitor will probably have her own in-team competition with newcomers and returning JV runners vying for a spot, but Macy’s experience and state performance last fall will make her a contributing member all fall -- regardless of what the final lineup looks like.
Sophia Boonstra, Senior - 76th Place in 2022
Sophia probably doesn’t get the credit she deserves for her hard work and patience in development. Boonstra was a 115th finisher at the 2020 state meet and ran 22:24.1 in Fort Dodge that season. Fueled, in part, by the disappointment of missing the 2021 state meet, Boonstra has just gotten better over the past two seasons. Sophia nearly ran 21 minutes flat at Lakeside in 2023 after a 20:44.83 performance at the state qualifier and as Pella’s 5th best runner at the district event. Few Pella runners on the 2023 team have the varsity experience Sophia has, and as talked about already, intersquad competition will make it hard to be in the final seven come October 28th, but Sophia will make those new faces earn everything to get one of those spots.
Jacie Trine, Senior - 89th Place in 2022
Trine is one of the members of the 2022 champions that was on the previous state team in 2020. She’ll be the first to admit she didn’t have her best day at Fort Dodge last October (21:10.26), but one shouldn’t dismiss that performance for the body of work she put together in her junior campaign. Trine ran 20:11.5 at the state qualifying meet to earn All-District honors, which was fourth best on the team at that event, and she was the 3rd fastest member of the squad when they won the conference championship at DCG. Following a breakout track and field campaign that saw her run down several great athletes at Drake Stadium and be a huge part in getting the Dutch girls a 3rd place trophy, it appears that Trine has the makings for a strong finish to her career in cross country. And with plenty of strong competitors on her own team nipping at her heels -- including her freshman sister (more on that later), Jacie will be motivated to push herself back to the middle of this deep varsity lineup.
Tess Paulsen, Senior - 35th at State Qualifying Meet
Tess became a fairly critical member of the 2022 championship team -- even if she didn’t get to race at Fort Dodge as she did as a freshman. Paulsen was 95th overall at the 2020 race at Lakeside and last fall, was thrown into big races near the end of the season as Raegan Snieder dealt with her injury. Paulsen put together a 21:53.37 run at the Pella Sports Park and ensured the Dutch had strong finishes beyond their top five at state qualifying. Tess even earned a bid to compete at the Blue Oval this past spring. Even if the odds are stacked against her with a roster that is even deeper coming into the new year, Paulsen is going to work to earn every race she gets to compete in this year. While her contributions may not show up in the timesheet meet-to-meet, her leadership and experience will be invaluable for younger runners to learn from.
Ruth Dunham and Kamry Trine, Freshmen
And now we get to the part that is always exciting and, frankly, a bit daunting to describe. Pella hoisted the top trophy in Class 3A, and there’s a decent chance some of the members of the varsity squad who pushed the Dutch to those heights won’t be running in Fort Dodge this October. That is due in part to a pair of freshmen, who much like Ferebee and Neumann, might not only make an immediate impact on the team, but may push themselves ahead of some incredibly talented and experienced seniors along the way.
For those who don’t know, yes, Ruth is the younger sister of Dutch boys sophomore sensation Canaan -- who will be an individual contender and the leader of the Pella boys on their quest to repeat. Ruth has the makings of forging her own journey on the girls side. Dunham was the 6th best individual at the state middle school meet held last October, pushing Pella to a narrow second place finish between ADM and Solon. Dunham gets better the farther she goes, and seems to be a natural fit to transition to a 5K. There’s a high possibility she fits into the crowded varsity picture for Pella -- it’ll just be a matter of how high, how fast.
Kamry Trine is the younger sister of the three-year veteran Jacie. While it could be argued the Trines will have an even bigger impact on the track this spring, in the meantime, Kamry could use her speed to her advantage. Trine was the 3rd place finisher at the middle school cross country meet last fall -- ahead of Dunham. And while a broadcaster can dream of the Trine related relays this spring, it would be a bad move to count this freshman out of the mix in the deep Dutch roster -- although it may make dinner a bit awkward at the Trine household if younger sister outpaces the older in a (friendly) 5K showdown this fall.
Emerson Wogen, Addison Van Wyk, Avary Hunsinger, Sophomores
Depth won’t be an issue for Coach Cutler and company, and there’s a good chance there will be a different lineup at many of their races this year to see how far they can go. This trio of sophomores were on the border of varsity appearances in 2022. If Wogen (21:59), Van Wyk (22:10), and Hunsinger (22:20) can all drop those season best times from 2022 significantly, they can start putting pressure on the returning group from state and, at worst, push them to be just a tick faster over the course of the season.
Teams to Watch (in order of 2022 finish):
Ballard - 2nd place - 127 Team Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 2nd)
What an incredible ride, and legacy, Paityn Noe is leaving behind in girls racing. And what enormous shoes she leaves behind to fill as well. But Ballard has been a state championship contender for several years for reasons beyond the phenom, and it’s hard to doubt they will at the very least contend again in the deep Raccoon River Conference and make themselves known at Lakeside before the end of October -- but there’s work to do when the G.O.A.T. isn’t on your team anymore. The Bombers have All-Stater Annika Larson to start, and the junior (11th last year) is the 6th fastest returner from the state meet. Ava Vance was a few seconds shy from breaking 20 minutes in her 24th place finish, and Junior Ava Richardson was in the middle of an enormous pack at 43rd. One of the reasons the Bombers couldn’t match the Dutch was the gap from their top four to the No. 5 spot, and that will remain an issue now that they don’t have 1st place won entering events anymore, either. Brynn Wilson, McKenzie Dee, and Raegan Loewe are all returners from the state meet -- so six of the seven are back for the girls from Huxley. But if the Bombers are going to close the gap with the Dutch, they need solutions to tighten their pack. They still enter 2023 as a definite top five contender.
Solon - 3rd Place - 128 Team Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 8th)
It turns out in the battle for the “other” individual state title behind Noe, Kayla Young won the day at Fort Dodge and placed 2nd to end her fantastic career in cross country. And with Young graduating with talented seniors Mary Fiala (36th) and Mara Duster (58th), the Spartans have some shoes to fill if they are going to climb back into the top three race again this year. The good news is Junior Sydney Dee (40th at state), track and field standout and Senior Gracie Federspiel (60th at state), and Junior Anna Quillin give Sparty a good foundation to start with. While it will be hard to replace Young’s contribution, a pair of incoming freshmen (Jillian Janssen and Falyn Svalstad) placed in the top ten at the middle school state meet last fall, and Senior Ashlyn Williams was the 7th girl across the line for the orange and white in Fort Dodge. Solon has a solid chance to stay in the top five, but a lot will ride on the new faces and major improvement from the returners if they will come home with another trophy.
Mount Vernon-Lisbon - 4th Place - 129 Team Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 5th)
It’s probably hard to fathom that this team did not leave their 2022 season with a trophy -- they had a successful run in eastern Iowa, even beating Solon at the WaMaC conference meet. But the state race format allows for the smallest of margins to be the difference, and the Mustangs just narrowly missed a 3rd place and even 2nd place prize. A senior year transfer, Lourdes Mason provided MVL with a 4th place finish at state and a true No. 1 runner in a 3A field loaded with elite individuals. But as soon as she arrived, she left with a diploma this past May, but there are some strong returners coming in 2023. Emrie Johnson placed 26th as the No. 2 runner and enters as the junior leader of this squad. Edith Dawson (42nd), Kiersten Swart (53rd), and Hailey Bock (73rd) round out the list of state-qualifying returners for the Mustangs. They should have a strong season again, but among the top five teams coming into 2022, seem like they have a lot of spots to fill with no immediately obvious answers to an outside observer. They will be a curious watch, but certainly in the mix to return to Lakeside this October.
ADM - 5th place - 138 Team Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 3rd)
It’s a broken record at this point, but just like the 2nd through 4th place state teams from last season, the Tigers lost their ace. Geneva Timmerman would probably be celebrated far more than she was if not for chasing Noe at many races over the years. Her impact will definitely be missed for ADM, who couldn’t keep up in a loaded race for the top three spots last year. Sophomore Haley James leads the way as an All-State placewinner from 2022 (12th), and much like Ballard, has the rest of their lineup from last fall back at the line beyond Timmerman. Hanna Desmarais and Paige Mattes were 55th and 57th respectively among all individuals, with Gracelyn Martens Sinn, Mackealin Sutton, and Alaina Nelson also appearing for the Tigers at Lakeside. The promising news is that ADM will have some potential incoming freshmen make an impact -- watch out for Cora Shirley-Brown, and her 12:44.4 was the best time at the middle school meet by 27 seconds; Allie Eggleston was 5th in that race on October 15th of last year as well. Let’s remember, it was early, but the Tigers were the only Class 3A team to beat the Dutch last year in a head-to-head race. ADM could easily make some noise and leave Fort Dodge with a trophy if Shirley-Brown can make her varsity debut special.
Washington - 6th Place - 190 Team Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 4th)
As I mentioned in the state meet preview in October last year, Washington had a serious chance to not only crack the top ten, but break through a deep top six. The Demons did so, placing 6th, and now enter the 2023 season with a real shot at getting to the podium. All-State Sophomore Iris Dahl (7th) is the 3rd fastest returning individual and gives Washington a true No. 1 runner-type heading into the season. Quincy Griffis (50th), Alyvia Anderson (68th), Lauren Horak (74th), Angeline Anderson (88th), Isabella Lujan (101st), and Kendall Hinrichsen (105th) were all sophomores or freshmen in 2022. This young team has a two-year window to find their way into the top five of Class 3A -- and with graduation impacting the teams ahead of them, they’ll have a definite chance to get back to the Lakeside course and prove it.
Clear Lake - 7th Place - 212 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 6th)
It was clear these girls from northeast Iowa had no issues making the jump from Class 2A to 3A last year, and they had a solid performance at Fort Dodge last October to back that up. The great news for the Lions is they have six of their seven varsity girls returning, paced by Addison Doughan, who was the 20th girl across the line in 3A and broke the 20 minute mark at state. Seniors Emily McLaughlin (46th) and Anna Feuerbach (51st) give the girls from Clear Lake a solid trio at the top. The biggest hurdle to get into the competitive 3A race is depth beyond that group. Rebekah Steinbron, a junior this year, placed 81st among individuals. But the rest of the Lions were a bit further behind. If nothing else, this group will make for an interesting watch because they have so much experience. It’s hard to see them finishing worse than their 7th place spot last fall, but with so much talent still ahead in the standings, it’ll be interesting to see if they can leapfrog the others in the field as well.
Glenwood - 8th Place - 218 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 7th)
The Rams were among the teams that technically underperformed their ranking from state qualifying to the final meet of 2022, if ever so slightly in arguably the deepest field 3A has produced in the 5K era. The Hawkeye 10 conference champions came out of a district meet that featured four of the top nine coming into qualifying, but that didn’t translate as well as they would have hoped at Lakeside. That being said, they had a solid meet, with Madelyn Berglund (18th) and her sub 20-5K returning for her junior campaign this fall. In fact, unlike many of the teams higher on the state race list, they have their entire top five back in 2023. Senior Lauren Hughes (48th), Junior Breckyn Peterson (63rd), Sophomore Haylee Hughes (94th), and Junior Brooklyn Schultz (96th) all give the Rams hope they can not only get back to the final race of the year, but do so with a better finish.
Clear Creek-Amana - 9th Place - 223 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 12th)
If nothing else, the Clippers performed near expectations heading into the state meet (ranked 8th). But, like a few at the very top of this list, they will lose a key senior in Haidyn Barker, who paced CCA with a 13th place individual finish. Returners Sara Kinzenbaw (59th), Kiera Rogers (65th), Kira Barker (80th -- yes to the relation question), and Harper Tecklenburg (108th) all give Clear Creek-Amana something to look forward to. But if they are even going to get back to Lakeside this October, they have to find a true No. 1 runner to lead the way. They are definitely in consideration for missing the state meet this year if that turns out to be an issue.
Center Point-Urbana - 10th Place - 229 Stormin’ Pointers (IATC Preseason - 9th)
While it may seem as if I’m quick to call out my good predictions, I’ll admit I missed the mark in my state meet preview heading into the state meet in October. CPU came into Fort Dodge looking ahead to a daunting top 12, and moved all the way to 10th as the lucky number 13th ranked team in Class 3A. The Stormin’ Pointers were led by an All-State performance from now-senior Emma Wilkerson (14th), and now-10th graders Lily Miller (28th) and Deni Kacther (41st) rounded out a strong top three that ultimately got this Eastern-Central Iowa group into the top ten. Returners Sydney McCormick and Julia Payne also competed at the state meet, but finished outside of the top 100 individuals. They will need to improve if CPU is going to improve upon their 10th place finish.
Bishop Heelan - 11th Place - 257 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 11th)
Well, we get to the part of the show where it became evident that 2022 was not the year of the true pack teams. In fact, the top six teams all had a top seven scorer to begin their points total, and the top 10 teams all ahead at least 15 points or less to start their count. Unlike the next two teams on this countdown, these girls from Sioux City were able to hold their pre-state meet ranking. Just a minute-thirty separated the Saints’ top runner Brooklyn Stanley (33rd) and seventh place racer Ashleigh Jochum (116th). The five girls in between, including Grace Roerig (77th), Delaney Saulsbury (84th), Ellie Ritz (90th), Maddie Demke (98th), and Scarlett Walsh (100th) only had 28.5 seconds between them. All but one of the seven are back for Heelan, but while many of the great individuals of Class 3A graduate, many more will take their place. It would be a strong guess to see this group back in Fort Dodge, but whether or not they’ll crack the top ten remains to be seen, especially if pack teams make their comeback this October.
Gilbert - 12th Place - 261 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 10th)
Ranked 7th after the district meets, the Tigers tied with Harlan for the biggest drop from rankings to actual finish among the field. Again, as stated above, they were partially victims to a state meet environment that was not productive for those who rely on pack scoring to succeed. Only 56 seconds separated Gilbert’s Clare Stahr (38th) from their fifth scorer Abby Patel (97th), but that was a big enough gap to let a lot of competitors finish in-between, and thus, drop their score significantly. The Tigers won their state qualifying meet site at Humboldt, but their group spread of 30 seconds from 1-5 became an issue in Fort Dodge. The Tigers have five state runners back this fall, including Keira Andersen (75th), Claire Grandgenett (86th), and Sarah Thatcher (103rd). But let’s face it, they had a great season last year, and might be even better and in the discussion for the heralded Raccoon River Conference title. And keep an eye on Callie Hales, who placed 2nd among individuals in the 8th grade state meet last year.
Carlisle - 13th Place - 264 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 14th)
Paced by Maya Bergstrom (19th) and Marie Daggett (25th), the Wildcats enter the 2023 season with a pair of senior All-State contenders and a definite chance to improve from 2022. Carlisle was a distant 3rd to the Bombers and Dutch at the Pella Sports Park site last year as well. They had a considerable gap between the top two and 3rd place team finisher Riley Gach, making her Fort Dodge debut (87th). Kara Fisk (124th) and Sophia Carney (132nd) are also back. But the Wildcats still have a deep conference to contend with, and while some great athletes graduate across the Raccoon River, many teams will be reloading. The Wildcats will be contenders for state and for many meet medals with their dynamic duo up top, but they will need to find depth in the meantime to move up the standings throughout this coming season.
Harlan - 14th Place - 272 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 13th)
In the state meet preview last October, I laid out a path to success for the Cyclones -- they needed to overcome Hawkeye-10 rivals Glenwood and have an overall jump in quality as a team. But it was an extremely difficult field for all of those things to happen, so the 9th ranked Harlan girls fell to 14th when the final race ended. The good news for this bunch of Cyclones is that Lindsey Sonderman (6th) is the 2nd fastest returning individual and will contend for the solo title this year. But from a team perspective, their next fastest girl back on the roster this year was Brylee Schechinger (78th), who finished nearly two minutes behind their ace. Everybody else is back, but will need to have significant improvement if Sonderman will have friendly company with her at the starting line at Lakeside at the end of October.
MOC-Floyd Valley - 15th - 286 Points (IATC Preseason Ranking - 16th)
The Lady Dutch from northwest Iowa finished on the opposite end of the standings from their green and white counterparts at the top, but that didn’t stop them from having a great season. MOC pulled off an upset and knocked both North Polk and Spencer out of state meet contention at the Humboldt district meet to finish their year at the Lakeside Golf Course. Twins Biyanca and Aryana got to end their great cross country careers in Fort Dodge, but that leaves a large gap at the top for the Dutch in 2023. Elin Van Der Werff (91st), Teagan Tracy (95th), and Olivia Bahrke (114th) rounded out the scoring for MOC, with teammates Rachel Haverdink (117th) and Sarah May (120th) not too far behind. But it would take the perfect district meet site, a ton of improvement, and some help from freshmen or other varsity newcomers, for this group to be featured among Iowa’s best this year.