Here are the pre-season rankings for NCS Division IV. The division breakdowns for all NCS teams can be found at this LINK. The number of teams that qualify for the state meet in each section and division can be found at this LINK.
Division I Girls (Top 2 Advance to state)
1) Menlo Atherton-Dominant section in 2022 will return with the best runner in CCS, Tatum Olesen
2) Mountain View-Qualified for the state meet last year and will be slight favorite to repeat same finish this season.
3) Carlmont-Strong group returns to challenge the Spartans for last auto qualifying state meet spot.
4) Santa Teresa-Solid four return from last year's team but will need help from freshman class.
5) Evergreen Valley-Ramneek Kaur and Ruby Chen strong duo up front that could make them dangerous.
On the bubble (alphabetical order): Alisal, Hollister, Watsonville
2) Mountain View-Qualified for the state meet last year and will be slight favorite to repeat same finish this season.
3) Carlmont-Strong group returns to challenge the Spartans for last auto qualifying state meet spot.
4) Santa Teresa-Solid four return from last year's team but will need help from freshman class.
5) Evergreen Valley-Ramneek Kaur and Ruby Chen strong duo up front that could make them dangerous.
On the bubble (alphabetical order): Alisal, Hollister, Watsonville
Top 5 returning individuals, (place) and 2022 CCS meet time:
Tatum Olesen (1) Menlo Atherton 18:33.5
Katelynn Ruiz (4) Watsonville 18:49.4
Annie Pflaum (5) Menlo Atherton 18:53.8
Cleo Rehhopf (8) Menlo Atherton 19:29.8
Ramneek Kaur (10) Evergreen Valley 19:39.1
Tatum Olesen (1) Menlo Atherton 18:33.5
Katelynn Ruiz (4) Watsonville 18:49.4
Annie Pflaum (5) Menlo Atherton 18:53.8
Cleo Rehhopf (8) Menlo Atherton 19:29.8
Ramneek Kaur (10) Evergreen Valley 19:39.1
1) Menlo Atherton-Get slight edge over Homestead due to slightly stronger depth in the critical 4-7 slots.
2) Homestead-Defending CCS 800 meter champion Evan Gardner could make the Mustangs a favorite to win the team title.
3) Bellarmine-As always, the deepest team in this Division and will be led by junior Shrey Chettiar.
4) Mountain View-Had a strong track season in the distance events by a very young group of runners.
3) Bellarmine-As always, the deepest team in this Division and will be led by junior Shrey Chettiar.
4) Mountain View-Had a strong track season in the distance events by a very young group of runners.
5) Carlmont-Solid returning group will race Menlo Atherton multiple times in the PAL .
On the bubble (alphabetical order): Alisasl, Milpitas, Salinas
On the bubble (alphabetical order): Alisasl, Milpitas, Salinas
Top 5 returning individuals, (place) and 2022 CCS meet time:
Aidan Doherty (4) Menlo Atherton 16:04.1
Jordan Althouse (6) Milpitas 16:06.3
Nathan Morris (8) Mountain View 16:24.2
Evan Gardner (9) Homestead 16:25.8
Ido Halevy (11) Homestead 16:36.9
Aidan Doherty (4) Menlo Atherton 16:04.1
Jordan Althouse (6) Milpitas 16:06.3
Nathan Morris (8) Mountain View 16:24.2
Evan Gardner (9) Homestead 16:25.8
Ido Halevy (11) Homestead 16:36.9
Please feel free to chime in on the rankings above. I won't be offended if you strongly disagree as the above rankings are meant to be a launching pad for conversation. Fortunately, section titles and state meet berths are decided by the runners themselves. Any impact freshmen that we should know about?
