On Oct. 18, the West High girls cross country team headed down the road to compete in the state qualifying meet. Ranked No. 15, the girls team battled against Ankeny Centennial (No. 7), Waukee (No. 10) and Cedar Falls (No. 12) on the University of Iowa’s cross country course. 

The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) splits the 4A cross country teams into five different locations. At each location, the top three placing teams will go to state championships. However, unlike the previous policy where the top fifteen individual runners at each site would qualify for state, the next five finishers that are not part of the qualifying teams will qualify as individuals. 

Gallery • 7 Photos

Helen Orszula

Kalli Titus ’25, Gabrielle Moniza ’24, Susanna Olson ’27, Cindy Wang ’24, Erinn Varga ’24 and Kate Van Waning ’26 listen to Coach Mike Parker before the start of the race.

Kate Van Waning ’26 led the team by placing 16th, with a time of 19:58. Van Waning is predicted to rank 14th in the 4A girls individual state rankings. Kalli Titus ’25 and Susanna Olson ’27 both qualified for state as well, placing 20th and 21st in times of 20:11 and 20:12. Seniors Cindy Wang and Erinn Varga finished 23rd and 28th, respectively. The West High girls cross country team placed fourth with 108 points. 

Van Waning, Titus and Olson will head to Fort Dodge to represent West’s girls cross country. For all three, this will be their first time running in the state cross country meet. The 2023 state cross country meet begins Friday, Oct. 27 and runs through Saturday, Oct. 28 at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course.

On Oct. 18, the boys cross country team ran at the Ashton Cross Country Course. The top three teams from the meet will qualify for state, along with the top 15 individual runners. Although West placed fourth overall, the team successfully placed five runners within the top 15. This allows them to still score as a team at the coming state meet.

West’s qualifying runners started with Moustafa Tiea ‘25 in sixth place with a time of 16:05. At 17th, 19th and 20th runners Cade Benson ’24, Brice Wahe ’25 and Michael Lee ’24 all finished within seconds of each other, respectively. Benson took home a time of 16:50, while Wahe and Lee finished with close times of 16:51 and 16:52. Sam Showers ’25 rounded out the top five with a time of 17:00 and a placement of 22nd.

The runners will compete at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course in Fort Dodge on Friday, Oct. 27th. Despite the setbacks the team has faced, they look forward to the season finale and hope to place with their five qualifying team members.