The girl's team champion looks to be cut and dry. Top-ranked Naperville North has also won the title the past 3 years and look prepped to take home a fourth consecutive title. It can be hard to compete with the #1 team in 3A. Last year, the Huskies won the state title and went on to place second as a team at Nike Cross Nationals. The battle for second will be between Neuqua Valley and Naperville Central. The Naperville Twilight meet showcased the workings of this conference team race. Naperville Central placed 9th with 245 points and was followed by Neuqua Valley with 252 and Metea Valley with 280. Even Waubonsie Valley was in the hunt place wise with a 13th place finish. An unranked Neuqua Valley upset over #14 Naperville Central is not completely out of the realm of possibility.
Looking to follow in the steps of her former teammates, senior Alex Morris of Naperville North is the favorite for the individual title. Last fall, Morris placed second behind an impressive 16:46 from teammate Sarah Schmitt. Morris ended her junior campaign with a 12th place finish at Nike Cross Nationals. Junior Julia Rushing of Neuqua Valley has a chance at breaking up Naperville North's tight top seven, as she is one of the only returning top 10 finishers. Junior Ashley Heidenrich from Waubonsie Valley is a heavily overlooked runner. Heidenrich placed 7th last year and was a mere second behind Rushing. Do not count her out of this race. Due to meet cancelations because of weather, many girls have not been able to run to their full potential. Once the weather clears up this weekend, the DVC will be a great showcase and preview for the upcoming state series.