For the first time since 2004, Logan County High School is hosting the Class 1A Region 1 cross country meet on Saturday. The girls will take to the course at 9:45 in the second race of the day.
As of Thursday, only five schools have registered full teams for the region meet, meaning the only top three teams will advance to the state meet on Nov. 1 in Lexington. The next five individual finishers not on those three teams will also qualify.
Most teams in western Kentucky got a chance to run the Logan County course during the Cougar region preview race on Sept. 27.
For the schools that did not run in the region preview, we used the Milesplit database and took the average time of two comparable courses to use for a projected region time.
However, there are other factors at play when trying to chart projected region times. One is the entry of runners who primarily ran in middle school races in the season and didn’t compete at the varsity level.
Another is the entry of multi-sport athletes who can run in the region race now that their other season has concluded. The KHSAA no longer has a race minimum requirement.
THE FAVORITES
Two of the last three Region 1 champions are again favored to win the region title on Saturday. Murray’s Jade Green won last year’s race while Gabby Ault won three straight from 2020-22.
Olivia Hines was last year’s runner-up, while her teammates – Baylee and Ashtyn Swatzell – could also bring home top-five finishes. Fort Campbell seventh grader Abby Roberts has also been running well down the stretch.
TEAM PREDICTIONS
Defending region champion Dawson Springs and 2020 champion Fort Campbell are in a virtual dead heat for the championship. has won six straight region titles, but that streak appears in jeopardy.
Both teams project four runners in the top 10, with the championship likely to be determined by the team’s fifth runner.
Crittenden County and Murray are also likely to battle for the third and final team qualifying spot, with runners five through seven to determine who goes to Lexington.
