WyoPreps 2026 High School Cross Country Season Preview

The 2026 Wyoming High School cross country season is shaping up to be fantastic. That’s thanks to all the returning talent around the state. Forty-four of the 60 all-state cross-country runners at last year’s state championships will be back on the course this fall. The nine-week season will conclude with the state championships in Cheyenne for the third straight year. It’s the second consecutive season that the championship races will be contested on the course at Little America.

WYOPREPS CROSS COUNTRY SEASON PREVIEW 2026

The new year brings one key change: reclassification. Cody is now in Class 4A, and Tongue River has moved to 3A.

The defending girls’ team champions are Big Horn, Cody, and Cheyenne Central. With Cody moving up to Class 4A, that guarantees a new team winner in 3A this fall. Burlington, Mountain View, and Sheridan won the boys’ team crowns in 2025.

Individually, Lyla Marney from Big Horn, Karee Cooley from Powell, and Cheyenne East’s Maggie Madsen are back to defend their individual titles. Burlington’s Kellen Winters is the lone returning champ on the boys’ side. Class 3A and 4A will have new winners.

In 2A, nine of the top 10 girls and seven of the top 10 boys return to race in 2026. One of them is a boy from Tongue River, and he will compete in 3A. In 3A, all 10 girls and seven of the top 10 boys are back. Four of the ladies are from Cody, and there is one boy. They’ll be in the 4A division this fall. Finally, in 4A, seven of the top 10 girls and four of the top 10 boys will race again in the 2026 season.

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Top Returning Runners and Teams

2A Girls: Big Horn's Lyla Marney leads this division as the two-time defending champion. Other contenders will be Kelli McNiven from Burlington, Maci Lyons from Lusk, Teagan Butler and Ella Marney from Big Horn, Tess Dailey from Sundance, Sihauna Sanchez from Saratoga, and Caemlyn Nolte from Wright.

2A Boys: Kellen Winters from Burlington is the defending champion. He will be the favorite in this division. Other contenders include Tobyn Teigen from Wright, Connor Hoyt from Burlington, Kaiden Moss from Wyoming Indian, Bradford Davidson from Burlington, Brendan Mogen from Big Horn, and Haydon Ritchie from Hulett.

2A Teams: Big Horn is the favorite in girls, and Burlington will be favored in boys. The Saratoga girls return four girls from last year. Both Wyoming Indian’s girls and boys have some key returners.

3A Girls: Karee Cooley from Powell is the defending champion. She’ll be in the mix along with Ava Tapia from Worland and Ellie Farris and Maya Hall from Buffalo.

3A Boys: There will be a new champion in 2026. Jace Townsend from Buffalo, Colt Madsen from Mountain View, and Noah Blasi from Rawlins are the frontrunners to start the year. Kade Shideman, from 3A newcomer Tongue River, might push into that mix with a few others.

3A Teams: With Cody gone to 4A, Powell takes the favorite role on the girls’ side. Buffalo and Worland will also be in contention. Mountain View will be favored to defend its title in the boys’ division with four of its top five back on this year’s squad. Buffalo, Rawlins, and Worland will try to close the gap.

4A Girls: Cheyenne East’s Maggie Madsen will be favored again, as she goes for a third consecutive individual title. Malea Adams-Case from Cheyenne Central, Keiran Giraldo and Dorothy Jensen from Laramie, Lexi Longhurst from Kelly Walsh, Sofia Rose and Adalyn Racines from Cheyenne Central, and Aria Wheeler from Rock Springs will give chase. A few Cody runners could contend in their first year in 4A.

4A Boys: This division will also have a champion in 2026. The top contenders come from Sheridan. Eli Balkenbush and Aadan Luna will anchor a strong squad. Both will push each other towards the top. A couple of other teammates could make a move, as well. This is also the most unknown division after the top two. Contenders could come from anywhere. Dylan McGee from Jackson, Chase Erickson from Thunder Basin, and Jackson Webster from Kelly Walsh had good finishes last fall, but how much have they improved in the off-season?

4A Teams: Cheyenne Central will be a big favorite for the girls' title. They return three of their top runners. Laramie and Kelly Walsh will be looking to close the gap. The Plainsmen benefit from the move-in of former Lander standout Dorothy Jensen, who was the 3A runner-up last year. The Cody Fillies move up to 4A, and their girls will be a factor right away. With a strong history in their program and the top five finishers at the state championships last year returning, expect Cody to make some noise. On the boys' side, Sheridan will be heavily favored to repeat. Several teams will try to build together to make a push, like Star Valley, Kelly Walsh, and Jackson.

Could there be some surprises? Absolutely! Families move. Young athletes mature. Other factors like injuries can play a role.

That is WyoPreps’ 2026 season outlook. The nine-week season starts this weekend and ends in Cheyenne on October 24.

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