All-Maryland Girls

Rank Team Last Result Comments
1
The defending 4A state champions and state's top representative at NXN Southeast don't appear to be getting any weaker this fall with 5 of their top 7 back including 3 All-State runners in Abbey Green, Emily Murphy, and Katrione Kirsch. All sub 19 minute 5K runners.
2
Last year's Baltimore County Champions and fourth place finishers in the 4A state race only lost two runners due to graduation and return #1 runner Kristin Meek as well as add an impactful freshmen to their lineup that already had a 19:51 team average among their top 5 returnees.
3
With the addition of one of DC's top runners the past two years in Sami King transferring back to Whitman for her senior year, Whitman suddenly has one of the best top three punches in the state with King (18:17), Olivia Woods (19:07), and Erin O'Connor (19:23).
4
Last year's 4A state runners-up and Maryland's 2nd highest finishers at NXNSE, Bethesda-Chevy only lost one runner from their top 7 but a big loss in the low score card of state champ Nora McUmber. B-CC will need to rely on a tight spread from their pack (19:40-20:35) and continue to move as a unit as well to make up for lacking that true front runner.
5
5th in last year's 3A state race and narrow runners-up to Dulaney for the Baltimore County title on a 6th runner tiebreaker, Towson girls have the 4th fastest returning team on paper (5K PR's). With a top 3 all in the mid 19's and 4 girls who ran under 13 minutes for 3200, Towson will be a contender for the 3A state title.
6
Last year's 2A state runners-up, Hereford will be seeking a state title on their home course this fall as they return their entire top 5 led by All-State runner Sarah Coffey. A great spring for their distance squad with 5 returnees running between 11:37 to 12:52.
7
Last year's close WCAC runners-up to VA powerhouse Bishop O'Connell, Good Counsel girls return their entire top 7 including one of the nation's top junior triathletes in Claudia Wendt as their #1. Wendt was the WCAC individual champ one year ago.
8
The Severna Park girls are starting to raise up their level to their male counterparts with a formidable lineup back from 2014 squad that finished 5th in the 4A race at Hereford. Their top 5 is back from a team that really stepped up at state meet after runner-up finishes in county and regional meet last fall.
9
One of only a handful of teams in the state who have 5 girls back who have run under 21 minutes for 5K, but they still need their first one under 20 minutes to give them a lower score card up front after graduating their top 2 runners from last year's 5th place state meet squad in 4A. Only 28 seconds separates their top 5's PRs to make them one of the best packed teams in the state as well.
10
3rd in last year's 3A state race but lost their #1 runner in Emily Mulhern to graduation, thankfully their squad still has another front runner remaining in Maria Carberry who is hoping a strong track season by her teammates with 5 returnees under 13 minutes for 3200 translates over to 20 to sub 20 minute 5K's this fall.

Editor's Comments

Let's kick off the 2015 cross country by releasing our top 10 girls teams in state of Maryland regardless of classification or if they are a public or private school. The Walter Johnson girls are the clear top returning team and should be even better than last year's squad who claimed Montgomery County and MPSSAA 4A state titles before a 13th place finish at season's end at NXN Southeast. They have bigger goals of trying to come closer to that top 4 at-large eligible at NXN Southeast.

Dulaney girls are looking to match the success of their boys program this year which has high aspirations coming in as the preseason #1 ranked boys squad in Maryland. Their girls are not far behind them starting out preseason ranked #2.

Transfers can immediately change the team landscape and no addition will have a greater impact than Sami King returning to Walt Whitman (attended as a freshmen, but didn't run) after becoming one of the top distance runners in the DC Metro area the past two years competing for The Field School in DC. King could potentially become your 2015 Maryland 4A state individual champ and her single digit score card should put Walt Whitman right there with the best teams.

Several teams return strong cores from successful 2014 squads, but lack a true front runner, so it shall be interesting to see if one emerges or if these teams will rely on a collective strong pack running to key their 2015 success including Bethesda-Chevy Chase and Howard.

Not too many teams return EVERYONE from last year, but that is exactly what the Good Counsel girls bring back. They will be looking to knock the Bishop O'Connell girls from Virginia off for the WCAC title, who have had a stranglehold on that title like they have had for many years at Virginia's private school state meet.

You might notice with this top 10 preseason list that only 3 schools from the annual dominant and well represented Montgomery County are found. This is not necessarily a knock against this year's Montgomery County teams, but how the sport is improving in other parts of the state that isolated programs are emerging to be great despite maybe not having the competition consistently around them to push them as always is the case in Montgomery County.

Plenty of Montgomery County teams on the bubble though of this initial list who should make their appearances soon or at some point of the season.

Make sure to check out our Composite Team Rankings as well for a more statistical formula drilldown of the top teams for the state as well as by classification.