With the opening weeks of the 2026 season in the books, we selected one boys team from each MPSSAA classification and one independent school whose trajectories are worth watching.
Liberty entered the season looking like a potential Class 1A title contender on paper and so far, the Lions have done well preserving that prediction.
After finishing fifth at the 2025 state championships, Liberty returned much of the group responsible for that finish like Jackson Rosencrance, Praneel Singh, Landen Miller, and Liam Murphy.
The early results have continued to put Liberty near the front of the classification. At the loaded Top of the Hill Invitational, Miller ran 17:44.71 and Rosencrance followed in 17:46.73 as the Lions finished ninth overall against a field featuring Calvert Hall, Sherwood, Howard, Oakdale and several other strong programs.
For Liberty, making the jump means turning last year's fifth-place state finish into a legitimate run at a championship.
Middletown's early results suggest the Knights may be ready to become a much bigger factor in Class 2A.
The strength of this group isn't necessarily one runner separating himself dramatically from everyone else, but the possibility of a scoring pack developing together. This is the kind of improvement that can move a team quickly through championship standings. Levi Derr and Landon Halvorson have both made significant strides since last cross country season, while Samuel McRea gives the Knights another experienced returner in the middle of the lineup.
The Knights don't need one low stick to carry them. Instead they need runners like Derr, Halvorson and McRea to continue closing gaps and turning their development into lower team scores.
The Generals finished 13th at last year's state championships, well outside the podium conversation, but the group that returned in 2026 is beginning to look considerably different.
Towson brings back a strong group led by Henry Navyac, Jack Dobrosielski, Isaac Abed and Andrew Robinson, who showed significant development during the track season. Now, rather than relying on one runner to carry the scoring, the Generals have the potential to put together a tight group at the front of their lineup.
Towson doesn't need to contend for a state championship for 2026 to represent a major jump. Moving from 13th into the upper tier of Class 3A would qualify all by itself, but the Generals are beginning to show they may have the potential for more than just that.
Look at the top of the early Class 4A rankings and most of the names are familiar: Urbana, Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Crofton, Montgomery Blair, but then there is a new name, Leonardtown
The Raiders finished 13th at the 2025 Class 4A State Championships, leaving them well outside the group most likely to enter this season with championship expectations. A few weeks into 2026, however, Leonardtown has put itself in the conversation.
At the Seahawk Invitational, the Raiders finished fourth with 89 points, trailing only Crofton, Severna Park and South River while finishing ahead of Eleanor Roosevelt and the rest of the field. Senior Andrew Cell led the way with a 16:50 seventh-place finish, followed by Emmet Hayes in 17:23 and Dean Farmer in 17:33. Mark Dempsey and Lucas Venske rounded out the scoring five, giving Leonardtown five runners across the line in under 18:23.
Going from 13th at States to challenging Maryland's established 4A powers would be one of the biggest team jumps of the season, and this team seems determined to do just that.
Calvert Hall continues to be the dominant team within the MIAA, but The Heights is beginning to show that its own progress deserves attention beyond just private-school standings.
At the Trials of Miles Invitational, The Heights finished seventh in a loaded 41 team varsity field with 248 points. Tommy Flynn led the way with a seventh-place finish in 16:07.4, while Rafael Tenney followed in 16:30.1.
The question isn't simply whether The Heights can close the gap on Calvert Hall, but how good The Heights can become when measured against the broader Maryland and regional landscape.
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