4. Ohio
Returning Division 2 champion Leah Roter is back for another go-around, and the Beachwood senior, who has seven sub-18 performances on the year and cruised toward a win at the region championships on Oct. 28, seems primed for a breakout race at state.
She owns a No. 2 time in the state of 17:14.30.
But the Division 1 race may offer a little more head-to-head intrigue, considering Troy senior Morgan Gigandet, who's ranked No. 23 in the Flo50 rankings, only finished sixth in 2016.
In fact, Gigandet, who has dominated Ohio as a senior, has yet to win a title in cross country. But she hasn't lost a single race in 2017 and has produced the state's fastest effort at 17:06.70.
This doesn't look like the place to start with a loss, even though four girls who beat her on the National Trail Raceway course in 2016.