Outlook: The Bearcats don't have a ton of depth, but they do have speed. That's especially true of junior Ayrianna Smith, who qualified for the 2015 MHSAA Division 1 Finals in the 100-meter dash as well as the 400-meter relay along with Karen Harris and Erion Traylor.
"We have been excited to be outside since the official start of practice," Armock said. "The girls are working harder to achieve higher goals than they did last season. We would like to see more girls come out for the team, but are very excited the girls we have. Speed will be good once again for our girls. We are looking to find the right mix right now for our relay teams and trying to fit some other pieces of the puzzle in other areas of our team... Getting back to the state meet is a goal for many of our female runners."
Outlook: With over 50 athletes on the squad, the defending Interstate Eight Conference champion Beavers have high hopes for 2016. Junior Charley Andrews leads the team after winning back-to-back state championships in the high jump while also running on the 2015 state championship 1,600-meter relay team along with fellow returner Catie Scott.
"Our team returns several top competitors from last year's league championship team and a couple of new faces that we expect to score points," Renner said. "Several of the girls put in a lot of work over the fall and winter and have looked good so far. Our goal is to compete for a league championship and to have a good showing at the end of the season."
Outlook: The Spartans have an infusion of youth to help the team try to defend its SMAC championship, led by returning Division 1 state qualifiers Jayden Edgerson, Alexis Williams-Edgerson, Maggie Farrell, Taylar Coyer, Jakayla Potter, Meggie Riegle, Kalista Hubbart and Logann Haluszka.
"We are a young team with key leaders who will help to guide the underclassmen in the right direction," Pryor said. "We should be a strong team within the league and hope to get several athletes to the state meet."
Outlook: After finishing in the bottom tier of the Interstate Eight Conference a year ago, the Panthers hope to make a big leap forward in the conference standings, led by returning Division 2 state qualifier Arabia Bacon.
"Our girls team is promising with some very good individual talent. We have a good mixture of inexperienced and experienced athletes," McKire said. "Our main goal for this year is to get some of our very talented young athletes to experience success at the regional level to advance to state competition."
Outlook: The Fighting Tigers are low on numbers, but not on talent, as five of the 13 athletes on the squad were 2015 state qualifiers - including a trio of All-State performers Taylor Pessetti, Riley Rutherford and Ava Strenge.
"2016 is going to be an exciting year to watch the Lady Tigers from St. Phil," VanderPol said. "The team will be anchored by Ava Strenge and Julia Slattery in the distance events, and Meagan Casterline, Taylor Pessetti, and Riley Rutherford in the sprints/middle distance. The team is also very excited to see what contributions Madi Elliot (freshman, distance), and Maya Segovia (freshman, sprints/high jump), can add to the team. The team did not lose any major point earners from last year and our hope is that the new girls on the team will be able to fill the gaps our lineup had last year... We expect to compete for both division and conference championships, as well as pushing to win a regional title, something that hasn't been done in a long time at St. Phil. In June, we expect to surprise a lot of people with how well we do at the state finals."
Battle Creek was well-represented during the 2015 Michigan High School Athletic Association Finals in girls track and field, as all five city schools had athletes competing on the final day of the season.
And with state qualifiers back in the fold for Battle Creek Central, Harper Creek, Lakeview, Pennfield and St. Philip, the 2016 season is shaping up to be a memorable one for the Cereal City.
Among those state qualifiers was Harper Creek junior Charley Andrews, who returns to defend her two Division 2 state titles in the high jump as well as a state crown in the 1,600-meter relay along with fellow returner Catie Scott.
Battle Creek Central is led by 2015 All-City Meet MVP Ayrianna Smith, who is back on the track following a knee injury she suffered playing volleyball this past fall.
Lakeview sent nine athletes to the 2015 Division 1 State Finals, and eight have returned to pick up where they left off a season ago.
Pennfield’s Arabia Bacon returns after she broke on to the scene as a freshman, qualifying for the Division 2 Finals in both the 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles.
St. Philip has five returning state qualifiers, led by junior Ava Strenge – the 2014 Division 4 cross country state champion.
Outlook: The Bearcats don’t have a ton of depth, but they do have speed. That’s especially true of junior Ayrianna Smith, who qualified for the 2015 MHSAA Division 1 Finals in the 100-meter dash as well as the 400-meter relay along with Karen Harris and Erion Traylor.
“We are a young team with key leaders who will help to guide the underclassmen in the right direction,” Pryor said. “We should be a strong team within the league and hope to get several athletes to the state meet.
Outlook: The Fighting Tigers are low on numbers, but not on talent, as five of the 13 athletes on the squad were 2015 state qualifiers – including a trio of All-State performers Taylor Pessetti, Riley Rutherford and Ava Strenge.