Picking the top cross-country teams in the state before the season begins is never easy. A lot can happen over the course of three months. Athletes can experience breakthrough seasons, newcomers can emerge as key contributors, and, of course, injuries to important runners can quickly change the outlook for a team.
But we’ll do our best to set the stage for what we expect will be another exciting season on the trails. For some of the state’s top teams, the outlook appears fairly straightforward if everything goes according to plan. For others, however, the picture is far less clear, and where they’ll ultimately finish by season’s end remains anyone’s guess.
Beginning with No. 10 and counting down to No. 1, here’s our preseason ranking of the top 10 girls’ teams in the state. As always, if we’ve given your team a little bulletin-board material based on our rankings, you’re welcome. It certainly won’t be the first time.
(Above photo by Sterling Vernon @rhodeandtrack)
***
No. 3, North Kingstown High
Last year’s results: First (8-0), Southern Division; Second, Class A Championships; Third, RIIL State Championships
Key returnees/runners: Lucy Stowe, Sr, 18:20.90.; Abbie Tighe, Sr. 18:54.91; McKenzie Baker, So., 20:34.70; Maura Whitney, Sr., Riley Morrison, Jr., 20:38.60; Ruby Galle, Sr., 21:44.48; Kennedy Kirwin, So., 22:04.30
Outlook: It’s been all about the threes for North Kingstown in recent years. Since the 2023 season, the Skippers have finished third at the State Meet three times. That streak of numerical symmetry will end this season, but were expecting another bronze-medal performance from one of state’s most consistent cross-country powerhouses.
The Skippers lost three of their runners to graduation from a team that averaged 19:42 by its scorers and had a gap of just 1:41 between its No. 1 and No. 5. But the core of that lineup will be back with Tighe, Stowe, Baker and Whitney, who were their one, three, four and five runners at last year’s championship meet.
For the Skippers to contend with our final two undisclosed squads, their going to need some help from their fifth through seventh runners. That appears to be where the biggest difference is. North Kingstown’s top four have the potential to break 20 minutes at Ponaganset with Tighe and Stowe capable of finishing their final season on the trails in the mid 18-minute range at Ponaganset. Were certainly curious about Baker, and how she’ll fare this season. As a freshman in 2025, she was the fourth ninth-grader to cross the line at the states, placing 33rd overall with her current best. Baker did not compete on the indoor track team and only did the pole vault during the spring campaign.
Success often breeds numbers. Could we see an increase in runners at North Kingstown after the Skippers captured their first outdoor state title this past June? To have any chance of going beyond our third-place prediction, they’ll need increased depth to make any kind of run at our front-runners.
