The regular season came to an end for the Pella Christian Cross Country teams Monday at the Little Hawkeye Conference meet, and the Eagles late season efforts were recognized on Tuesday.

The Eagles girls cross country squad entered the Iowa Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association rankings for the first time in more than 12 years as the #13 team in Class 1A. The Eagles boys team moved up six spots to #10 in Class 1A. The Eagles moved up in the rankings the same day that the state qualifying meets were announced. The Eagles will compete at Pekin for a shot at making the State Meet. The boys will compete against just one ranked team in #1 Earlham, while the girls will compete against two ranked teams in #3 Pekin and #18 Collins-Maxwell. While Pella Christian has gained recognition from the state, Junior Katy Roose knows the Eagles will need to be prepared mentally for the state qualifier meet.

“I mean physically, obviously, having a good race is going to help, but mentally I think is also a big part of it because we may get down on ourselves if we’re not having too good of a race or something. But I think just encouraging each other as a team and staying positive is going to be a big part of that.”

The Eagles state qualifying meet will be on Thursday October 21st at Pekin at 4 pm.