Indianola’s Pickard Park will be the site of today’s Class 4A State Qualifying Meet involving the Indianola and Norwalk cross country teams.

The competition will begin with the girls race at 4:00 p.m., followed by the boys race at 4:30. The top three teams and top 15 individuals advance to next Saturday’s State Cross Country Championships at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course in Fort Dodge.

One of today’s top state meet contenders will be the 2nd-ranked Norwalk boys, who won last week’s Little Hawkeye Conference championship for their fourth meet title of the season. Additional state-ranked boys teams in the field include third-ranked Johnston, No. 12 Southeast Polk and No. 15 Ames.

The Warriors placed sixth at last year’s 4A state meet and return their top four runners from that squad in Donovan Card, Jack Brown, Will Chase and Noah Buhrow. Norwalk is seeking a fourth straight trip to state and features a strong pack-running team. The Warriors’ top five conference place-winners finished within a 36-second span, and Chase tells KNIA-KRLS Sports that the pack-running mentality should carry the team again Wednesday.

“It’s a fun time, running with a group of guys that you run with on a daily basis,” Chase said. “And then to be able to come out to a meet and do the same, it makes the meets more fun just competing with each other and having those guys by your side. It’s cool having your teammates run right alongside you.”

The Indianola girls, who finished 15th at last year’s state meet, should be in the hunt for another trip to Fort Dodge and carry the No. 17 ranking into the state qualifier. The nine-team field also includes fifth-ranked Johnston, No. 6 Ames and No. 19 Southeast Polk.

The Indian girls, who finished just three points behind champion Pella at the Little Hawkeye Meet, are led by top-10 conference place-winners Gracie Foster, Bree Tenges and Taylor Hoger.

Area individuals to watch today include Norwalk senior Breelie Mauro, a three-time state qualifier and last week’s Little Hawkeye runner-up. The Indianola boys are led by freshman Reed Robbins, who placed 14th at the conference meet.