(Photo: Greg Hall)
1. Stephen Kielhofner - Springfield Catholic - SR: Kielhofner has made easy work of the field at the state meet since his breakout sophomore year and he seems almost unbeatable. With 3 cross country medals (2 golds) and 5 from the spring (3 golds), his hardware collection is impressive. In 2016, Kielhofner took Ste. Gen stud Ben Naeger to the 2 mile and then blew him away in his first Class 3 state XC meet. He always seems to run to the competition level and can race with the best of them, as evidenced by his 1:56/4:15 (1609)/9:27/15:22 PR's. To add to his pedigree, Kielhofner had no problems dispatching his opponents in the Class 3 1600 and 3200 this spring. McDaniel has the power and speed to chase him down, but Kielhofner has the poise and experience and the Class 2 and 3 state champ is the clear favorite in Class 3 in 2017.