HIGH SCHOOL: CROSS COUNTRY TO HOLD 4A DISTRICTS

District competition for boys and girls cross country teams gets under way this weekend.

Jackson will host the Class 4A, District 1 meet today at Jackson City Park. The girls are scheduled to start at 11 a.m., the boys at 11:45 with each navigating a 3.1-mile course.

The top four teams and top 30 individuals advance to the sectionals at Jefferson Barracks in St. Louis the following Saturday.

Outstanding boys teams from Northwest House Springs, Cape Central, Fox and Lindbergh are expected to challenge for the team title.

Northwest, consistently strong, seems to always be the team to beat. They captured the district crown in 1998 and 1999.

Cape Central, runner-up to Northwest in '99, fields a potent team which recently won the SEMO Conference Meet. Other 4A teams competing in the conference meet were Poplar Bluff with a second-place finish and Jackson with a fourth.

Cape Central's conference champion Mark Stone is expected to have a shot at an individual medal. Teammates Justin Hawkins and Gabe Austin have been solid performers, as well.

Junior Josh Minton leads a young Jackson squad along with sophomore Joe Golightly.

An athlete to watch is Lindbergh's Paul Koehler, who has had an awesome season and is probably the odds-on favorite to garner the individual title.

On the girls side, '99 district champion Cape Central will seek to repeat. Jackson, Northwest, Fox and Lindbergh are all expected to vie for the team trophy.

If last year's meet can be used as a yardstick, it should be a barnburner. First through fourth-place was separated by a mere four points.

"It was the most unbelievable finish I've seen in all my years of involvement with cross country," said Cape Central head coach Mark Hahn.

Team parity was also evident last week, locally, as conference champion Cape Central edged runner-up Jackson by only two points.

Cape Central's Kim Pancoast, winner of the SEMO Conference Meet, is considered one of the top individual performers. Teammates Rachel Sprigg and Whitney Pingel also placed high in the Lady Tiger's victory at the conference meet.

Jackson fields a strong team led by Krista Mouser. Mouser placed second behind Pancoast in the conference meet.