Overview: Campolindo's young talent matured very quickly last season as the Cougars rolled to a harrowing NCS victory in the mud over Tamalpais, then followed that up with a resounding CIF DIII state championship the following week. With Campo returning the bulk of that team, they're heavily favored to win every race they're entered in this season. With only 4 teams making it to state in this division, the competition for the other 3 spots will be pretty intense.
1. Campolindo
Campo courts one of the most talent-laden teams in the entire state of California, regardless of division. Caden Ehrhorn effortlessly made the jump to varsity-level competition and wound up as the best freshman in this division last season. Look for him to make a big jump this season. Behind him is a "Murderers' Row" of talent as the Cougars return 7 runners with sub-10:00 credentials in the 3200 and 5 at 9:50 or better. Clark Gregory is arguably just as capable of being the frontrunner in any given race, giving Campo a nasty 1-2 punch.
Throw in varsity returners Gavin Gunn, Jack Durden, and Cody De La Cruz, and the Cougars are unbeatable when at full strength. And with the massive improvements from backend scorers like juniors Drew Shogan, Samuel Hern, Carter Cook, and Nikola Van Delft, you've got the makings for the best team ever from one of the area's legendary programs. Now that's saying something! And the best part (worst for all the other teams in this division) is that De La Cruz is the only senior in the projected top 7, so this lineup could be one of the nation's very best in 2026.
2. Maria Carrillo
The Pumas return a solid contingent of talent, with Austin Petrik and Cameron Jones both having productive track seasons in clocking 4:24 in the 1600. Maria Carrillo returns 4 runners who broke 4:35 in the 1600, and that's a good place to start. Track times don't always translate into cross-country performances, but the Pumas are one of the most consistent teams in this division so they should have no trouble turning into a competitive team come season's end.
3. Tamalpais
Few programs have made such a big jump in performance as Tam over the past few seasons. Last year, the Red Tailed Hawks had their best season in team history, barely losing to Campolindo at the NCS championships and then notching a 7th place finish at state. While they graduate the bulk of that team, Tam has plenty of depth and up-and-coming talent to make it back to state and improve upon last season's finish.
Finn Harrington had a massive breakout during the spring track season, running 9:18 for 3200, an incredible feat for someone who was not even a regular varsity scorer last fall. Behind him, seasoned veterans Lucas Ruark and Atticus Siedman will look to continue their upward trajectory. Tam returns 9 runners under 5:00 for the 1600, so they have a decent amount of depth and talent. While it would be hard to catch Campolindo, Tam is positioned for another strong season and could move up these rankings.
4. Newark Memorial
The Cougars return the defending NCS DIII individual champion in Kenji Kawabata, but behind that depth is a big concern. While Mohammed Lulu and Cruz Villa have flashed plenty of potential, Newark lacks the backend scoring depth of other teams on this list. That will make it difficult for them to stay in contention with the 3 teams ranked ahead of them, and it opens the door for one of the lower-ranked teams to snag the final qualifying spot to state.
5. Windsor
Through 3 runners, Windsor matches up very favorably with Campolindo. Corbin Prost, Michael Ervin, and Xavier Surgeon all had breakthrough track seasons with the trio all running 9:43 or better in the 3200. Prost had the best performances, running 4:18 in the 1600 and 9:28 in the 3200 to stamp himself as a contender for the individual title. There's a huge drop-off after the front 3, so any improvement from the backend could vault the Jaguars much higher up on the list. If there's any team with the potential of keeping it close against Campo at the NCS meet, it's this one.
6. Analy
The Tigers are more of a middle-distance focused squad, as evidenced by their qualification to state in the 4x800 last track season. Still, there's plenty of talent here, with 5 returners who ran 4:45 or better in the 1600. Owen Dawson gives Analy a legit frontrunner to keep the team score low in every race, and behind him, Quince Holman and Logan Dickson are more than capable of contending with any other team's 2-3. Some teams find the track to XC transition difficult, but Analy will be in contention for a berth to state, as the 4-6 teams in these rankings are all pretty close together.
Individual rankings
On paper, this should be one of the closer races in recent memory, but it's equally likely that someone here will have a breakout season and win by a large margin.
1. Kenji Kawabata - Newark Memorial
2. Finn Harrington - Tamalpais
3. Caden Ehrhorn - Campolindo
4. Clark Gregory - Campolindo
5. Corbin Post - Windsor
6. Owen Dawson - Analy
7. Michael Ervin - Windsor
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