The Skinny: Many of these teams are returning to the site of the Ev Berg Invitational where their runners ran some ultra fast (some might say suspiciously fast?) times, so a strict season-best comparison may not be the best method to determine exactly how teams match up. But one thing is clear, and that is that the two best teams are Class AA's #11-ranked Red Wing and Winona in some order. Red Wing has won several meets this year as a team and been extremely consistant, while Winona has been dropping a lot of time as the season has worn on, is it is possible Winona is peaking at the right moment. In any event, whoever wins will be a clear indication of who to watch closest once the Section 1AA championships roll around.
GIRLS
Top Teams: Rochester Century (43 points), Red Wing (98), Mankato West (112), Rochester Mayo (116)
The Skinny:You can't blame the Ev Berg Invitational for the times that Rochester Century has been putting up recently. Midway through the season, they were hardly on the radar among Section 1AA's top teams, but led by Aly Welch and Helen Li, the Century ladies have made a massive push to be included among the best of their section, which is filled to the brim with talent like Farmington, Lakeville South, and conference rivals Red Wing. The outcome here will shine a lot of light on just how good Century can be. Aly Welch is a strong favorite for the individual title, and her teammate Li has been right on her shoulder all season, but you can certainly expect Owatonna's Baedke to make a strong push too.