Ava Hill, Mesabi East, Jr
In 2017, no one knew what to expect from Ava Hill. After winning the 2017 800m State title, Hill joined cross country for the first time last fall. Hill seamlessly transitioned to cross country, running 18:45 in just her second 5k ever. She had consistent success throughout the rest of the year, and looked like a fairly safe top five pick entering State. She ultimately crossed the line 8th, a stellar finish, but could probably have finished higher up on a better day. However, at NXR Heartland one week later, Hill had the race of her season. She shattered her previous PR by over 30 seconds, blasting an 18:11. That time was good for third best among Class A girls, only trailing Tierney Wolfgram and Lauren Ping. With a year of cross country under her belt, expect Ava Hill to improve on her 8th place finish a year ago. And after defending her 800m crown in June, Hill may have the best late race speed in all of Class A.
2017 XC Results
| TIME | MEET | DATE | PLACE |
| 18:11.48 | Nike Cross Nationals Heartland Regional | 11/12/17 | 32nd |
| 19:06.50 | MSHSL State Cross Country Championships | 11/04/17 | 8th |
| 19:08.00 | MSHSL Section 7A Championships | 10/26/17 | 1st |
| 19:21.60 | Iron Range Conference Championships | 10/17/17 | 1st |
| 22:19.40 | International Falls Hial Pike Invite | 10/10/17 | 18th |
| 19:50.40 | Swain Meet | 10/07/17 | 2nd |
| 18:52.60 | Hibbing Rotary Invitational | 09/28/17 | 1st |
| 18:57.48 | Milaca Mega Meet | 09/23/17 | 1st |
| 19:14.60 | Grand Rapids Paul Bauer Invite | 09/19/17 | 1st |
| 20:03.90 | Eveleth Lions Invitational | 09/14/17 | 1st |
| 18:45.00 | GNK Titan Invitational | 09/07/17 | 1st |
| 19:18.50 | North Shore Challenge | 08/31/17 | 1st |