The 2023 high school girls cross country season certainly had its share of ups and downs, a few disappointments and several surprises.

By the time it ended, Fort Madison sophomore Avery Rump rose above all, placing fourth at the Class 3A state meet at Kennedy Park in Fort Dodge. She earned Runner of the Year honors.

Keokuk had arguably its best season ever under the watchful eye of Shaina Arnold, the Coach of the Year. Junior Hannah Karre led the way for the Chiefs. The first-year runner was the team leader at every meet.

Freshmen Iris Garza of Columbus, Kaitlin Kipp of Notre Dame-West Burlington and Kaylee Snowgren of Van Buren County burst on the scene in a big way, giving hope for a promising future.

Fort Madison’s Paetyn Wiegand and Danville’s Alaina Gourley were the feel-good stories of the year, overcoming injuries to qualify for the state meet on a cold, rainy weekend in Fort Dodge.

All of that balance and talent is reflected on the All-Hawk Eye girls cross country team.

IRIS GARZA, FR., COLUMBUS

Garza had a record-setting year for the Wildcats. She shattered the school record for fastest time. She was seventh at the SEI Super Conference meet at Central Lee, took fourth at a Class 1A state qualifying meet at Iowa City and was 23rd at the Class 1A state meet in Fort Dodge.

ALAINA GOURLEY, SO., DANVILLE

Gourley missed the first half of the season recovering from an injury suffered during track season. She came back to finish fourth at the conference meet, fourth at a state qualifying meet in Iowa City and 66th at the Class 1A state meet.

HANNAH KARRE, JR., KEOKUK

Karre was the biggest surprise of the season, becoming one of the top runners in southeast Iowa in her first year of running. She was third at the Southeast Conference meet at Fort Madison, then narrowly missed qualifying for state, finishing 16th at a Class 3A state qualifying meet at Pella.

KAITLIN KIPP, FR., NOTRE DAME-WEST BURLINGTON

Kipp burst onto the varsity scene in a big way, finishing in the top 10 at every meet until state. She placed third at the conference meet, was sixth at a Class 2A state qualifying meet at Williamsburg, then finished 46th in her inaugural trip to the state meet.

AVA ORTH, SO., DANVILLE

Orth was the Bears’ top runner while Gourley was out, and continued that success down the stretch. She finished 10th at the conference meet to earn all-conference honors, then was 17th at the state qualifying meet, just missing a qualifying spot for state.

ADDISON RUMP, SO., FORT MADISON

Rump, after qualifying for state as a freshman, put together a solid sophomore campaign as the Bloodhounds’ No. 3 runner most of the season. She finished sixth at the conference meet, then was 19th at the state qualifying meet, narrowly missing a second trip to state,

AVERY RUMP, SO., FORT MADISON

After going out too fast and failing to finish the first meet of the season, Rump finished in the top 10 the rest of the way. Coming off a freshman year in which she finished eight at state, Rump came back to win the conference title, place fourth at the state qualifying meet, then moved up to finish fourth in the Class 3A state meet.

KAYLEE SNOWGREN, FR., VAN BUREN COUNTY

Snowgen came in and became the Warriors’ No. 1 runner, pushed by Rylee Phillips in every race.

Snowgren finished eighth at the conference meet and was 17th at the state qualifying meet, just missing a trip to state.

EMMA WHITAKER, SR., ILLINI WEST

Whitaker capped a solid career for the Chargers with a stellar senior season.

As the only girls runner for the Chargers, she placed third at a Class 1A regional meet at Quincy, then was 53rd at a loaded sectional meet at Elmwood.

PAETYN WIEGAND, SR., FORT MADISON

Wiegand, after missing her junior season with an injury, made up for lost time in a big hurry.

She was the Bloodhounds’ No. 2 runner all season, finishing fourth at the conference meet, eighth at the state qualifying meet and 86th at the Class 3A state meet in her only trip to Fort Dodge.

COACH OF THE YEAR

SHAINA ARNOLD, KEOKUK

Arnold put together perhaps the largest squad in school history and constructed one of the most successful seasons in program history.

The Chiefs were competitive in every meet this season. Keokuk was third as a team at the conference meet, then finished seventh at the state qualifying meet at Pella.