Grace Connolly, La Salle Academy
The Ram senior has stated all along that her primary goal for Sunday's meet is helping her team win a state title. She'll have to be at her best this weekend with last week's Class A winner Barrington aiming for team glory. You know an individual crown is also on Connolly's mind and with the right kind of race that could come to fruition this weekend. In a relaxed effort, Connolly won the Class A title with a time of 18:19.49. She ran an all-time best of 17:47.20 for the 5K distance on Oct. 7 when she placed fifth in the Race of Champions at the Great American X-C Festival in N.C. That's a time we believe Connolly will need to run close to if she wants to bring home a win on Sunday. In our eyes, Connolly should be the biggest threat to Lawler in her quest for the three-peat. When the leaders exit the woods for the final 600-meter stretch, don't be surprised if the Ram and Rebel standouts are running side-by-side with thoughts on prosperity.