The best cross country runners in southeast Iowa take the course tonight for the Mount Pleasant Panther Invitational, including six schools from the KCII listening area.

The Washington Demons are in action tonight. Washington last ran at Rodeo Park in Fort Madison where the Demon boys were Class A champs and the Washington girls were runners-up. Tyler Alderton was boys meet champion and Iris Dahl won the girls event. Those two Demons are both ranked in the latest individual Class 3A poll from the Iowa Association of Track Coaches with Dahl No. 20 for the girls and Alderton No. 26 for the boys.

Mid-Prairie last ran at Monticello. The Golden Hawk girls were team champs and the boys were runners-up. Brooklyn Stutzman was fourth to lead the Mid-Prairie girls and Emmett Swartzentruber led the Golden Hawk boys in fifth. In the latest Class 2A poll from the IATC, the Golden Hawk girls are No. 2 and the boys are No. 4. The Hawks have four ranked individuals in 2A, Swartzentruber No. 8 and Preston Yutzy No. 25 for the boys and Stutzman No. 16 and Rachel Hostetler No. 28 for the girls.

The Columbus Wildcats will be in Mount Pleasant tonight. They competed last at Rodeo Park in Fort Madison where the Wildcat boys were B Division team champs. Columbus was led by Ty Muniz taking fourth overall. The Wildcat girls didn’t have a team score, but saw Isabel Rendon finish 13th individually. In the latest IATC 1A poll the Wildcat boys are No 18 as a team, with Ty Muniz No. 24 individually.

The Lone Tree cross country team has been off for a week since a trip to English Valleys. The Lion girls were fourth as a team with Vivian Zaruba 17th while the boys didn’t have a team score but saw Brock Nebergall lead the way in 13th.

The WACO Warriors also competed last at EV where the boys were third as a team, led by Jude Dykstra’s runner-up finish and Elyssa Graber checked in 12th to lead the Warrior girls. Dykstra is No. 27 in this week’s 1A boys poll.

Winfield-Mt. Union’s last meet was at Fort Madison on the 19th. The Wolves were seventh in the boys B Division led by Kohlby Newsom placing eighth. The girl’s didn’t have a team score, but were led by Ashlyn Bender in 28 minutes.

Those schools will be joined tonight by Central Lee, the No. 6 in 1A Danville boys and their No. 13 girls, Fairfield, the No. 12 in 3A Fort Madison girls and their No. 16 boys, Holy Trinity, Keokuk, Lone Tree, Louisa-Muscatine, the No. 20 in 2A Mediapolis boys and their girls, New London, Oskaloosa, Wilton and the home Panthers. There are a total of 13 ranked runners in tonight’s field. Action starts at 4:30 and continues into the evening in Mount Pleasant.