By Poll Manager Ron Knapp
The results have been tabulated in our 21st year of hosting and managing the Connecticut High School Coach’s XC Preseason Poll sponsored by Marathon Sports & New Balance for the 2025 season that featured close voting resulting in the Glastonbury Girls and Xavier Boys as the top teams.
Our readers are reminded that our coaches took the time to vote on what they thought they knew about how teams and runners seen last year will perform this year. The periodic polls offered this season will provide the coaches with several opportunities to refine their views as results are posted and analyzed amidst the responsibilities of coaching their own teams. Remember that coaches don’t have a crystal ball capable of seeing the future so you can agree or disagree but get talking and spread the interest of our sport. All our CT athletes are challenged to prove the voting right or wrong by doing the best they can in the finest tradition of our sport.
Marathon Sports CT High School Coaches 2025 XC Preseason Girls Poll
In close voting the top three teams were separated by only 6 votes as the 16 coaches selected the Glastonbury Guardians as the top team with 146 points and Greenwich only 1 vote behind as both received 6 first place votes. The Tigers of Mercy were a scant 5 votes behind the Cardinals as they garnered 4 first place votes.
The second group of vote recipients in the 4th through 7th rankings were closely bunched within 10 votes led by Trumbull (81), followed by Haddam Killingworth (77), Staples (72) and New Canaan (70).
The final slots were earned by New Fairfield in 8th with 37 votes followed by Lyman Memorial with 24 votes and Cheshire with 22 votes as 14 other teams also received votes in the early season balloting.
Marathon Sports CT High School Coaches 2025 XC Preseason Boys Poll
Similar to the girls balloting, there was only a difference of 8 votes between 1st and 3rd as the Xavier Falcons received the nod as the top team with 119 votes and 6 first place votes. As the defending State Open champions Ridgefield gained 2 first place votes as they totaled 117 votes. Open runners-up East Lyme were only 6 votes behind the Tigers while gathering 3 first place votes.
More first place votes were awarded to the next 3 ranked teams as Greenwich earned 98 votes as FCIAC rival Staples was 5th with 90 votes and CCC champion EO Smith took the 6th slot with 73 votes. Haddam Killingworth received 65 votes to join in this tier.
The final…
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