Pekin harrier girls ranked No. 5

As the Pekin girls? cross country team begins its Class 1A state title defense for the second straight season, the squad will have to do it from unfamiliar territory.

After going wire-to-wire ranked No. 1 in Class 1A last season, the Pekin girls sit at No. 5 in the 2012 preseason rankings. Griswold, led by state individual champion Rebekah Topham, is ranked No. 1 in the preseason poll.

The Panthers will be led by returnees Maleaha Earnest and Samantha Wright. Both harriers have been staples of the state title teams the past two seasons, with Earnest scoring 19th and Wright 22nd overall at the 2011 state meet.

Meanwhile, on the boys? side, Pekin just squeezed into the rankings at No. 15. After a seven-year hiatus from the state meet, the Panthers finished 14th last season and are looking for more of the same in 2012. St. Albert Council Bluffs opens the season atop the Class 1A rankings.