National Spotlight Awaits Dutch at Gans Creek Classic

The Pella girls will step onto one of the country’s premier cross country courses Friday evening for their most significant test of the season.

Only Pella’s top 10 girls will make the trip to Columbia, Missouri, where the Dutch will compete in the Elite Varsity race at the Gans Creek Classic. The 5K race features athletes representing 40 schools from across the central United States—including three teams listed in DyeStat’s early-season national Top 40.

The Elite Varsity girls’ race begins at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course.

Meet Information

Meet: Gans Creek Classic
Date: Friday, September 25
Location: Gans Creek Cross Country Course, Columbia, Missouri
Race: Elite Varsity Girls 5K
Start Time: 7:30 p.m.
Pella Entries: 10
Timing: PrimeTime Timing (Link to Live Results)

A Championship-Level Setting

Gans Creek was designed specifically for championship cross country.

The wide, irrigated course uses a combination of two- and three-kilometer loops with lightly rolling terrain, sweeping turns and a slightly uphill 300-meter finish. Its starting line can accommodate as many as 42 teams and gives runners approximately 550 meters before the first sweeping turn.

The facility hosted the 2025 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships and has also served as the site of the NAIA National Championships and Missouri’s state high school championships.

The setting should provide Pella with a much different test than the Dutch encountered Saturday at the Heartland Classic. After racing through rain, mud and deteriorating course conditions at Central College, Pella will now compete on a course designed to handle a large and fast championship field.

National Rankings Add Intrigue

Pella enters Gans Creek as the only team in the field recognized by both of the national rankings released before or during the early portion of the season.

The Dutch were placed No. 14 nationally in the MileSplit COROS preseason rankings. In DyeStat’s September 17 early-season rankings, Pella is No. 27, Waukee Northwest is No. 14 and Texas power Bridgeland is No. 28.

The differences illustrate how unsettled the national picture remains.

MileSplit views Pella as the field’s leading national contender, while DyeStat gives that distinction to Waukee Northwest. Pella and Bridgeland are separated by only one position in DyeStat’s rankings.

Bentonville does not appear in either national ranking, but the Arkansas program’s season-best performances suggest it belongs firmly in the conversation. Entry-based projections place Bentonville at or near the front of the field, making it a significant challenge to all three nationally ranked teams.

Rock Bridge, Blue Springs South, Liberty North and several other strong regional programs add further depth to a race that should punish any significant gap between scorers.

Friday will provide something rankings and database projections cannot: all of the contenders competing on the same course, under the same conditions and in the same race.

Photo by Andrew Schneider

Pella’s Complete Lineup Comes Together

Gans Creek is expected to provide Pella with its first opportunity since Gilbert Invitational to race its complete potential championship group together.

Elsie Brenneman returns to the projected lineup after not competing at the Heartland Classic. The senior brings extensive championship experience and adds another proven runner near the front of Pella’s scoring group.

Lizzy Vande Voort, Maechen Cowman and Ruth Dunham have each provided the Dutch with a consistent presence near the front of races this season. Together with Brenneman, they give Pella four runners capable of making a meaningful impact against a deep field.

The outcome may hinge on what happens behind that group.

Ellie Hardman and Erica Vos have emerged as important scoring options, while Carleigh Altwine and Dana McCulla provide additional experience and depth. Freshmen Joanna Vande Voort and Georgia Ferebee have also earned the opportunity to compete in the most demanding varsity race of their young high school careers.

Five runners will determine Pella’s team score, but the strength of the complete 10-runner lineup gives the Dutch several different ways to assemble that scoring group.

Projected Pella Lineup

• Carleigh Altwine
• Elsie Brenneman
• Maechen Cowman
• Ruth Dunham
• Georgia Ferebee
• Ellie Hardman
• Dana McCulla
• Joanna Vande Voort
• Lizzy Vande Voort
• Erica Vos

Photo by Andrew Schneider

Team Depth Takes Center Stage

Despite the national recognition surrounding the race, none of the confirmed Gans Creek competitors appears in DyeStat’s early-season list of the country’s Top 100 individuals.

That does not mean the race lacks front-running talent. Instead, it emphasizes what makes the team competition especially compelling. The strongest programs have earned attention through depth and connected scoring groups rather than depending upon one nationally ranked star.

For Pella, that places additional importance on its complete lineup.

Vande Voort, Cowman, Dunham and Brenneman give the Dutch a strong foundation, but Friday’s outcome could be decided by which runner completes Pella’s scoring five and how closely the next Dutch finishers follow.

In a field this large and deep, a separation of only a few seconds can represent a substantial swing in team points.

Freshmen Face Their Biggest Test

Cowman, Hardman, Joanna Vande Voort and Ferebee will each encounter a new kind of challenge at Gans Creek.

Cowman has already established herself as one of Iowa’s leading freshmen and an important part of Pella’s scoring group. Friday gives her an opportunity to compete against a much broader collection of runners and teams than she will ordinarily see during the Iowa season.

Joanna Vande Voort and Ferebee have continued climbing through Pella’s deep lineup. Both have produced strong early-season performances and will now gain experience in a large, fast and physical varsity race.

Learning to manage the opening pace, run efficiently within a crowd and remain engaged while surrounded by unfamiliar uniforms will be valuable regardless of where the three freshmen finish.

What to Watch

The Opening Kilometer

With athletes from 40 schools represented, the start will be crowded and aggressive. Pella must establish competitive position without allowing the excitement of the race to create an unsustainable opening pace.

Pella’s Scoring Compression

In a deep field, even a small separation between teammates can represent a large number of places. How closely Pella can keep its fourth, fifth and sixth runners together could determine whether the Dutch finish at the front of the team standings.

Brenneman’s Return

Brenneman’s presence could significantly alter the shape of Pella’s scoring group. Friday will provide the first indication of how the senior fits into an increasingly competitive lineup as the Dutch enter the second half of the regular season.

Pella Against Waukee Northwest

The matchup gives the Dutch an opportunity to measure themselves against the defending Iowa Class 4A champion and the highest-ranked Gans Creek team in DyeStat’s current national rankings.

Although the programs compete in different Iowa classifications, both have national postseason ambitions. Friday provides a rare direct comparison before they could potentially meet again at the Nike Heartland Regional.

Pella Against Bridgeland

Only one position separates No. 27 Pella and No. 28 Bridgeland in the DyeStat rankings. Because the programs rarely share a starting line, their head-to-head result should provide one of the race’s most useful national comparisons.

The Bentonville Question

Bentonville may be the most difficult team to evaluate entering Friday. The Tigers are absent from both national rankings, but their recorded season-best performances project them as one of the strongest teams in the race.

A strong Bentonville showing would demonstrate how quickly the national picture can change once teams begin meeting head-to-head.

Confirmed Schools Represented

Ankeny Centennial, Bentonville, Blue Springs, Blue Springs South, Bridgeland, Conroe Woodlands College Park, Cor Jesu Academy, Dallas Center-Grimes, Edwardsville Metro-East Lutheran, Eureka, Father Tolton Regional Catholic, Gardner Edgerton, Jackson, Kearney, Kickapoo, Lee’s Summit, Lee’s Summit West, Liberty, Liberty–Wentzville, Liberty North, Lincoln College Prep, MICDS–Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day, Millard West, Nixa, Nolensville, Notre Dame–Cape Girardeau, Olathe West, Park Hill South, Parkway Central, Pella, Pleasant Valley, Providence Classical Christian Academy, Reeds Spring, Rock Bridge, Rockwood Summit, Salida, Shiloh Christian, St. Teresa’s Academy, Waukee Northwest and Webster Groves.

A True National Measuring Point

Friday’s result will not determine what Pella can accomplish in October or November, but it will provide the Dutch with their clearest national measuring point of the regular season.

A victory over the entire field would be a significant statement. Finishing ahead of one or both of the other nationally ranked teams—or remaining closely connected to the winner—would also strengthen Pella’s position as a legitimate Nike postseason contender.

The Dutch remain focused first on pursuing a fifth consecutive Class 3A state championship. But if Pella hopes to extend its season beyond Fort Dodge, it must learn to compete successfully in races where the field is large, the pace is fast and every weakness is exposed.

That makes Gans Creek more than another invitational. It is an opportunity for the Dutch to discover where they stand—and what must improve before the races that will define their season.