Galena High School Wins 5A-North Cross Country Title

Galena secured the regional boys team championship with four runners finishing in the top seven.

Updated on Oct. 31, 2026 in Running

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Galena High School claimed the 5A-North regional boys cross country title in Reno, securing a spot in the upcoming state championship. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Galena High School captured the 5A-North regional boys cross country team title with a score of 26 points. Zach Folen led the performance by winning the individual race on the 5-kilometer course.

Why it matters

The regional meet serves as the qualifying gateway for the upcoming state championship. Success at this level determines which programs advance to compete for the state title at the next stage of the season.

Galena claimed victory with 26 points while Reno finished second with 52 points. Zach Folen recorded a winning time of 16 minutes, 9 seconds on the 5-kilometer course, narrowly ahead of David Coisson who finished in 16 minutes, 19 seconds.

The players

Galena High School

This is a public secondary school located in Reno that competes in the 5A-North athletic division.

Zach Folen

He is a cross country runner who secured the individual first-place finish at the 5A-North regional meet.

Truckee

This is a high school athletic program that achieved the 3A-North regional team title.

Incline

This is a high school athletic program that captured the 2A regional team championship.

The details

Galena dominated the field by placing four runners in the top seven overall positions to secure the team win. Other regional victors included Truckee, which won the 3A-North title with 29 points, and Incline, which took the 2A crown with 36 points.

Timeline

  1. The regional cross country meet took place on October 30.

  2. The state cross country meets are scheduled for November 7 at Veterans Memorial Park.

Season Trajectory

This regional performance serves as the critical qualification phase for the NIAA state cross country championship. Teams that successfully navigated the regional meet now advance to the state level to determine the season's ultimate champions.

Galena's team score of 26 points secures their advancement, while the top four teams in the 3A-North bracket also qualify for the state meet. Individual runners must now prepare for the transition to the Veterans Memorial Park course layout for their final competition.

The takeaway

Building momentum through regional qualification is essential for high school programs aiming for state-level success. Maintaining peak physical condition through the one-week turnaround between regional and state meets remains the primary challenge for qualifying runners.

What happens next

The state cross country meets are scheduled to take place on November 7 at Veterans Memorial Park.

Further reading

For more local athletic updates, check out the Running section.

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