By Erik Boal, DyeStatCAL Editor

The 30th annual CIF State Championships are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 26 at Woodward Park in Fresno. The schedule is as follows: 8:30 a.m. Division 4 boys, 9 a.m. Division 5 boys, 9:30 a.m. Division 4 girls, 10:05 a.m. Division 5 girls, 10:40 a.m. Division 1 boys, 11:10 a.m. Division 2 girls, 11:45 a.m. Division 3 boys, 12:15 p.m. Division 1 girls, 12:50 p.m. Division 2 boys, 1:20 p.m. Division 3 girls.

Here are 10 must-see matchups to follow at one of the strongest state finals in the country, which also serves as a selection meet for Nike Cross Nationals:

Luis Grijalva vs. Michael Vernau – Division 1 boys final, 10:40 a.m.

Although Madera South’s Miguel Villar, Redondo Union’s Ethan Comeaux, Dougherty Valley’s Neil Braganza and El Camino Real’s Justin Hazell all enter this race with momentum following impressive efforts at their section championship meets, the showdown is expected to materialize into a head-to-head battle involving the senior standouts who both rank among the top 20 performers all-time at Woodward Park. Grijalva, who led Armijo to its first state meet berth with his victory at the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 1 final Nov. 12, has already defeated Vernau on the 5-kilometer course Oct. 8 at the Clovis Invitational. Vernau, an all-state honoree and All-American last year for Davis Senior, hasn’t defeated Grijalva since the season-opening Lagoon Valley Classic. As long as Grijalva or Vernau prevails, it will be the first Division 1 boys state title by a Sac-Joaquin Section runner since Beyer’s Justin Willingham in 1998.

Palos Verdes vs. La Costa Canyon – Division 3 girls final, 1:20 p.m.

Defending champion Aptos captured its sixth consecutive Central Coast Section title Nov. 12 and should contend for a podium finish, but this showdown has been building all season and should decide the team championship and potentially put the winner in contention to qualify for Nike Cross Nationals. Palos Verdes has won two of the past five Division 3 championships and is the favorite, with La Costa Canyon highly motivated to capture its first title in any division after four runner-up finishes in the past six seasons. A great individual battle should develop up front involving La Costa Canyon’s Kristin Fahy and McKenna Brown with Redwood Larkspur’s Glennis Murphy and Gillian Wagner, in addition to Palos Verdes’ Mazzy Genovese and Aptos’ Marea Zlatunich, which will be instrumental in setting the tone in the team race. Aptos, La Costa Canyon and Palos Verdes were separated by 20 points and 29 seconds in last year’s final, with another thrilling clash expected this season as an encore.

Dublin vs. Ventura vs. Mira Costa vs. Claremont vs. Loyola – Division 2 boys final, 12:50 p.m.

The depth in this division has been strong all season in the Southern Section, with four teams separated by 45 points at the Nov. 19 championship meet. Dublin made a significant statement by not only winning its first North Coast Section title, but having its five scoring runners separated by 37 seconds. The Gaels didn’t get an opportunity to face the Southern Section’s elite at the Clovis Invitational, instead winning their large school race, making their pursuit even more intriguing to become the first North Coast Section team to win the Division 2 boys title since Eureka in 1999. Loyola and Ventura have captured the past two Division 2 championships, giving them an important edge in experience, but any of the five contenders are capable of putting all the pieces together and prevailing in a close battle that could be dictated with the pace set up front by Loyola’s Charlie Sherman, Claremont’s Owen Bishop, Mira Costa’s Caleb Llorin, Ventura’s Jordan Olson and Dublin’s Anirudh Surapaneni.

Kiera Marshall vs. Rylee Bowen vs. Brooke Trossen vs. Alexandra Stout – Division 5 girls final, 10:05 a.m.

Marshall, a St. Joseph Notre Dame senior and runner-up the past two years, demonstrated she is ready for the biggest challenge of her career by winning the North Coast Section title by a 30-second margin over Bowen, the two-time state champion from Sonoma Academy. Trossen, a Francis Parker senior, is a returning all-state honoree who captured another San Diego Section crown. Stout, a Castilleja transfer, didn’t make the state meet last season, but delivered an impressive performance to win the Central Coast Section title Nov. 12 at Crystal Springs. For the first time in a postseason meet in her cross country career, Bowen enters a race as the underdog, but will look to rebound following her first head-to-head loss to Marshall. A win by Bowen or Marshall would extend the North Coast Section’s divisional dominance to eight consecutive years producing the individual girls champion, a streak that also includes Branson's Julia Maxwell (2011-13) and Marin Academy's Lucy McCullough (2009-10).

Erik Gonzalez vs. Joaquin Martinez de Pinillos vs. Evert Silva vs. Andrew Skoy vs. Liam Anderson – Division 3 boys final, 11:45 a.m.

The most balanced of any of the boys division championship races features a rematch of the thrilling showdown involving Gonzalez of Rubidoux and Martinez de Pinillos of Cathedral Catholic from the Mt. SAC Invitational, along with three other impressive section champions and two motivated runner-up finishers. Gonzalez and Martinez de Pinillos were separated by one-tenth of a second in producing the two fastest times at Mt. SAC. Gonzalez and sophomore teammate Kevin Ramos ran the Nos. 2 and 3 times at the Southern Section finals. Silva is looking to become Fresno High’s first state champion since 1996, with Skoy attempting to become the first individual winner from the Northern Section since 2005. Anderson, a sophomore at Redwood Larkspur, has placed himself in the title conversation after moving down from Division 2 last season and winning the North Coast Section crown. Martinez de Pinillos and Campolindo’s Jared Yabu, who placed second behind Anderson in their section final, are both returning all-state honorees.

Claremont vs. St. Francis Sacramento vs. Granada vs. Monte Vista vs. Saugus – Division 2 girls final, 11:10 a.m.

All of the challengers in the race don’t have as many combined state championships as Saugus, which is seeking its record-tying 10^th title. The Centurions don’t enter the meet with the same momentum as the past two years after placing seventh at the Southern Section final, but no team in the state in the past decade has demonstrated the ability to rise to the occasion at Woodward Park better than Saugus. Claremont produced an impressive 47-point victory over Anaheim Canyon to win the Southern Section title, with St. Francis Sacramento knocking off Granite Bay by a 33-point margin in the Sac-Joaquin Section final. The most thrilling girls battle in any division came in Granada’s 48-49 victory over Monte Vista in the North Coast Section championship meet. Granada’s state title hopes could be bolstered by the return of sophomore Kinga Bihari to its lineup after she sat out the section final to rest a leg injury.

Sage Creek vs. Foothill Tech vs. JSerra vs. Bishop O’Dowd – Division 4 boys final, 8:30 a.m.

Just like last season when Santa Ynez emerged from a highly competitive championship race to capture its first state crown, all of the leading contenders are looking to end their title droughts and grab the top spot on the podium. Sage Creek swept the top four spots to win the San Diego Section title, with Bishop O’Dowd placing four runners in the top 12 to secure the North Coast Section championship. Foothill Tech, a third-year program, prevailed by a 48-point margin over JSerra and enters the race as favorite after finishing fifth last season. Sage Creek's Brad Nelson, Foothill Tech's Jared Rodriguez, JSerra's Anthony Grover and Aaron Gonzalez of Bishop O'Dowd will all look to position themselves near San Luis Obispo senior Callum Bolger in an attempt to be catalysts for their team's success. San Luis Obispo and Harvard-Westlake are both sleepers to make the podium in a division that will crown a different state champion for the ninth consecutive year.

Chloe Arriaga vs. Lauren Peurifoy vs. Sofia Castiglioni vs. Sierra Brill vs. Elena Kamas – Division 1 girls final, 12:15 p.m.

Any of Great Oak’s top five (Nicole Rice, Sydney Belus, Evelyn Mandel, Kiyena Beatty and Sandra Pflughoft) could also be mentioned among the legitimate contenders to win this division, although sophomores Arriaga and Peurifoy were able to hold off the Wolfpack standouts at the Southern Section final. With the top five finishers from last year’s state championship race graduated, a new group of challengers is emerging, along with returning all-state honoree Emily Virtue of Burroughs. Walnut’s Arriaga repeated as section champion with a nine-second victory over Martin Luther King’s Peurifoy, with Virtue placing fifth behind Belus and Rice. Castiglioni, a senior at Davis Senior, repeated as Sac-Joaquin Section champion and Brill secured her third career San Francisco Section title, lowering the Golden Gate Park course record set by former Lowell teammate Kristen Leung – fifth in last year’s state final – by 19 seconds. Kamas, a Homestead junior, captured her first Central Coast Section championship and finished ahead of all her divisional rivals on the same course Oct. 8 at the Clovis Invitational.

Lancaster Desert Christian vs. Cerritos Valley Christian vs. Flintridge Prep vs. Lick Wilmerding – Division 5 boys final, 9 a.m.

Following one of the closest finishes ever in the division at the Southern Section final – nine points separating the top three teams – expect the rematch to be even more dramatic for Desert Christian and Flintridge Prep, with Valley Christian and Lick Wilmerding looking to break through for their first state podium finishes. Flintridge Prep has five state championships, including last year, and is looking to repeat for the first time since 1998-99, but the Rebels will need to rebound from a third-place performance after Desert Christian won its first section crown since 1994. Desert Christian finished second in 2011, along with third in 2010 and last season, and the Knights are motivated to send four seniors out with the program’s first state title. Desert Christian's Joseph Biehl and Andrew Mitchell, Valley Christian's Ryan Vreeke and Josh Rupprecht, Lick Wilmerding's Sean Laidlaw and Flintridge Prep's Evan Pattinelli will all play significant roles in the title pursuits of their respective teams. Flintridge Prep is looking to equal the record set by Woodcrest Christian with a sixth Division 5 boys championship.

Alexandra Beitia vs. Meredith Corda vs. Melia Chittenden vs. Erica Schroeder – Division 2 girls final, 11:10 a.m.

An additional group of challengers that includes Capistrano Valley’s Haley Herberg and Alyssa Bautista, Saugus’ Kaylee Thompson and Mariah Castillo, St. Francis Sacramento’s Sydney Vandegrift and Isabella Fauria, Anaheim Canyon’s Sara Leonard, Northwood’s Erika Adler, Claremont’s Annie Boos, Granada’s Colleen McCandless, Citrus Valley’s Claire Graves, McFarland’s DeDe Salcedo and Canyon Crest Academy’s Kira Loren also deserves to be in the conversation as title contenders in the deepest division in the state. Beitia, a Granite Bay senior, won the championship race at the Clovis Invitational, in addition to prevailing at the Stanford Invitational and capturing the Sac-Joaquin Section title. Corda captured her second North Coast Section championship in three years, including Division 1 in 2014. Chittenden, a Mira Costa senior, egded San Marcos’ Schroeder by a four-second margin at the Southern Section final. Senior Maryam Jawid, who became the first Lynbrook female to win a Central Coast Section title, could be a sleeper having raced sparingly this season.