By Erik Boal, DyeStatCAL Editor

The 38th ASCIS Clovis Invitational is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 8 at Woodward Park in Fresno.

Here are 10 storylines to follow at the one of the most prestigious meets in the country:

Long time no see

Not since placing first and third at last year's Nike Cross Nationals have the boys teams from Great Oak and Dana Hills squared off, but the top two programs in the state will finally renew acquaintances in the championship race, the first of two scheduled regular-season showdowns along with the Mt. SAC Invitational. Great Oak and Dana Hills were both humbled Sept. 17 facing out-of-state competition, with the Wolfpack finishing behind Colorado programs Mountain Vista and Palmer Ridge at the Woodbridge Classic in Norco and Dana Hills taking fourth behind Utah powers American Fork, Lone Peak and Stansbury at the Viking Invitational in Pleasant Grove. But Great Oak rebounded to win the seeded race at the Stanford Invitational and Dana Hills performed well at its own invitational to build momentum heading into this matchup, which also includes Claremont, Jesuit and Madera South. Jack Landgraf and Brandon Hough lead Dana Hills, with Jacob Korgan, Carlos Carvajal and Solomon Fountain guiding Great Oak.

Take two, plus two more

Great Oak, Davis Senior and Arcadia swept the top three spots in the girls seeded race at the Stanford Invitational in their first matchup this season. They will battle again in the championship race at Woodward Park, along with Buchanan and Claremont in one of the deepest girls invitational fields assembled within the state during the regular season. Buchanan placed fifth overall and was the second California team in the sweepstakes race behind Great Oak at the Woodbridge Classic. Claremont won the Cool Breeze Invitational and placed fourth at the Roy Griak Invitational in Minnesota. Monte Vista, fourth in the seeded race at Stanford, and Yucaipa, which placed sixth in the sweepstakes at Woodbridge, are also scheduled to compete in the girls championship race.

Another boys blockbuster

After exceptional individual showdowns at the Woodbridge Classic and Stanford Invitational, several of California's elite boys talents will get the opportunity to test themselves on the state course at Woodward Park. Lagoon Valley Classic and De La Salle Invitational winner Michael Vernau of Davis Senior, Woodbridge sweepstakes champion Luis Grijalva of Armijo, Cool Breeze champ Colin Fitzgerald of Crescenta Valley, Great Cow Run winner Steven Khan of Ayala and Ojai Invitational champion Callum Bolger of San Luis Obispo will face Evert Silva of Fresno, Miguel Villar of Madera South, Jack Landgraf of Dana Hills and Henry Weisberg of McQueen (Nevada) among others in a loaded boys championship race, with the winner looking to eclipse 15 minutes.

Leading ladies line up again

Although Eve Jensen of Boise (Idaho) won the girls seeded race at the Stanford Invitational, California standouts were responsible for the next nine finishers and 17 of the top 20 overall, with several of them looking for encore 5-kilometer performances at Woodward Park. Alexandra Beitia of Granite Bay placed second at Stanford, with Monte Vista's Meredith Corda taking third, Bishop Amat's Trinity Ruelas finishing fifth, Davis Senior's Sofia Castiglioni and Olivia O'Keeffe grabbing sixth and ninth, with Redwood's Glennis Murphy securing seventh, all returning for a rematch in the girls championship race, along with Great Oak's Evelyn Mandel, Nicole Rice, Kiyena Beatty, Sydney Belus and Sandra Pflughoft, who had a gap of five seconds at Stanford Golf Course. St. Francis of Sacramento freshman Isabella Fauria and junior Sydney Vandegrift are coming off first- and third-place finishes at the Capital Cross Challenge, with Buchanan's Meagen Lowe ready to challenge up front after a sixth-place finish in the Woodbridge sweepstakes.

Small school race with huge talent

Following stellar races competing against sweepstakes and seeded fields at Woodbridge and Stanford, St. Joseph Notre Dame senior Kiera Marshall is scheduled to be in the girls small school race, which also includes two-time Division 5 state champion Flintridge Prep. Also scheduled to compete in the race are Fillmore's Carissa Rodriguez, Mayfield's McKenna Smith, Sage Creek's Skyler Wallace, San Lorenzo Valley's Abbey Meck, Sonora Union's Cassi Land and Wildwood's Lila Copeland. Flintridge Prep, led by Sophie Gitlin and Natalie O'Brien, holds the Division 5 record at Woodward Park with a team time of 95:59.

Outstanding opening act

The large school girls race is the first of 10 varsity competitions at 7:15 a.m., with plenty of talented teams scheduled to compete in the most favorable conditions of the day. Blayney Dolan of Clovis North and Angela DiPentino of Woodcreek took the top two spots in the Division 1 race at the Stanford Invitational. McFarland sophomore DeDe Salcedo is also scheduled to compete in the race, along with Alize Hartke of Oakmont, Christina Rice of Dos Pueblos, Isabella Dobson of Elk Grove, Annie Meeder of Paso Robles, Kelly Wacker of Mater Dei and Misty Diaz of Norwalk.

Extra large incentive

Several standouts in the extra large girls race have aspirations of earning all-state honors when they return to Woodward Park in November, so many big performances are expected in the undercard for the championship race. Ayala's Mikaela Ramirez, Clovis' McKenna Lewis, El Toro's Hannah Tobin, Armijo's Alysia Foley and Valencia's Hailey Kirsch lead a talented group, with the winner capable of running under 18 minutes.

Underrated stars ready to shine

An impressive field has been assembled for the boys large school race, led by Palo Alto standout Kent Slaney, Dos Pueblos' Hunter Clark, Agoura's Jonathan Lee, Simi Valley's Nick Abbinanti and Woodcreek's Derek Parker. There are several dynamic duos ready to race up front as well, with Granite Bay's Jake Ritter and Tre Lockwood, Paso Robles' Trad Berti and Luis Armendariz, along with Dublin's Adrian Schroeder and Anirudh Surapaneni.

Welcome back to Woodward Park

Flintridge Prep's boys return to Fresno for the first time since winning their fifth Division 5 state title and after running the fastest time in division history by clocking 79:41 at last year's state championship. Although the Rebels, led by Evan Pattinelli, won't have the opportunity to race Lancaster Desert Christian, Foothill Technology or Sage Creek in the small school boys race, they will compete again McFarland, along with Oaks Christian, San Lorenzo Valley and San Francisco University looking to repeat as invitational champions.

Esperanza eyes another elite effort

Esperanza is seeking its third consecutive championship in the girls medium school race, due in large part to the success of senior Shannon Mackellar, who is also pursuing a third straight individual win. Mackellar faces her toughest challenge with Miramonte sophomore Cassy Haskell also scheduled to compete. Haskell, who finished 22 seconds behind Mackellar at last year's invitational, boasts the fastest returning time from last year's state meet of any athlete competing at Woodward Park at 17:37.3. Sylvia Cruz-Albrecht of Oak Park, Esperanza's Sapna Dholakia and Gillian Ipsen of Wooster (Nevada) are also expected to be in contention.