By CONOR NICHOLL

cnicholl@dailynews.net

As a Hays High School sophomore, Josh Munsch captured five individual cross country titles, including the the Western Athletic Conference meet.

This fall, Munsch looks to add one more championship: the Class 5A state title.

"That is my biggest goal," he said.

Munsch, who also earned several state medals in track and field last spring, is considered one of the favorites to win a championship.

"I really do," HHS co-head coach Jerold Harris said. "He has got great speed, you saw it during track. He has got a work ethic second to none. I really feel that he will be one of the state's best. I think that he is capable. When you talk about possible state champs, you got to think of his name."

Munsch returns to the Indians as the only boy who reached the state meet in 2007. On the girls' side, junior Kylie Gaughan, ninth in Class 5A a year ago, heads a talented girls' team.

Munsch has been one of the best runners in the state for the past two years. As a freshman, he finished sixth at state. Last fall, Munsch delivered the terrific season, including the five wins, conference championship and a second-place finish at the regional.

"Josh is so blessed," Harris said. "Josh Munsch can run with somebody with 100 meters less and then outkick them or he could decide at a mile to go, oh it is time for me to leave you. He is blessed. He can determine which kind of race he wants to run that day."

At state, though, Munsch was in the lead pack until the last 600 meters. He became ill and couldn't finish the race.

"It stunk," he said. "I was just pushing myself pretty hard and then I came up that last hill and I started getting all light-headed."

Munsch came close to winning a state title in track when he finished second in the 800-meter run and fourth in the 1,600-meter run. He ran 50-60 miles a week and weightlifted over the summer. This fall, the goal is simply to run by himself.

"That is my biggest goal," Munsch said. "Just try to get away from running with the pack and try to run my own race if I can, and try and break free a little bit more if I get the chance to."

Munsch, who might not see any competition until the midseason Rim Rock meet on Sept. 27, could experiment in some races. Harris also would like Munsch to run at a quicker pace in a regular race to replicate Rim Rock or state.

"I want to purposely send him out faster than he is used to, just to see how he will look on it," Harris said. "At the state meet or at the Rim Rock meet, he could see somebody that just takes it out fast. I want to make sure Josh knows how to do that. Usually he goes out with the leaders."

HHS will have senior Danny Simon, junior Brock Riedel and sophomore Vincent Bizzell as the team's top runners behind Munsch. Those three should form a pack when the Indians open on Thursday at 4 p.m. at Great Bend.

"This is Brock's first full year of cross country," Harris said. "He dabbled last year. We convinced him to run late. We didn't have the mileage and stuff in him. He has worked hard this summer. I just have to teach him how to race a 5k. During our time trials Saturday, he went out really, really conservative. (Thursday) go out with Bizzell and Simon."

On the girls' side, Gaughan is the top runner on a team that was one point short of winning its fourth straight WAC title last fall. She finished second at the WAC meet before she earned the ninth place showing at state.

"I just worked really hard to stay up with the front of the pack and I just worked really hard to stay up there," Gaughan said of state.

This year, her goal is for a similar finish at state and break a time benchmark.

"I am trying to get under 16 minutes this year," Gaughan said. "At state, I got 16:06."

Behind Gaughan is junior Amy Terry and sophomore Sheridan Fabrizius.

"I am hoping for good things with Amy Terry," Harris said.