When the Caldera girls cross-country program began four years ago, it did not have enough runners to field a full varsity team.

That is no longer the case.

Not only are the Wolfpack fielding a full varsity roster, but they have potentially one of the fastest lineups in the Class 5A ranks with all seven of their runners returning from last year’s trophy-winning team at the state meet.

“It has grown so much so quickly,” said Caldera coach Charlotte Richardson. “They are super committed to each other, they are committed to doing well as a team. But more than anything else, they are committed to growing and I think we are finally seeing that this year.

“This is my 54th year coaching and for me to have started a team from scratch, I’ve never done that before,” Richardson added. “And to have the kind of kids that I have, I’m just super lucky.”

The Wolfpack girls finished fourth at last year’s 5A state meet at Eugene’s Lane Community College, finishing behind only Summit, Crater and Crescent Valley. And Caldera returns all seven if its varsity runners — sophomore Maddie Carney, along with seniors Sage Cramp, Mia Koernig, Ali Heinly, Ellie Colquhoun and Delsey Fuller. Also returning is sophomore Aspen Bradbury.

There is tangible excitement within the Caldera team that it can continue to build on last year’s success.

“It gives me a lot of confidence in the team knowing how well we did at state last year,” Koernig said. “Coming into this year, I have in the back of my mind, ‘I was able to do this last year, and I’m able to do hard stuff now.’”

Carney was Caldera’s highest placer at state last season with an eighth-place finish.

“It makes me excited to see how our team can end up and see if we can keep increasing where we place,” Carney said.

Last fall wasn’t just a positive step for the Caldera girls, but for the boys as well. Last year was the first time the Wolfpack boys team qualified for state.

The Caldera boys also return their top runner from last year in junior Mason Morical, who had top-five finishes at both the Intermountain Conference championships and the state meet. After placing third at districts, Morical finished fourth at the state meet.

Morical was the highest-placing sophomore at state last year and has his eyes set on moving up the leaderboard his junior season.

“That fourth-place finish really got me thinking that this year I could focus on getting in the top three,” Morical said. “I feel like my goal this year is to place as high as I can and get higher than fourth place.”

And Richardson believes the work Morical has put in could lead to another successful season for the two-time state qualifier.

“He is so dedicated, he does everything that he needs to do to be successful,” Richardson said. “He does all the sleeping, eating, hydrating, all the things that are important as a runner. He makes sure that they (his teammates) do that every day.”

The Caldera boys finished eighth as a team at state last year (second in the IMC), and are believed to have a deeper team than last year.

“We have a lot more boys this year that are in contention to make varsity,” Morical said. “Last year we had a solid seven, but this year we have 10 to 15 boys who have a shot, which is nice. I feel like for most of the boys they are increasing their mileage and running faster during their workouts.”

The first race for the Wolfpack is the one they will host — the Caldera Wolfpack XC 5K on Sept. 14 at Alpenglow Park in southeast Bend.

“These early meets are good because it gives a chance to see where we are as a team,” Carney said. “I think they are good learning opportunities because it shows us what we can do better in the next meets.”