In honor of the $11 I may or may not have to pay this afternoon at Lake Castaic for the Foothill League final, here are 11 league championship storylines to watch for on one of the busiest days of the high school cross country season:

1. Foothill boys: Rumors have been swirling around the Santa Clarita Valley all week about who might -- or might not -- be running for Valencia, which could make the team battle with Saugus one to watch. With Brandon Jauregui and Alec Nelson leading the way for the Centurions, along with one of the league's most improved athletes in Joey Eledge as Saugus' No. 3 runner, the two-time champions are going to be tough to beat, no matter who lines up against them. Valencia, Golden Valley or Canyon could all finish second, depending on which scoring quintet puts it all together in the final mile. It will also be very interesting to see if Golden Valley's Seth Totten can follow up wins at the Santa Clarita Valley Invitational and at the Mt. SAC Invitational and knock off Jauregui and Nelson, who split victories the first two league meets.

2. Marmonte girls: Simi Valley survived battles against Royal of Simi Valley, Newbury Park and Agoura in regular-season dual meets, then defeated the formidable trio again Friday at the Ventura County Championships in Ojai. But today's meet at Agoura High is when it counts the most and the Pioneers will need another strong performance to capture the first league title in program history. Simi Valley's Liberty Miller is a big favorite to repeat as champion, but it will be the depth behind her that determines whether the Pioneers can win one of the most balanced leagues in Marmonte history, which also features an up-and-coming Thousand Oaks team.

3. Tri-Valley girls: La Reina of Thousand Oaks finished behind rival Oak Park at both regular-season meets and again Friday at the Ventura County Championships. But the Regents' team time at the Lake Casitas Course was six seconds faster than Oak Park, and in a smaller field, the strength up front of Sarah Pearson, Rachel Brajkovich and Tara Blanchard might be enough for La Reina to overcome a likely first-place finish by Eagles junior Melissa Skiba. It will be interesting to see how Oaks Christian of Westlake Village, the defending Div. IV state champion, positions itself at Fillmore High for another dynamic late-season surge.

4. Foothill girls: Just because Saugus has won the first two league meets in dominant fashion doesn't mean the Centurions aren't motivated for today's competition at Lake Castaic. After sweeping the top six spots Oct. 16, Saugus will try to place all seven runners in front of West Ranch and Canyon, which means the Centurions are going to need another exceptional effort from senior Courtney Wilson, who delivered with a fourth-place effort at Central Park. Canyon has continued to build momentum since the second league meet and could knock off West Ranch and finish runner-up behind Saugus, providing the Cowboys' depth can offset West Ranch leaders Bailey Miller and Jennifer Owen.

5. Pacific boys: Even on Arcadia's home course, Crescenta Valley of La Crescenta's Zack Torres should be able to run away from Apaches standouts Renaud Poizat and Ammar Moussa. The question is will enough of his teammates be able to keep up with the blistering pace to move the Falcons ahead of Burroughs of Burbank and in position to challenge Arcadia for the title.

6. Marmonte boys: Thousand Oaks ran in a pedestrian pack Friday at the Ventura County Championships and still won convincingly over Royal of Simi Valley. The Lancers should establish a much faster pace today at Agoura, but with Travis Edwards back in the Royal lineup, expect a strong effort from the Highlanders in an attempt to build momentum for the Southern Section Div. I prelims. Westlake's Garrett Drogosch, Simi Valley's Steven Semler and Calabasas' Lewis Durand have all been running well lately and should be in the lead pack with the Royal and Thousand Oaks runners entering the final mile.