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WEBSTER CITY - Coaches can control a lot of things, but the weather isn't one of them.

Consequently, the Webster City and South Hamilton cross country teams put their potential state-meet plans on hold temporarily on Thursday after their district and regional meets were postponed because of the cold and wet conditions all across the state.

The Lynx Class 3A meet in Spencer has been rescheduled for Monday at 4 p.m. The Hawks' 2A meet in Marshalltown is also tapped for Monday with a 3:30 p.m. start for the girls' race.

Fifteen of the 20 regional/district meets in the state were shelved until Monday.

So, will the schedule change alter the expectations or performances of the area teams? Both Lynx coach Tony Bussan and Hawks' head man Jim Klein say no.

"The only thing this means is I'll get to bed earlier (Thursday night) and that's a good thing," Klein joked. "But for us it's almost like a blessing because it gives us time to get people back up to speed a little bit because we've had kids fighting colds and things like that."

Said Bussan: "The vast majority of the teams are in the same boat anyway. Nearly every district has cancelled and they're doing that in the best interest of the kids."

Bussan's only concern is the health of his runners. He says the Lynx were flu-free leading up to Thursday's scheduled meet, but that could change by Monday.

"You're rolling the dice with where you'll be at on Monday," he said. "But as a coach I've learned that you've just got to go with the flow. There are things in life you can control and things you can't."

The top three teams and 10 individuals at the regional/district meets will push on to the state meet at Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge next Saturday.

Webster City's boys' team has qualified 12 of the last 13 years, with the 2008 campaign being the only exception. The Lynx girls are attempting to qualify for state for the first time since 2006.

South Hamilton's girls' team finished 11th in Class 2A last fall and three of the runners from that team will compete on Monday.