On Friday, September 26, West Lauderdale’s Cross Country Knights triumphed at the Northeast Invitational 5K, held at Okatibbee. The top runners for the Cross Country boys were Hunter Walton, securing first place with a time of 17:40, Aaron Walls in third place with a time of 18:21, Ryan Thompson in fourth place with a time of 18:36, Stone Berg in fifth place with a time of 18:39, and Foster Windham at sixth place with a time of 18:44.

Following the boys, the Cross Country girls crushed it with Alli Walton in third place with a time of 23:06, Nora Peterson in fifth place with a time of 23:41, Abbie Cruse in eighth place with a time of 24:12, Ruby Fairchild in ninth place with a time of 24:34, and Lydia Stewart in twelfth place with a time of 25:51.

This race showed much improvement through each of its runners. According to Coach Paul, he was pleased with the results of the meet: “We saw improvement and hard work paid off.”  This race’s top runner, Hunter Walton, was also pleased with his performance at last week’s meet: “This was the first time that I’ve placed first in an official meet.” Each runner had their ups and downs, but through it all, they persevered and excelled.

As the season reaches its peak, these Knights continue to prepare for the upcoming races and championships.