Traveling to St. Albans for the 11-team Red Dragon Invitational Sept. 24, the Magnolia cross country teams made the trip pay off by winning second place. The Blue Eagle boys battled down to the wire with Class-AAA state-ranked Ripley, losing 47-33. Magnolia tied Class-AA state-ranked Buffalo for second place. The tie was broken by comparing sixth runners, and that gave the Eagles the runner-up trophy.

Said head mentor John Holliday, “We went down there with the goal of running against some good teams that we don’t usually see. I don’t think anyone, spectator and runners alike, liked the course but it was good for us to get out of our comfort zone and see what we could do in that situation. As well as we have run this season, this is the first team award we have earned and I know that is satisfying to the boys.”

Completing the course in second place was senior Bill Feeney, finishing 19 seconds behind champion Evan Childers of Buffalo. Senior Alec Hinerman crossed the line in fourth place with juniors James Haught and Kenny Headley crossing at 12th and 13th, respectively. Kyle Lancaster (16th) and David McIlvain (17th) finished the scoring on the muddy course. Mikal Raber and Dylan King were 26th and 29th, respectively.

For the first time this season, the Blue Eagle girls did not run a full squad and did not have a team score. However, junior Christa Harshberger continued her fine season with 11th place. Running next for the girls’ team was sophomore Shelby Sands in 25th place and freshman Katie Ensinger in 31st place. Julianne McIlvain toured the course for a 38th-place finish.

“The girls have a legitimate shot at winning the Tyler Invitational and I hope they give it their best effort ,” Holliday continued. “They just missed winning an award at St. Albans and I want their hard work to pay off this week.”

The boys will not run at Tyler, saving their effort for the upcoming giant Cambridge Invitational. The following week is the OVAC Championship at Meadowbrook High School in Byesville, Ohio.