BARTRAM TRAIL - A think mist, some drizzling and five hay bales were the obstacles at the Bale-n-Trail Cross Country Invite at Bartram Trail High School and the top 10 boys races was a doozy with St. Johns Country Day School junior Matthew Stratton holding his own with a fifth place finish.

Tops on the list was recent four minute miler Rheinhardt Harrison of Nease who won convincingly in 15 minutes, 29.1 seconds with Nease teammate Bradley Ball in fourth at 15:41. Harrison and Ball was 1-2 at the Class 4A championship race last year. Both have been dominating area races thus far.

Stratton, second in Class 1A last year, finished fifth with a 16:11 a tad over his recent sub-16 minute finishes in the season's first races.

In between the local runners, 3A champion Belen Jesuit Prep's Javier Vento and Adam Magoulas knocked out second and third in 15:32 and 15:37. Belen Jesuit was 3A champs last year with Vento fifth and Magoulas fourth.

Belen Jesuit won the team title over Bartram Trail and Nease.

Middleburg's Dylan Anderson finsihed 83rd in 19:37 ahead of Ridgeview's Dominik Frietze in 19:44 for 85th.

In the girls race, dominated up front by St. Augustine's Reilly Barber won by nearly a minute with a 19:06 effort in the slop over three Bolles finishers, Middleburg High senior Emma Mussante was top area finisher in 21:17.2 for 11th place.

Ridgeview's top finisher was Blythe Duchene in 25:31 for 79th.

Middleburg was sixth in team points with 174 with Bolles winning with just 22 points. Creekside and st. Augustine followed Bolles with 75 and 80 points.

Next up for area cross country is the prestigious Katie Caples XC Festival at Bishop Kenny High on Sat., Sept. 26. with races starting at 4:30 p.m.

At the Alligator Lake XC Invitational in Lake City, Fleming Island senior Jayden Scherer took sixth in 17:21 behind Class 1A champion Austin Montini's winning split of 16:44.7.

Keystone Heights had Tyler Griffin as top finisher with a 19:51 effort for 71st place.

In the girls race, Fleming Island's duo of Emma Millson and Marisa Kortright came in together at 20:05.4 and 20:06.9 for third and fourth place with Mei Chiang third in at 21:14.7 for 12th.

From Keystone Heights, junior Camryn Williams was 21st in 22:02.9.

In the college boys race, former Orange Park High track and cross country runner John Bear was fifth for Florida State College-Jacksonville with a 17:30.4 time. Fleming Island High grad Gage West was 24th in 18:48 for FSCJ.

In the girls race, Fleming Island High grad Shealyn Barbuto, also at FSCJ, finsihed 14th in 23:29.2.