Pictured is the Warren cross country team, from left to right, are Mason Chapman, Ashton Carrington, Grayson Collopy, Leyton Salvatore, Cole Fitzgerald, Ethan Gustafson, Riley Evan, Morgan Alexander, Leona Hovan. Not pictured are Nina Woldt, Elsie Woldt. Photo courtesy of Kevin Dustin

WEST MIDDLESEX — The Warren Dragon High School and Junior High Team traveled to West Middlesex Saturday to participate in the annual Big Red Invitational.

The Varsity Girls finished in 7th place out of 16 teams. In the field of 133 girls runners, Morgan Alexander paced the Dragons with a time of 20:25 which was good for 8th overall. Leona Hovan (21:01) earned 14th overall, Riley Evan (21:!4) finished 17th, and Ella Cull (24:38) was good enough for 72nd place. Rounding out the lineup was Rose Rioux (26:28) and Loralei Johnson (26:50) who finished 102nd and 105th, respectively.

The Varsity Boys saw a field of 151 runners, with the Dragons finishing 8th overall in the 19-team race. The young squad had 2 of the top-5 finishers in Leyton Salvatore (16:58, 3rd place) and Cole Fitzgerald (17:08, 4th place). Grayson Collopy finished with a time of 18:17 good enough for 35th place, and newcomer Chase Fetzeck finished 87th overall with a time of 20:24. Gavin Heeter (21:51), Jack Monroe (23:51), and Mason Smith (24:00) also contributed to the Dragon success.

Dragon head coach Kevin Dustin was very optimistic on the outing noting, “Today was definitely a step in the right direction. Our veteran runners took care of business and our younger athletes are gaining confidence and racing smarter. It’s nice to see the progress as we move into some tough competition and meets soon.”

The Junior High Girls team finished 6th overall out of 13 teams led by Nina Woldt (9:43, 3rd overall). A strong finish by Elsie Woldt (10:12) was good for 9th overall out of the field of 118 runners. Also running for the Dragons was Delaney Moore (12:02), Ashlynn Zawacki (12:30), and Emilie Youngren (14:55)

The Junior High Boys finished 5th overall out of 14 teams, and 147 total runners. Ethan Gustafson (9:50) finished 20th, and Ashton Carrington (9:57) was 24th overall. Also running were Mason Chapman (10:15), Connor Schwabenbauer (10:16), Cole Enos (10:44), Zane Getner (10:52), and Jackson Warner (10:54) had strong performances as well.

The Dragons have a little bit of time off until their next meet on Sept. 16 when they host the Corry Beavers for a 4 p.m. start.