The McMurray Middle School Mustangs cross country teams continued their winning streak at their most recent meet at Cascade Christian on Oct. 10.

Both the boys and girls teams were victorious over the flat and fast 1.5-mile course, with 25 McMurray runners participating and many achieving personal best times.

The Mustangs also swept the Nike Hole in the Wall Cross Country Invitational middle school races at Lakewood High School in Arlington on Oct. 6, winning both the girls and boys team competitions.

The girls team finished first with 47 points, led by a team of four 8th graders: Katherine Thompson, Annabelle Thompson, Bridget Simmons, and Mele Nelson.

Two sixth graders, Lulu Whitfield and Adeline Arthur, rounded out the team. All six girls set personal best times over the 1.7-mile distance, with Lulu Whitfield and Adeline Arthur taking first and third places in the 6th-grade girls division.

The boys team also won their race with a score of 56 points.

Harrison Decker, Leif McBennett, Max McLachlan, Christopher Healey, Toby Swan, Corbin Bishop, Mateo Villavicencio, and Winslow Gomes all ran superb races for the Mustangs, with all boys earning personal best times and Christopher Healey taking second place in the 6th-grade boys division.

The runners have had strong showings at all of their meets this year, including the prestigious John Payne Invitational at Chambers Bay, where both the teams for both girls and boys won their team races.

Next up, the Mustangs competed at the Nisqually League finals on Tuesday, Oct. 17, with results for that meeting coming in after press time. The Mustangs will join a special meet in Vancouver on Friday, Oct. 20, where some of the runners will face over 20 middle school teams from across Washington state.

The Mustang harriers are heading into the home stretch of their cross country season and are showing no signs of slowing down. With their strong performances so far, they are a team to watch.

Kevin Ross is the head Cross Country coach at McMurray Middle School.