CUMBERLAND — A week after a slightly disappointing fourth place finish at the Northern Maine Class A Regional cross country meet, the Mt. Blue High School boys cross country team placed 4th in the Class A state meet at Twin Brooks Recreation Center in Cumberland on Saturday.

Northern Maine champ Hampden won by a comfortable margin, with Southern Maine champion Portland and surprising Camden Hills taking the next two spots. Mt. Blue then took 4th place by a single point margin over Bonny Eagle, with Scarborough and South Portland just 7 points behind the Scots and Brunswick just 9 points behind that pair.

Mt. Blue was led by Senior Cyrus Evans in 6th place and Sophomore Henri McCourt in 10th. When combined with runners from all classes, their times placed Evans and McCourt 10th and 15th overall earning the pair a trip to the New England Championships in Ponagansett, Rhode Island on November 12th.

Freshmen Ben Hatch and Luke Doscinski ran strong races placing 43rd and 44th overall. Junior Daniel Dalton ran a great final mile to grab the final scoring spot for Mt. Blue. Other runners for the Cougars were Senior Kodi Quimby and Sophomore Noah Civiello. Other team members present were Sophomore Eli Hoeft and Junior Andrew Robinson.

After two weeks of exceeding expectations at the KVAC and Regional meets, the girls placed a respectable 9th, as the Class A South girls teams proved to be very tough. The first four teams were all from the South region, led by Bonny Eagle, who won their 4th straight state title. Marshwood, Falmouth, and Portland were the next three teams, with Northern A champ Bangor placing 5th.

Sophomore Nora McCourt ran an excellent race for Mt. Blue, placing 27th. Junior Lucinda Carroll (43), Senior Moriah Reusch (59), and Junior Natalie McCarthy (61) all ran solid races. Sophomore Brielle Tinker was the final scoring runner for the Cougars. Also running for Mt. Blue were Freshman Elizabeth Strickland and Sophomore Cassidy Hardy. Other team members present were Sophomore Addie Colello and freshmen Molly Patterson and Daniella Cundick.

In addition, both the boys’ and girls’ teams from Mt. Blue were awarded the Class A North Sportsmanship banner. This award is voted on by coaches, with input from their athletes and administrators. The athletes and coaches at Mt. Blue were very honored to receive this award.