Saturday dawned a perfect morning with ideal weather conditions for the Knights cross country teams. The cooler temperatures and calm wind set the stage for quality performances from both the boys' and girls' squads, leading to 4 Regional Qualifiers. In the sport of cross country, the top 5 scoring teams (full teams must run a minimum of 5 runners) and the next 15 individuals from non-qualifying teams move on to Regionals. In the girls' race, junior and rookie to cross country, Hailey Collins led the way for the Lady Knights. Collins earned a spot as a Regional Qualifier by racing to an 11th place finish in a field of 76 runners and setting a new PR of 21:39.5. Nursing an injury and the challenge of modified training over the past 2 weeks, Paige Nelson managed to rise to the occasion by placing 20th (22:20.8), which was a solid enough performance to also earn a spot at the Regional Championship race next Saturday. Senior Jaiya Corn (4 season varsity letter winner and 2 time regional qualifier) brought her cross country career to a close in Saturday's sectional race. Jaiya performed a season best time of 24:52.2, but finished just outside a qualifying position by placing 47th overall. Due to an unfortunate and unexpected illness of the team's 5th member of the squad, the Lady Knights were unable to compete as a full team in the Sectional race, thus Makenna Hunter was the final runner to cross the finish line for Southwood. Newcomer to cross country, Makenna placed 66th and finished the course in a time of 28:48.7, which was just short of setting a new PR. The boys' team took the start line at the conclusion of the girls' race. Leading the charge for the Knights and running a strong race from start to finish was James Unger. Unger extended his season by placing 11th in a time of 17:37.21 and will move on to the Regional Championship next Saturday. Senior Luke Andrews ran the race of his final season as a Knight harrier by bumping 44 seconds off his previous season best time. Knowing that he had to make a valiant effort to earn a spot as a Regional Qualifier, Andrews attacked the race from the start to finish, continuing to overtake opponents throughout and finishing in a season best time of 18:29.7. His performance led to a 28th place finish in a field of 90 runners, allowing him a spot in the Regional Championship. Also competing for the Knights was Andrew Wright and Jericho Corn. Wright placed 77th in a time of 21:37.9. Setting yet another back-to-back PR, Corn finished out his rookie season as a Knight Harrier in a time of 22:46.2. Congratulations to Hailey Collins, Paige Nelson, James Unger, and Luke Andrews for their advancement to the Regional Championship, which will take place next Saturday at Huntington University. Come out and support your Knight Harriers as the girls compete at 10:30 and the boys at 11:15.