Marion and Goessel cross-country opened their seasons last week at Abilene, while Hillsboro was at Smoky Valley, and all three schools took advantage of their first races of the season.

Marion boys had two runners medal, with Gavin Wasmuth surging to a ninth-place finish at 19:08, followed by Tristen Dye in 20:46.7 for 17th.

Two-time state qualifier Heidi Grimmett snagged ninth in the girls race with a 24:57.5 time.

Goessel boys finished second overall, led by Dawson Duerksen’s 20:01.8 for 12th place, and Jacob Schrag 14th in 20:27.9.

That front-end was complemented by strong finishes to round out the Bluebirds’ top five, with Goessel placing 19th, 20th, and 21st to capture second as a team.

Two girls competed for the Bluebirds. Braylyn Hoopes finished 28th in the girls race with Alyssa Boden right behind in 29th.

Hillsboro also had a strong showing, placing two in the top 10 for both the boys and girls races at Smoky Valley

Junior Emersyn Funk led the team in the girls race, coming in at 22:21 for fourth place, and was followed by Moriah Jost in seventh with a 23:55. The Trojans were rounded out by Ainsley Duell in 12th and Trudy Hein in 16th.

The boys were led by newcomer Levi Allen’s fourth-place time of 18:50, followed by Tristan Reed at 19:15. Caleb Deiner placed 16, and Carson Linnens rounded out the team in 26th.

Marion and Goessel will compete Thursday at Hesston Golf Park, while Hillsboro will run Saturday at Wamego.