The George Mason cross country team had a fine outing at last week’s Region B race, with All-Region Susanna Sullivan leading the Lady Mustangs to a third place finish, giving the team a bid for this weekend’s state race. The junior standout also place third individually, clocking in at 19:37 in the talent-heavy Single A division.  Also pacing the girls team was senior Elizabeth Fortenberry, whose personal best time of 22:01 placed her 18th, just shy of the All-Region team. Junior Karina Robarge (22:18) and freshman Courtney Ready (22:27) rounded out the top 25, placing 21st and 24th respectively.

“This group of Mason girls is very talented and determined,” said Coach Julie Bravin, “Each one of our girls brings an important element to the team’s success.”

With the bid, the Mustangs move on to the Virginia High School League State Cross Country Championships, being hosted this Saturday, November 11 at Gread Meadows in The Plains, Va.

“It will be exciting to see what happens at the State meet with the number of high caliber runners that Single A is bringing this year,” said Bravin.

 Bravin acknowledges that along with a number of strong individuals at States, the Mustang squad will also face plenty of talent-heavy teams. 

“It will be a fight for the top spots, [but] anything can happen,” she said.

Masons boys team enjoyed a fair amount of regional success as well, placing sixth as a team, up two spots from last year. 

Although not enough to advance, the Mustangs had several solid runs in the tough regional race. Freshman Miles Butler was not only Mason’s top finisher but was the top freshman in the field, placing 19th with a time of 18:26.  The next five Mustang runners led by sophomore Louis Henninger (19:10) all finished within a minute of each other, showing the depth of the young squad.