The Severna Park boys team and other local runners had a very big day in Saturday's NXN Southeast Regional in North Carolina, earning a trip to the Nike Cross Nationals in Portland, Ore., on Dec. 7.
Severna Park, which won the Class 4A state championship three weeks ago, finished second in its race. The Brentwood XC Club (Tenn.) won with 109 points, one point ahead of Falcons. Both have advanced to Oregon.
Ryan Forsyth of Severna Park, the Class 4A state champion, finished seventh overall to lead the Falcons. The other local boy to qualify for the nationals was Loyola's Tyler Spear, the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association champion. He finished third, in 15:07.9. Forsyth's seventh-place time was 15:12.6.
For the girls, Ellie Gonzalez of Catholic and Dulaney's Isabel Griffith also qualified for the Nationals. Gonzalez, the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland champion, took second overall, in 17:47.0. Class 4A state champion Griffith finished fifth, in 17:49.8.