Mission accomplished.

By the narrow score of 262 to 265, the West Seattle High School boys' cross country team surpassed Ingraham for eighth place in the Metro League.

The boys were a 10th place team when coaches Annette and Christopher Silvernale took over in 2005. That first year saw their team improve to ninth. Then last Thursday, sophomore Kyle MacDonald led the '06 harriers up one more rung. MacDonald finished 39th in 18:42, followed by Jacob Nauss, 51st in 19:50; Cooper Sinai-Yunker, 55th in 20:07; Jack Hilton, 56th in 20:32; and Chandler Sapp, 61st in 22:37. Each of those five scoring runners recorded personal records for the 3.11 mile Lower Woodland course, but the gold star goes to Hilton's 35-second improvement when it counted most.

The weather deteriorated markedly for the girls' race. Heavy overcast turned to mist. Heavy mist turned to rain. Then a puddle jumped up and nearly swallowed Kylen Johnson.

The West Seattle star was moving up smartly at the 1 3/4 mile mark, but just past the two-mile mark, she had fallen back to 25th and had blood streaming down her left shin. Given the adrenalin surge that must have depleted her when she fell, it is remarkable that Johnson was able to hold 25th place all the way to the end. There, when she exited the finish chute, junior varsity runner Aaron Morrison had the first aid kit waiting.

Notwithstanding Johnson's slowest time of the year, her finish in the top 30 made her the only West Seattle runner to advance to the post-season: same course, same puddle, tomorrow.

Girls composing the scoring complement behind Johnson were Sarah Austin, 41st; Thea Nauss, 47th; Chelsea Jackson, 54th; and Mel Frey, 56th. Austin, Jackson, and Frey all recorded personal bests. Along with non-scoring runners Kristen Watkins and Joey Jacinto, this group of seven was the first full-fledged West Seattle team to grace the Metro League standings since at least 2000. They, too, finished eighth, ahead of Ingraham.

Non-scoring runners for the boys were Justin Selk, 66th, who also fell during his race, and Lars Stromberg, 63rd. West Seattleites placing well for other schools were Jeff Abel, O'Dea, 47th; Ryan Styrk, Seattle Prep, 8th; and the pride of Prep and the Metro League, two-time defending champion Max O'Donoghue-McDonald, first, in a course record 15:22. Chief Sealth's team finished 10th.