The Northwestern Lehigh cross country teams competed in last week’s Colonial League Championship meet.

The Tigers placed fifth in the boys race, and were led by junior Noah Griffith, who finished 19th in 18:46.61.

“I expected a little more out of myself, but there’s always next week to finish strong,” Griffith said. “We lost two seniors in front of me, so I’ve had to take their role this season, and I think I did pretty decent in that.”

Griffith credited the program’s chemistry for the team’s success.

“I’m happy with the teammates I have and the coaches,” he said. “They help me a lot. It’s just a good environment to be in.”

He’s also worked to refine his approach.

“I’ve been trying to work on my form in the offseason and build my mileage,” he said. “This is a tough course — a lot of hills — so I tried to use the downhills when I could and get out fast to be in a good spot.”

After Griffith, the Tigers’ next four boys runners finished within 11 places of one another with Brady Furman (27th), Jonathan Fornauf (31st), Michael Richards (34th) and Kieran Baker (37th) all scoring for the team at the meet. Teammates Quentin Gutierrez-Kehm (43rd), Logan Spotts (47th), Isaac Grubb (53rd) and Seth Kershner (55th) also ran for the Tiger at the league championship meet.

The Northwestern girls finished seventh overall, paced by Rosalia Nestor, who took sixth place in 20:27.80. Nestor, who was third last season, continued to lead the way for a young, improving lineup.

“I knew we weren’t one of the top teams, but I felt we were right there,” said Northwestern head coach Chris Stitzel. “We’re usually that fourth or fifth team on the boys side, right behind those top three programs. We had a good year — 22 wins for the guys and 20 for the girls — which exceeded my expectations.”

Stitzel said the girls’ performance was especially rewarding given their youth.

“We had four girls that never ran varsity before, and two who never ran cross country,” he said. “It took a little while to get used to that three-mile distance, but with Rosy up front and the younger girls gaining experience, it was a great year.”

“She’s been running with a lot more confidence this year,” Stitzel added. “Last year she missed states by one spot. We’ve talked about putting that behind her. She’s been training with the guys half the year and really putting in the work.”

Contributing to the Northwestern team score in the girls race along with Nestor were Katie Furman (26th), Ava Smedstad (43rd), Emily Fornwalt (57th) and Charlotte David (58th). Amber Carl (63rd) and Annie Kline (78th) also competed in the league meet for the Tigers.

Stitzel praised his runners for their work ethic during the 2025 season.

“They’ve stuck it out all season,” he said. “From July to now, we’ve put a lot of miles in, and they’ve given their commitment to the program. It’s a great group of kids that works hard for you, and that’s all you can ask.”

Southern Lehigh’s Miles Etters won the boys race last week, finishing in 16:50.9 to beat Palmerton’s Connor Hibell (17:06.3) by 15 seconds.

Wilson won the boys team title with 59 points. Southern Lehigh and Notre Dame (Green Pond) tied for second place at 61 points.

In the girls race, Saucon Valley senior Virginia Kraus won her fourth straight league title.

Kraus is on the verge of finishing a career in which she won every postseason title she competed for. She’s looking for her fourth straight district title this week and will run for a fourth state title in Hershey in just over a week.

Notre Dame (Green Pond) edged Southern Lehigh for this year’s girls team title, 59-61. Wilson was third at 101.

The Tigers will be back at DeSales this Wednesday for the District 11 Championships.