The Mercer Island cross-country team kicked off its 2019 season at the KingCo Jamboree Class Race on Sept. 11 at Lake Sammamish State Park. Both the boys and girls teams competed only against runners in their grade level. The two-mile-long race provided runners with a shorter race to start the season.

The top two finishers for the Islanders was senior girls runner Alli Hixson, and sophomore Kai Zettel. Hixson finished sixth in the girls 12th-grade race with a time of 12:24.60. Zettel finished sixth in the boys 10th-grade race with a time of 10:40.70.

The next meet for the Islanders is against Interlake and Juanita on Sept. 18 at Marymoor Park in Redmond.

Mercer Island cross-country runners Everett Weeks (front, in red) and Jake Levin (back, in red) compete during the boys sophomore race at the KingCo Jamboree Class Race at Lake Sammamish State Park on Sept. 11. Benjamin Olson/ staff photo