Youth will be served during the Jefferson High cross country seasons.

If the two teams are to accomplish much at the regional or state levels then it will be a bevy of underclass runners who help with the heavy loading.

The girls team has already finished fourth at the Knight Night Relays staged by Preston County. In its second competition of the season, the Lady Cougars topped a six-school field in their own Cougar Kickoff Invitational.

Abby Colbert is easily the most decorated runner on the girls team and the senior has run a 8:31.8 time in her 1.5-mile leg in the Knight Night Relays. Sophomore Morgan May was clocked in 9:35.3 in her segment of the Preston County race, while sophomore Grace Valentine recorded a time of 10:05.8 and sophomore Madison Adams had a time of 11:12.4.

Morgantown was the team winner with University finishing second and Preston County coming in third.

Colbert easily outran the field at the Cougar Kickoff event, finishing the course at Sam Michaels Park in 19:32.

The top five finishers at that meet were Jesse Hogbin (Hedgesville in second), Jefferson’s May in third, Sydny Rigsby (Musselman) in fourth and Jefferson’s Valentine in fifth.

The Cougars had Tayah Hawley come in ninth and Adams come home in 10th in the meet at Michaels Park.

Other team members competing at the varsity level are Madeleine Pitcher, Ellie Didden, Bailey Phillips and Olivia Pitcher. Didden is a senior and the other three are sophomores.

Jefferson had a meet low score of 28 in winning at Michaels Park. Musselman finished second (40), Hedgesville was third (81) and Spring Mills was last (91) of the teams with a full complement of runners. Both Washington and Martinsburg fielded incomplete teams.

The boys team has no seniors.

Dylan Stamper and Colin Hayes, a pair of juniors, have led the way in the season’s first two meets.

At the Knight Night Relays, the Cougars were fourth as a team. Hayes led the Jefferson contingent with his time of 8:03.2 and Stamper wasn’t far behind, being timed in 8:06.8. Mason Young and Ethan Stead — two more juniors — helped the Cougars to their fourth place niche with respective times of 8:19.3 and 8:32.7.

Also competing on the varsity level in 2015 are junior Samuel Craig, sophomore Max Ober and freshmen Nicolo Feigo, Logan Keyes and Vincent Harrell.

In its one home meet, Jefferson was edged by one point in its second place showing behind Musselman.

Daniel Beavers (Hedgesville) won the Cougar Kickoff event as he was timed in 17:23 and Jefferson’s Stamper was the runner-up with his time of 17:38.

Rounding out the top five finishers in that event were Josh Leake (Musselman), Sam Garrett (Musselman) and Jefferson’s Hayes.

Young was eighth, Stead 14th overall, Feigo 17th overall and Keyes 20th overall in the home meet.

The Applemen had a team score of only 41, while Jefferson had a team score of 42. The other team scores showed Spring Mills (79), Hedgesville (92) and Washington (95) to complete the field of teams with enough runners. Martinsburg fielded an incomplete team.

Underclassmen dot both squads . . . with Colbert being one of the dominant runners in the state — the same as she has been for a number of seasons.