Mortimer Jordan’s boys cross country team has qualified for next Saturday’s AHSAA state finals race at Oakville, thanks to their first-place finish at the Class 5A sectional meet in Trussville on Thursday.

The Blue Devils, who have dominated their regular-season meets, placed all five scoring runners in the top 11 places and had three out of the top four, with Ben Barnett leading the division with a time of 18:02 over the 5-kilometer course. Gatlin Holland was third (18:50), Michael Carter fourth (18:54), Will Harris 10th (19:10) and Daniel Barnett 11th (19:15).

Jordan entered only two girls, but both qualified for the finals individually. Haley Gilliam (25:00) and Lindsey Williams (25:09) advance.

In Class 6A, Gardendale’s girls placed seventh, and the boys finished eighth.

In Class 1A-2A, Fultondale did not have enough runners for a full girls team, but their top runner, Mayda Alcantara, scored a first for the school. She qualified as an individual for the state finals by placing fourth in the sectional at Cold Springs. Alcantara crossed the line with a time of 21:52. It’s the first time that a girl from Fultondale has moved on to the state finals.

The Wildcat boys team finished sixth, with Gabe Martinez the top finisher in 34th place (21:27).