The Montverde Academy boys and girls cross country teams opened their 2026 seasons Saturday morning at the Horse Park Invitational in Ocala, with Will Moss posting a top-10 individual finish and the girls placing 13th overall.

Moss led the way for the Eagles on the boys side, finishing eighth overall in a field of 549 runners. He completed the course in an impressive 16:00.2 to highlight MVA's season-opening performance.

The Eagles finished 50th among 66 scoring teams in the boys competition.

Behind Moss, Nicolas Ardigo crossed the line in 18:31.6 to finish 257th, while Torr Scelfo was close behind in 264th with a time of 18:35.5. Jason Metzger finished 456th in 20:56.0, and Jared Bridgewater rounded out MVA's scoring five in 516th with a time of 23:30.4.

On the girls side, Montverde Academy put together a strong team performance, finishing 13th out of 49 teams.

Lyla McMillen paced the Eagles, placing 32nd overall with a time of 19:56.5. Amaris Munya followed in 50th place at 20:17.0, while Angelica Wolfe finished 70th in 20:59.8.

Alafair Scelfo crossed the line in 21:33.5 to place 103rd, while Federica Perez completed MVA's scoring five with a 227th-place finish in 23:35.8.

Also competing for the Eagles were Alon Scelfo, who finished 235th in 23:46.2, and Julia Saelg, who placed 263rd with a time of 24:35.0.

MVA was also represented in the girls junior varsity race by Zara Liles Henry, who placed 86th among 285 runners with a time of 26:05.9.

The Eagles will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 19, when they travel to Jacksonville for the Katie Caples Invitational.