Photo: The Southside High boys cross country team gathers for a photo after winning the Yellow Jacket Invitational 5K last Saturday (Aug. 31) at Choccolocco Park in Oxford. Pictured, kneeling, from left: Bo Parker, Drew Simmons, Will Anglea, Luke Holcomb, Mason Williamson. Standing, from left: Sam Kilgo, Parker Cunningham, Hayden Tucker, Ryan Maudsley, Garrett McWhorter, River Harris, Daniel Cody. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger)
By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor
Helped by Ryan Maudsley’s runner-up finish, the Southside High boys cross country team took first place at the Yellow Jacket Invitational 5K last Saturday (Aug. 31) at Choccolocco Park in Oxford.
The Panthers’ overall time of 18:43.90 was 45 seconds faster than runner-up Ashville (19:28.24). The Southside junior varsity also finished first.
Maudsley’s time of 17:40.37 was 17 seconds shy of winner Sean Dorrill of Central-Phenix City.
Mason Williamson also finished in the top 10 for Southside, clocking in at 18:16.02 for fourth place.
Wyatt Knight (18:37.86) and Joe Stevens (18:53.30) came in sixth and 10th, respectively, for Ashville.
Also finishing in the top was Hokes Bluff’s Sam Green, who finished in seventh place with a time of 18:39.25.
The Hokes Bluff boys came in sixth overall (20:38.49), followed by Westbrook Christian (10th, 21:18.50), Gadsden City (13th, 22:18.95), Glencoe (15th, 23:05.63) and Sardis (17th, 23:55.32).
The Ashville girls had two top-10 finishers to help the Lady Bulldogs edge Southside for second place, 24:03.45 to 24:33.39. Meghan McCarthy finished eighth with a time of 22:34.28, while teammate Taylor Knight clocked in at 10th place with a time of 22:51.90.
Southside’s Camryn Davis had the best area girls’ showing with a fifth-place time of 21:27.74.
Also finishing in the top 10 for local girls was Glencoe’s Katie Giles, posting a ninth-place time of 22:45.84.
The Glencoe girls had a sixth-place overall time of 25:24.85, followed by Sardis in ninth place with 30:20.73.
Local boy runners finishing in the top 25 were Westbrook Christian’s Asher Curp (11th, 19:01.40); Ashville’s Clayton Knight (14th, 19:13.11); Southside’s Luke Holcombe (15th, 19:13.61); Ashville’s Cesar Segura (16th, 19:13.79); Southside’s Parker Cunningham (17th,
19:14.57); Southside’s Hayden Tucker (18th, 19:14.89); Hokes Bluff’s Jackson Millander (19th,
19:25.60); and Southside’s Andrew Simmons (25th, 20:00.82).
Area girls runners finishing in the top 25 were Sardis’s Barit Snead (13th, 23:40.86); Ashville’s Kathleen McCarthy (15th, 24:05.58); Glencoe’s Anna Beth Giles (16th, 24:07.32); Ashville’s Callie Stewart (18th, 24:26.36); Southside’s Peyton Abernathy (20th, 24:42.18); Southside’s Lanora Hill (22nd, 25:08.77); and Glencoe’s Sara Iida (23rd, 25:14.41).