Photo by Gary Wells
By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor
Sparked by 15 top 10 finishes, the Southside boys and girls cross country teams swept the Etowah County Schools Meet on Oct. 24 in Glencoe. It was the second straight county title for both teams.
The Southside boys posted an average time of 18:00.1, 1:38 ahead of second-place Hokes Bluff. The girls averaged 21:41.7, almost two minutes ahead of Glencoe’s 23:33.
Southside’s Ryan Maudsley (pictured above)and Camryn Davis were the meet’s first-place winners, clocking in with respective times of 17:15.9 and 19:50.2. Davis’ time was a personal record for this season. With the exception of Hokes Bluff’s Sam Green posting a runner-up time of 17:38.2, the Southside boys dominated the top 10. Mason Williamson placed third with a time of 17:47.4, followed by Luke Holcombe at 17:54.5, Parker Cunningham at 17:56.9, Andrew Simmons at 19:05.8, Sam Kilgo at 19:08.2, Max Valentine at 19:11.1, River Harris at 19:13.3 and Anders Dongsgoard at 19:19.4.
Besides Davis, the Lady Panthers had four other runners in the top 10, with Lanora Hill finishing runner-up at 21:01.9. Glencoe’s Katie Giles placed third with a time of 21:04.6, followed by Sardis’ Baritt Snead at 21:42.2, Glencoe’s Anna Beth Giles at 21:58.5, Southside’s Alexia Valentine at 22:13.5, Southside’s Zoie Menk at 22:20, Southside’s Peyton Abernathy at 23:03.1, Southside’s Anna Parker at 23:13.2 and Glencoe’s Sara Iida at 23:53.5.
“Our kids ran pretty well, and it seems like we’re peaking at the right time,” said Southside coach Kim Nails. “Glencoe did an outstanding job of laying out the course and hosting the meet. It’s a true cross country course with some hills and different surfaces, so we were excited to run there.”
Southside will compete in the Class 5A, Section 3 meet this Friday’s at Choccolocco Park in Oxford.