Athletes to Watch
Sam Arnold (All-State #2)- Brookhaven High School
One of the pre-race favorites from Brookhaven, breaking 16 3 times this year, the most by a Mississippi high school boy, is Sam Arnold. Arnold has been on a hot streak lately and has really and truly been on a hot streak all season long. He has only been beaten by 2 Mississippi athletes this year - his teammate Grayson Childress and Keegan Leverett, and has taken down almost everybody in the state, including Leverett and Childress, Luke Johnson, and Jaheim Bridges. He is the gutsiest runner in the state who is always willing to put everything he has on the course on race day.
Grayson Childress - Brookhaven High School
The other pre-race favorite going into the MHSAA 5A State Championship race from Brookhaven High, 15:40 5k runner Grayson Childress. Childress, vice-versa with Arnold, is one of the only Mississippi athletes that have taken down Arnold this year, with Leverett being the other. He has run 15:40 on 2 occasions and has also gone in the 16:0's multiple times for the win this season. Childress is the #1 returner in this race, placing 2nd to Christian Balcer in the last 2 years. As a matter of fact, Childress has 5 runner-up finishes at the state championship level. A story similar to Luke Johnson who has 'been there' for such a long time now, that will surely be on Childress's mind as he will go for his first-ever state title tomorrow.
Jake Thompson - Brookhaven High School
The third athlete to watch, once again from Brookhaven, is Jake Thompson. This is clearly the best season Thompson has ever had in cross country, running 16:18 at Jesse Owens, a personal record and the third-fastest time going into this state championship race. Thompson finished 8th here a year ago, but has obviously gotten a lot better on the grass, and I'm sure going 1-2-3 will be on Thompson's mind tomorrow.
J.J. Lincoln - Saltillo High School
One of the only guys standing in Brookhaven's way of it being a full sweep is J.J. Lincoln of Saltillo, the low stick for one of the best teams and lowest 1-5 spreads in the state. I could have never Lincoln would have been where he is now a year ago, or even back in May, but he has been on a tear since his season opener and hasn't stopped since. His last 3 races have been 2 wins, as well as a 16:21 5k, which is his current 5k PR. I am sure he will obviously want to place as low as he possibly can tomorrow, for his own aspirations as well as for his team, and he could potentially be one to give the Brookhaven boys a run for their money.
Key Matchups
Childress v. Arnold
While I don't want to throw everybody else out of the equation, it's looking like the battle for the individual state title is going to come down between the 2 teammates from Brookhaven, as well as 2 of the best runners in the state, Grayson Childress and Sam Arnold. Their record against each other this season is 4-4, and what a better tiebreaker than the state championships where one of them could potentially win their first-ever state title. With all of that being said, I don't want to create too much hype or 'beef' between these 2 for the title. They are teammates, and I know this is a very 'friendly rivalry' who want the best for each other, and they will have team goals as well. I do know, though, that the 2 will leave everything out there on the course, and will not let the other snag a title without working for it.
Lincoln v. Thompson v. Knott
The battle for the bronze... I know there is some talk about Brookhaven scoring a perfect 15 at the state meet, and while I'm not going to put that out of the question, they do have 16:21 5k runner J.J. Lincoln to go through. These 3 haven't gone head-to-head in quite some time, and have all gotten significantly better since they have competed in the same race. Each of the 3 runners has very different racing styles from one another, and it will be interesting to see the way it all unfolds tomorrow in a state championship setting. The last time these 3 raced each other, was at the 2021 Saltillo Invitational, and the order went Thompson-Lincoln-Knott.
Kellum v. Zaqief (among others)
Much like the paragraph above, these 2 haven't raced each other in quite some time and have hit significant PRs since racing each other. I'm not sure what the 2 racing styles are like, but I do know that Mohammad Zaqief basically hung on for dear life in the Silver Division at Watson, with an end result of 16:42, a huge PR for the sophomore. The interesting thing about Zaqief is that he has the 6th fastest time going into this meet and looks to be Saltillo's clear #2, but hasn't been Saltillo's #2 every single race. Someone like Jace Stanley, Rustin Roberts, or Parker Shannon could also come into the mix. I'm sure that all of Saltillo's squad will be gunning for Kellum, and I also know that Kellum will be gunning for them - I can't wait to see that matchup on the course tomorrow.
Teams to Watch
Obviously, the #1 team not only in the state but in the last decade, will be one of the teams to watch tomorrow. While the #4 team in the state will also be in the race and will be right on their tails, they are still the heavy favorites for the MHSAA 5 team title. Just looking at what the statistics say, it'll essentially be a dual meet between Brookhaven and Saltillo. Brookhaven is expected to go 1-2 and then place 4 in the top 5 or 6, and that gives them about a 10 point cushion right there. While I'm not going to say it couldn't happen, a lot of things would have to go wrong for Brookhaven and right for Saltillo if Brookhaven were to lose it, and I personally can't see that happening this year. Brookhaven has had some big goals basically all season long, and performing well at the state meet will be another thing that they will want to mark off the checklist in their history-making season.
Still boasting a very strong squad tomorrow and could most likely win almost every other class in the state is Saltillo High School, and I am still very interested to see what they do and how they execute their game plan tomorrow. They are one of, if not the deepest teams in the state, and I'm just going to put it out there that they could very well be the 3rd team in history to have all 5 break 17 in the 5k. With the way this year has been going for Mississippi distance running, I would not at all be surprised. And if they don't do it tomorrow, they could very well do it in the future. What I do know is that Saltillo isn't just going to hand Brookhaven the title, and I am very excited to see this team matchup, as it is always a thriller.