Varsity Boys 5K
Taking home the win in the Varsity Boys 5k was Jeb Hamilton of the Tupelo Spartans. Running a personal best of 16:39, the Junior edged out the rest of the field in a tight race. This championship was a huge win for Hamilton as it was his first-ever win on a cross-country course.
*Jeb Hamilton, Tupelo Spartans
Photo credits: Christian Leach, MileSplit Mississippi
Right behind Hamilton was fellow Tupelo Spartan, Sam Johnson. Separated by only three seconds, the Spartans pulled a surprise upset and went 1-2. This was a personal best of 16:42 for Johnson. This was his first time breaking 17 minutes in the 5k.
*Sam Johnson of Tupelo Spartans
In third was Anthony Ives of the Pearl River Raging Raptors. Ives ran 16:52, which was a huge jump from his previous personal best of 17:34.
Last year's champion, Henry Richardson placed fourth with a time of 17:27. Just a second behind him was his teammate, Max Bowling with a 17:28.
Noah Moudy was just behind Richardson and Bowling, running a 17:39.
Richardson, Bowling, and Moudy trio led the Hattiesburg Forerunners to another championship title as they edged out the Tupelo Spartans 31-38.
Varsity Girls 5k
The Girls Varsity 5k saw a host of Hattiesburg Forerunners leading the way. Going 1-3, they had an elite showing at their biggest meet of the year. Taking the victory was the sophomore, Sydney Moudy.
In the quake of the championship season, she peaked at just the right time. Winning in a time of 20:58 for 5k, she had a gave her comfortable 15-second victory over second place.
This marked her first time ever under the 21 minutes barrier and her first win of the season.
Finishing in second place, was her teammate Alyssa Frost. Consistently a top scorer for the Forerunners, Frost finished in a solid time of 21:13 for the runner-up spot. This was her second-fastest performance of the season.
*Alyssa Frost at the 2021 Mississippi All-State Cross Country Championships
Photo credits: Ben Woolhouse
Rounding out the podium, was Alyssa's sister, Kaylie Frost. As just a sixth grader, Kaylie took home the 3rd place finish in a time of 21:15.
She is not only one of the top performers for her team, but Kaylie is also the best sixth grader in the state of Mississippi over the 5k distance with her time of 21:05 at the 2022 Frank Horton "Night" Classic.
Results: 2022 Frank Horton "Night" Classic
The Lady Forerunners finished with a team score of 19 to add yet another championship to their team name. The Tupelo Spartans finished second place with a score of 48 points.
Junior High
Titus Miller of the Jackson Victors won the Junior High Boys two-mile by running 12:02. Miller was ahead of the rest of the field by over 20 seconds.
The fight for second was tight between Josh Stratton and Winston Herrington. Stratton beat out Herrington by just one second.
In the Junior High Girl's race, Clara Hamilton won with over a 50-second margin from second place. The sixth grader ran a time of 14:23 for the two-mile.
Anastasia Coleman of the Jackson Victors placed second and Norah Barnes of the Tupelo Spartans placed third.