Summit Charter boys middle school cross country team won the championship in the Tristate Conference on Oct. 1.
Summit boys cross country team is this year’s 2019 Tri-State Conference.
“Our boys cross country team had a strong season,” said Summit Coach Gretchen Kapity. “The past few years, our middle school classes have had a lot more girls than boys, but this year with the new crop of sixth grade athletes I am really excited about what our boys cross country and track teams are going to look like over the next few years.”
At the championship, Summit runners came in first (Chance Wilson), third (Anthony Qemali), and 4th (Zimmerman Boswell).
“We couldn’t have hoped for a better end to the season. All Summit runners, both boys and girls, set new personal records,” said Kapity.
Highlands girls cross country team had a strong showing this season and hold their heads high after the championship meet.
Summit girls finished in 5th place, Highlands girls finished in 2nd and Highlands boys placed 4th.
Highlands Coach Brett Lamb said they had some great races with some top individual finishers and top team finishes. He added that with many of the middleschoolers returning next year the future is looking good.
“The commitment level by these young athletes and their families was incredible,” said Lamb. “Derek Taylor and Canty Worley were a huge help with training the athletes. We also had some great parental and community support when we raced at Highlands. We hope that with addition of more runners and a full summer of work next year we will just keep getting better.”
Highlands Claire Worley (back left) and Summit Chloe Wood (back right) await the results of this year’s Tri-State Conference championship. The TFS runner in the middle has one more trick up his sleeve before the results are announced. Editor’s Note: You should see me when the Bears play the Packers, I feel ya buddy.
Kapity said cross country is a great sport because it pushes runners to do their best.
“I love cross country because it’s not just a team sport, but about doing your personal best,” she said. “It’s like the schools come together and we are all on one big team. It doesn’t matter who comes in first or last, the coaches and parents are going to cheer for every athlete who comes through the finish line and encourage every athlete when they are struggling. It’s amazing what these kids can do and as cross-country coaches in the conference, we want to build a love of the sport and desire to grow and improve.”
She added that Summit is beginning to plan for track season in the spring and it looks like they’ll have around 35-40 athletes on the team.
Tallulah Falls girls cross country team won first place in the Tri-State Conference on Oct. 1 at Summit.
Article and Photos by Brian O’Shea
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