Mississippi State Meet

Pearl Boys Wait A Year And Few Extra Days To Reclaim 6A Title

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

The wait was worth it. Originally scheduled for Saturday, the 2A/4A/6A Mississippi State High School Cross Country Championships were shifted to Wednesday at Choctaw Trails in Jackson. Despite a delay in the schedule, the Pearl boys were rewarded with a 6A state title. A year after finishing second, Pearl reclaimed the crown with 53 points, as all five scorers finished in the top 15.

Desoto Central senior Adam Gomez won the individual title in 16:32.9.

In 6A girls, Hernando edged out Ocean Springs, 62-67 for the state title. Hernando went 3-4 in the race. In the individual, Brandon High seventh grader Lauren Entremont put together an impressive race, winning the title in 19:55.63, about 25 seconds faster than the next runner.

The 4A race was another program sweep by Corinth. The boys edged out Pontotoc, 65-71 for their fourth straight title. Ninth grader Parker LeGoff led the team with a runner-up finish in 17:35.12. Saint Stanis’ Keegan Leverett, a sophomore, won in 17:25.42. The Corinth girls easily rolled to another state title with 49 points. Six runners finished in the top 20 for the team, as seventh grader Elsie Wilbanks was second (21:09.41). West Lauderd senior Emma James won in 20:54.44.

In boys 2A action, Walnut High scored 53 points to win the team crown as three runners finished in the top 10. West Lincoln junior Tiler Castillo won in 17:53.87. The Saint Patrick girls defended their 2A title, scoring 31 points to hold off New Site (39 points). Saint Patrick had three runners in the top six. Sophomore Aubrey Britt of Loyd Star 20:16 defended her title.

5A/3A/1A (Monday)

A year after losing the state title by just one point, the Brookhaven boys didn't leave anything to chance this time around. Monday, at Choctaw Trails in Jackson, Brookhaven went 2-3-4, had all five runners place in the top 10 to score an impressive 26 points and reclaim the 5A crown. East Central's Christian Balcer easily won the title in 15 minutes, 50.6 seconds. He was the only runner under 16 minutes and won by nearly a minute.

A year after winning the 5A title as a freshman, Long Beach's Brooklyn Biancamano repeated as state champion. The team title was claimed again by Saltillo.

The boys 3A race was a one-team show as Senatobia had five runners in the top 11 and all seven in the top 14 to score 27 points to win the state title. Water Valley senior Coulter Clement won the individual title in 17:51.3. Led by eighth grader Emily Ireland's first-place finish (19:53.5), Saint Andrew's denied Kossuth a repeat 3A title as they scored 40 points to win. Kossuth was second with 44.

The 1A boys race was once again won by Tupelo Christian Prep, as senior Brock Kelly defended his title, winning in 16:02.9. Tupelo Christian scored 20 points, with all five finishing in the top nine. Like last year, the Tupelo Christian Prep girls made it a program sweep, scoring 25 points to win the 1A crown. Eighth grader Sophie Santucci won the race in 19:57.1.

Team Champions

Class 6A: Pearl boys 53 points; Hernando 62 points

Class 5A: Brookhaven boys 26 points; Saltillo girls

Class 4A: Corinth boys 65 points; Corinth girls 49 points

Class 3A: Senatobia boys 27 points; St. Andrew’s girls 40 points

Class 2A: Walnut High boys 53 points; Saint Patrick girls 31 points

Class 1A: Tupelo Christian Prep boys 20 points; Tupelo Christian girls 25 points