MISSISSIPPI STATE MEET

Pearl Boys, Tupelo Girls Win State's Inaugural Class 7A Finals 

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Photo courtesy Chris Bennett

Jaquavion Bryant led Pearl to its 24th state championship in boys cross country earlier this month at Choctaw Trails at the Mississippi state cross country championships. 

Bryant, a junior who ran 15:41.92 for the second-fastest time ever on the course, is the first repeat champion in the top classification in eight years. 

Pearl put five scorers in the top 14, including fourth-place finisher Farren Oberto, also a junior, on the way to 46 points. Mississippi added a seventh classification this fall, meaning there were 14 state championship trophies up for grabs. 

Tupelo was equally impressive on the girls side of 7A. The Golden Wave scored 41 points and had three in the top six. 

Hernando's Kaitlyn Burge won the 7A race in 18:13.41. She won by 24 seconds. 

Saltillo swept the 6A titles, with the girls scoring 32 points and the boys 47. 

Parker Shannon of Saltillo won the boys race in 16:33.82. 

Saltillo's girls put five into the top 12, but Maine Lund of South Panola won the race in 20:58.96. 

Corinth overwhelmed the Class 5A division. The boys went 2-3-6-7-8 for 21 points and the girls went 1-2-5-7-14 on the way to 26 points. Elise Wilbanks won it in 20:12.83. 

Zachary Josiah Nobles from South Jones won the 5A final in 16:59.62. 

Class 4A was the most competitive division of the meet. West Lauderdale edged Senatobia 73-78 to win the boys team championship. Senatobia's Austin Winstead won the race in 17:23.66. 

Emma Ruffin won the 4A girls race in 20:08.15 for Caledonia, which finished second behind South Pontotoc, 81-95. 

St. Patrick went 1-2-3-4 on the way to 18 points to dominate the Class 3A race. Jack Hewes, one of the top runners in the state, ran 16:02.2 and was more than 40 seconds clear of his teammates. 

Kossuth won the girls team title in 3A with 36 points, with four in the top 10. 

Eighth grader Emily Avent won the race in 20:27.2. 

St. Andrew's Episcopal blitzed the 2A fields. The boys won with 33 points, the girls with 19. India Mitchell ran 20:02.1 as part of a 1-3-4-5-7 team result. 

Guage Montgomery from Loyd Star won the 2A race in 17:09.3. 

Brodie Moore's individual win helped lift West Union to the 1A boys team crown. Moore's time was 16:38.3.

Myrtle got a 1-2 finish from eighth grade teammates Ally Murphy (19:55.0) and Madilyn Hogue (20:38.2) and the team won the 1A title with 39 points.  

Team Champions - 

Class 7A - Pearl boys 46 points, Tupelo girls 41 points - RESULTS

Class 6A - Saltillo boys 47 points, Saltillo girls 32 points - RESULTS

Class 5A - Corinth boys 21 points, Corinth girls 26 points - RESULTS

Class 4A - West Lauderdale boys 73 points, South Pontotoc girls 81 points - RESULTS

Class 3A - St Patrick boys 18 points, Kossuth girls 36 points - RESULTS

Class 2A - St. Andrew's Episcopal boys 33 points, St. Andrew's Episcopal girls 19 points - RESULTS

Class 1A - West Union boys 49 points, Myrtle girls 39 points - RESULTS