ALABAMA STATE MEET

Edgeworth Takes Down Alabama State Meet Course Record With 14:34; Auburn Girls Go Low With 26 Points; Vestavia Hills Wins 7A Boys Title 

By Arthur L. Mack for DyeStat

OAKVILLE — Cool weather greeted runners in the 68th edition of the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Cross-Country Championships held Saturday at Oakville Indian Mounds Park.

Cold Springs’ Ethan Edgeworth raced into the record books when he finished first in the Class 1A-2A boys race

His time of 14 minutes, 34.29 seconds, more than a minute ahead of his closest competitor, teammate Jayden Allred, who ran 16:00.31. Edgeworth said he was on a mission.

“Coming in, everybody knew all eyes were on 14:36 (the previous course record), and that was my goal,” he said. “I planned on going through the first mile in 4:30, and I did that, and I wanted to go through the two-mile in 9:15, and I did that. But I wasn’t satisfied with anything over 14:36. I was feeling good after the two-mile (mark) and I never felt good after the two-mile mark.”

Edgeworth’s record-setting performance helped his Cold Springs teammates win the team title, defeating archrival Hatton 68-72. Sand Rock was third with 100 points, while St. Luke’s (129) and Tharptown (185) rounded out the top five.

In addition, the Eagles also won the girls competition as well, scoring 60 points to defeat Sand Rock (90). Reagan Parris led Cold Springs, winning the individual title in 19:31.26. West End (100), Pisgah (126) and St. Luke’s (139) rounded out the top five.

Cold Springs was not the only school to sweep the boys and girls divisions, as Mountain Brook won the Class 6A titles. The boys won their second straight title, defeating Homewood 74-129. UMS-Wright-Mobile, led by Charles Perry’s first-place finish (15:24.77) was third (132) while Northridge (167) and Helena (188) rounded out the top five.

“The course was a little fast today,” said Perry, a senior. “The weather was perfect, and I was cruising after the first mile, so it was a pretty good race.”

Mountain Brook’s girls won their third straight title, defeating Briarwood Christian 46-86. Homewood (111), Athens (192) and UMS-Wright (196) rounded out the top five. 

“I’m really excited for the kids,” Mountain Brook head coach Michael McGovern said. “They really bought into the team concept this year, and they didn’t care what order they finished in; they ran for each other the whole way. It’s the culmination of a great season.”

Homewood’s Emma Brooke Levering was the individual winner in an excellent time of 17:46.27.

Dothan’s Providence Christian School swept the Class 4A titles. The boys scored 35 points, defeating Westminster Christian Academy-Huntsville 35-92. White Plains (135), Hamilton (138) and St. Michael Catholic of Fairhope (178) rounded out the top five.

In Class 4A girls, Providence Christian defeated White Plains 62-93, with Houston Academy (113), Jacksonville (140) and Deshler (185) rounding out the top five.

Munford’s Dakota Frank (15:45.05) and Maddyn Conn of White Plains (18:30.32) were the individual Class 4A winners.

In Class 7A boys, Vestavia Hills defeated Huntsville 45-55, while James Clemens (64), Hewit-Trussville (119) and Oak Mountain (168) rounded out the top five. Vestavia Hills was led by Henry Strand, who fought off a spirited challenge by Oak Mountain’s John Shoemaker to win individual honors, 15:10.49 to 15:11.20. 

“Last year, we beat Huntsville on a tie-breaker, and we really wanted to come out here and make it a definitive thing,” Vestavia Hills coach Katherine Terino said. “We like to schedule our training so it can coincide with the end of the year and show they are really lethal in the middle mile and the last mile of a race."

Meanwhile, in Class 7A girls, Auburn continued its dominance, scoring 26 points to defeat Hewitt-Trussville (86) and win its seventh title in eight years. Hoover (110), Vestavia Hills (131) and James Clemens (139) rounded out the top five.

Auburn was led by Sarah Tole and Abby Merner in a 1-2 finish, with Tole running 17:54.94 and Merner running 18:09.41.

Scottsboro won the Class 5A boys title, defeating American Christian 40-45 while Lincoln High was third with 121 points. Westminster at Oak Mountain was fourth (127), followed by Lawrence County (142). Birmingham’s John Carroll Catholic’s Arthur Langley was the individual winner (15:35.85). 

In Class 5A girls, Lawrence County used a first-place individual finish from Katie Mae Coan (18:33.07) to narrowly defeat Bayside Academy of Daphne 47-50. Scottsboro (77), Westminster at Oak Mountain (145) and Brewer (158) rounded out the top five.

Bayshore Christian of Fairhope, led by Cade Phillippi’s first-place finish (15:55.73) won its third title in a row, narrowly defeating Altamont 63-66 to win the Class 3A boys crown. Montgomery Academy was third (115), with Trinity Presbyterian (138) and JB Pennington of Blountsville (150) rounding out the top five. 

“It was tough out there running by myself,” Phillippi said. “The goal was just to push myself until I hurt. I didn’t have anybody to run with, so I just decided to run until I hurt and find that place where I could hurt and run a good race.”

Bayshore Christian head coach Ann-Marie Cook said she knew it would be a tight battle coming into the meet.

“Preseason, we didn’t know what we were walking into, but coming into state we knew we were walking into a fight,” she said. “We’re a tiny school and we just have to keep working hard. I believed in our boys, and it’s because they have love for one another.”

Whitesburg Christian, led by Anna Pierce’s first-place finish (18:46.61) won Class 3A girls with 65 points. Birmingham Altamont and Fairhope’s Bayshore Christian each scored 87, but Altamont was awarded second on the tiebreaker.

Montgomery Academy (137) and Plainview of Rainsville (143) were fourth and fifth, respectively.

Team Champions - 

Class 7A - Vestavia Hills boys 45 points, Auburn girls 26 points - RESULTS

Class 6A - Mountain Brook boys 74 points, Mountain Brook girls 43 points - RESULTS

Class 5A - Scottsboro boys 40 points, Lawrence County girls 47 points - RESULTS

Class 4A - Providence Christian School boys 35 points, Providence Christian School girls 62 points - RESULTS

Class 3A - Bayshore Christian boys 63 points, Whitesburg Christian Academy girls 65 points - RESULTS

Class 2A/1A - Cold Springs boys 68 points, Cold Springs girls 60 points - RESULTS