The battle between Memphis teams made for an
incredible night of racing at Shelby Farms.
The Boy's race was headlined by Jackson Williams of Arlington. The standout senior took the lead early and led to the finish winning by 32 seconds to finish in 15:41. This was Williams' second win of the season. Williams is setting himself up nicely for a top-5 state finish this year. Coming in second place from Manila, Arkansas was Junior Connor Jackson with a huge PR of 16:13, 38 seconds faster than his previous best. Landen McNair also ran a PR coming through the finish line in 16:18 for third place. Owen Young and Rylee Hertter of Arlington rounded out the top 5, respectively.
The real excitement of Saturday night was in the team race. The matchup between Memphis rivals Arlington and Bartlett was everything we hoped for. With Arlington predicted to win after a successful weekend of PR's in Huntsville, Bartlett raced with a chip on their shoulder. Behind sophomore Landen McNair, Bartlett rolled to a huge 29-point win, with all five scorers finishing in the top 11. Arlington was second with 62 total points. This wasn't the first battle between these two teams, and it won't be the last. The teams will meet again at regionals and presumably state, so we can expect two more thrilling matchups. Houston High School, Brother Martin, and Christian Brothers High School finished 3rd,4th, and 5th, respectively.
The girl's race was also dominated by one individual, Brooklyn Biancamano. Biancamano took a strong lead before the first mile and only widened the gap. In an outstanding time of 18:23, Biancamano won the race by 58 seconds. This win continues her undefeated season and extends her win streak to six. Be on the lookout for what this sophomore will accomplish in her last two years of high school. In second place, Ann-Marie Braese of Arlington took home a new personal best of 19:21. Braese has shown some impressive consistency this year and it will be interesting to see how that consistency helps her when championship season rolls around in a few weeks. Placing third for St. George's Independent School, freshman Lauren Rutlin ran an impressive personal best of 19:31. With this being Rutlin's first year of cross country, she will be definitely be a force to reckon with in the near future. Look for her at the top of the state rankings soon. Jessica Cartwright and Julia Stradinger finished out the top five, respectively.
The team race on the girl's side of things was dominated by Houston High School. With their top five runners finishing in the top 20, the Houston girls posted an impressive 51 points in the large field. With an average of 20:32, the state of Tennessee should be weary of this team. Madison Ridgeline Academy and Hernando High School finished second and third, only being separated by 6 points.