By Rubin E. Grant
Going into the 65th AHSAA State Cross Country Championships on Nov. 14, Homewood coach Josh Donaldson knew his runners faced an uphill climb to keep their streaks of state titles alive.
As it turned out, the Patriots girls team won its third consecutive Class 6A, while the boys finished third behind Scottsboro and Mountain Brook, ending their run of eight straight state championships.
The Homewood girls edged Mountain Brook with 59 points to 68 to claim their fourth title in five years at the Oakville Indians Mound Park near Moulton.
Mountain Brook senior Elizabeth Robertson was the individual winner with a time of 18:43.15, but the Patriots had four girls earn all-state medals by finishing in the top 15 to claim the team title.
Eighth-grader Emma Brooke Levering led the way for Homewood with a seventh-place finish with a time of 19:27.84. Sophomore Marin Poleshek was ninth (19:38.96), freshman Caroline Wilder 12th (19:56.56) and sophomore Camille Etheridge 15th (20:06.24). Sophomore Sydney Dobbins finished 16th (20:08.27), narrowly missing All-State honors.
“I couldn’t be more proud of our girls,” Donaldson said. “Looking at the times of runners from Mountain Brook going in, we knew it would be tough to win again. We finished second behind them in the sectional by one point, and going into the state meet, the virtual race had us finishing second behind them. But our girls stepped up big time.
“One of the exciting things is all the girls who scored for us were sophomores or younger. I am excited about working with them as they get older.”
Injuries Hobbled Boys
Meanwhile, the Homewood boys entered the state meet without two of their top runners. Senior Jon Fielding Stogner, the 2019 Class 6A individual champion, missed the entire season because of a foot injury. Talented sophomore Sam Gray was sidelined with a hip injury.
During the race, the Patriots’ top runner, Crawford Hope, a North Carolina signee and pre-meet favorite, turned his ankle and came in seventh with a time of 16:09.28.
“It was nice and swollen after the race,” Donaldson said of Hope’s ankle. “He was in a lot of pain. I am proud of him for pushing through.”
The Patriots’ next-best finisher was sophomore Grayton Murray, who came in 14th (16:56.50). Chelsea junior Miles Brush was the boys Class 6A individual champion with a time of 15:21.41.
Donaldson called the Patriots’ third-place finish with 85 points a “good achievement” considering the injuries, but he was disappointed to see the streak end.
Scottsboro, which had four of the top eight finishers, won with 31 points and Mountain Brook was second with 73 points.
“That was the bitter part of the day,” Donaldson said. “Scottsboro had an exceptional team, so it makes me feel better losing to a worthy team.”
The Mountain Brook boys had three All-State runners, Clayton Collins (ninth), John Roberts (10th) and Davis Plowden (15th).
Robertson Stands Out
Mountain Brook’s Robertson easily outran her competition to win the girls Class 6A race, finishing well ahead of Northridge sophomore Mary Mac Collins (19:13.36). Briarwood eighth-grader Mary Grace Parker was fifth (19:26.45).
“After a little less than a mile, I tried to separate from the other runners, but another girl followed me,” Robertson said. “But in the final stretch, I really separated.
“It is super exciting to win for sure, to see all the hard work I’ve put in since I was in the seventh grade pay off my senior year. But I am a little disappointed the team was not able to get the team title.”
Spartans sophomore Clark Stewart earned All-State honors with an eighth-place finish in 19:32.78.
Cole Clocks Fastest Time
Oak Mountain senior Walker Cole turned in the fastest time of the state meet to claim the Class 7A boys individual crown.
Cole’s 15:13.66 time topped the boys’ competition as he crossed the finish line 10 seconds ahead of Auburn senior Stewart Brown, who clocked 15:23.43.
“My original plan before the race was to go easy the first mile and then pick up speed the second mile,” Cole said. “But it was a slow first mile, so I just decided to go faster.
“It was pretty exciting to win.”
Cole, who has signed with Utah State, finished second in the 2019 Class 7A state meet behind Vestavia Hills’ Ethan Strand, but this time Strand, who has signed with North Carolina, came in 12th in 16:06.92.
“It feels pretty good to finish ahead of him,” Cole said. “We’ve been racing against each other a long time.”
