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Red Hills Course Challenges Runners
This year, event includes human competitors
Democrat Gallery - Democrat Video - WCTV Video
By Jordan Culver
Tallahassee Democrat
Feb 20, 2012
Travis Covert is used to doing things that are slightly out of the ordinary.
The Maclay School junior cross-country athlete, 17, put his quick self-proclaimed running skills to the test Sunday on a newly designed course. Typical cross-country courses are straightforward, with maybe a bush or two to jump. But this 2.2-mile course had several obstacles and water traps.
It also was designed for competing horses — a new twist that threw even Covert for a loop.
"How do I train for something like this?" he asked, while laughing and swinging his arms to stretch his deltoids. "This is a little bit different. Do some stretches, I guess?"
Thousands of spectators flock to Tallahassee every year to watch Olympian hopefuls during the Red Hills International Horse Trials, which will take place March 9 through 11 this year. For the first time in its 14-year history, the event will end with humans making their way through the course.
Maclay's cross-country team tested the course at Red Hills International Sunday morning in preparation for Access Tallahassee's Cross-Country Challenge, sponsored by Proctor Subaru. Since Red Hills is meant for horses, the course was riddled with tall jumps, a few of which had puddles of water on the other side.
The morning weather was perfect — 68 degrees and breezy when the runners started — but the course took its toll, even on veterans.
Stefanie Kurgatt, a Maclay junior and runner-up at this year's state meet for cross-country, said the course was pretty challenging, but definitely worth giving another try.
"About three minutes in I was wheezing, trying to jump over all those things," she said after her trial run. "It's definitely not like running cross country, but it was fun."
Course designer Hugh Lochore said the Maclay team was phenomenal, especially since the course wasn't designed for humans at all.
He said it was for horses first and foremost and it just happens people can also run the course.
"It's a tough thing to ask," Lochore said. "When you say 2.2 miles, most people think 'Oh well I can do that.' This cross-country course has weird terrain and jumps and changes in elevation. It's a tough 2.2 miles."
The Cross-Country Challenge will take place March 11, after the horse trials at Red Hills. Hugh Lochore's wife, Brook Lochore, said the event is perfect for runners and non-runners. Brook Lochore is a council member with Access Tallahassee and the event is her brainchild.
She added Red Hills is rarely open to the public and the event is a great chance to check out the park.
"Even for someone who isn't as fit as a member of a cross-country team, you can still go out and have a nice walk and enjoy some of the jumps," she said. "This is just the most beautiful property. It's a great atmosphere to be involved in during an event"
Daryl Green, spokesman for Proctor Dealerships, said getting involved with the event was a good fit for the company's Subaru franchise. Looking over the course, he said he expects the event to be fun, especially for those who love the outdoors.
Kurgatt said she's going to practice before hitting the course again.
"I'm going to try if I can," she said, walking downhill after her team tested a water jump. "I guess repetition will help, and I'll try and find a way to get over the jumps easily."
Chiles girls finish second in 3A cross country meet
Chiles' Williams, Thomas and Givens top 5; Maclay's Kurgatt finishes second in 1A meet
Tallahassee Democrat
Mike Stella - Prep sports coordinator
Nov 20, 2011
The Chiles girls cross country team came up just short in its bid to win its fourth straight state title.
Chiles finished in second place, 18 points behind Estero, on Saturday in the Class 3A meet in Dade City.
Chiles had lost to Estero by 41 points in the Pre-State meet on Oct. 15.
"Well I guess that's the way the experts had predicted it," Chiles coach Scott Gowan said. "After we lost to Estero by 41 points at Pre-State, I said we need to see how much we can improve. We improved from 41 to 18 points.
"Our girls ran as well as they could today."
The statistics would seem to agree. Chiles had three of the top five runners in the meet — seniors Lily Williams (2nd, 17:48) and Carly Thomas (3rd, 17:53), and junior Rachel Givens (5th, 18:08).
Estero's top runner, Kacy Smith, finished eighth in 18:15. But Estero had its top five runners finish in the top 30.
"They had better depth," Gowan said. "We were better on the front end — having three girls finish in the top five. But they were better on the back end."
On top of that, Chiles had a better average time in the meet than Estero — 18:49 compared to 19:00.
"They should their heads up high," Gowan said. "There are about 500 schools in Florida that run cross county that we finished ahead of. We would have won the Class 1A, 2A and 4A titles. But we were in 3A.
"But we had a good year. I'm so proud of these girls. These seniors put us on the map four years ago."
Williams' second-place finish was her third straight individual runner-up. She finished third as a freshman.
Gowan said: "Lily told me as we were leaving the course: 'I've finished second on this course six times (in state and pre-state meets). I guess I don't like this course too much.'
"I've been so blessed to have a chance to coach Lily and Carly. Both of them have finished top five in the state meet every year. I've been so fortunate."
Williams also pointed out how they would have won the title in any other classification except for 3A.
"It is definitely really disappointing. That was our goal," she said. "It's bittersweet not to win it all."
And to finish second for the third year in a row, Williams jokes: "I'm happy that I'm consistent. I gave it my all. Olivia Ortiz (the winner from Lakewood Ranch) made her move sooner than I expected. ... That was also bittersweet (finishing second).
"I think the course is a curse," Williams said with a laugh.
Thomas, who won an individual state title as a sophomore, was pleased with her performance — but was disappointed not to capture her fourth straight team state title.
"It's pretty tough," Thomas said. "But you know one team is going to win and one is going to lose."
But reflecting back on her career, Thomas wouldn't change a thing.
"This was the best time of my life," Thomas said. "All four years. The older girls helping me and then helping the younger girls. It's been a great experience for me."
The Chiles boys finished seventh with Taylor Buzzard as the top finisher in 20th place in 16:17.
"They finished 13th a year ago and seventh today," Gowan said. They didn't have their best day. ... It was an average meet. But they ran as well as they could.
"They had a good year. They won districts and they are back in the top 10 at state."
Leon's boys finished ninth with Will Henderson leading the way in 23rd place in 16:19.
In the Class 1A girls meet, Stefanie Kurgatt finished second in 18:31 to help lead Maclay to a fourth place finish.
Kurgatt (who was predicted to finish third in the race) wasn't feeling too good on Saturday morning, so Maclay coach Gary Droze told her to lay back in the beginning of the race and see what she had at the end.
Kurgatt sat somewhere between 10th and 15th place within the last mile where she made her charge to finish second.
"It feels good," said Kurgatt. "I wasn't so much worried (about being behind). I could see the girls in front of me and they looked to be fading a little bit. And I had a little bit left."
In the boys' side, Maclay finished fifth, led by Travis Covert in 28th place in 17:16.
"That's the coach's blame for that one," Droze said. "I let them peak at the regionals. ... I told them last week, realistically we can't get on the podium at state, so lets go win regionals."
They did win regionals, but Droze felt like the boys team didn't have a lot left in the tank at state.
"We were predicted to finish fourth, and we finished fifth. I'm OK with it," Droze said.
In the Class 2A boys meet, Wakulla's Stanley Linton finished eighth in 16:34.
Maclay boys, Chiles girls earn regional cross country titles
Tallahassee Democrat
Mike Stella - Staff Writer
1:04 AM Nov 13, 2011
It was a big day for Big Bend cross country teams at regionals on Saturday at Alligator Lake Park in Lake City.
The Chiles girls earned the team title in the Region 1-3A meet, led by first-place finisher Lily Williams.
The Maclay boys won the Region 1-1A meet, led by first-place finisher Travis Covert. The Maclay girls placed second, but Stefanie Kurgatt won the individual title.
Region 1-3A meet
In the Region 1-3A girls meet, Williams looks like she is in top form heading into the state meet. She won the race in a time of 17:49.
Chiles' Carly Thomas finished second in 18:17, while Rachel Givens was third in 18:21.
"The goal in the regionals was to qualify for state," Chiles coach Scott Gowan said. "It's been a good year. We've won districts and regionals for the past nine years and went to state al 13 years. We are the only sport that can say that. I'm proud of what they have done."
Thomas was happy the way the team ran.
"It's really cool that we advanced and to keep that legacy going.
"We are going to prepare to do our best this week and then go run our tail off at state."
Also qualifying for the state meet besides the Chiles team was Leon's Autumn Wable, who finished 12th in 19:25.
On the boys' side, the Chiles boys finished fourth, while Leon finished fifth. Each qualified for the state meet that takes place next Saturday in Little Everglades Ranch in Dade City.
Chiles' Taylor Buzzard finished fifth, Leon's Will Henderson placed sixth and Lincoln's Jacob Slupecki finished seventh with times of 15:55. Slupecki earned a berth to the state meet as an individual. Leon's Ben McMahon finished 14th in 15:59.
Region 1-1A meet
The Maclay boys placed five runners in the top 15 — Covert (1st, 16:47), James Daughton (4th, 16:59), Alex Artecona (5th, 16:59), Jack Rutledge (10th, 17:22) and Matt Antworth (13th, 17:32).
The NFC boys finished sixth and will join Maclay in the state meet.
NFC's Luke Strickland led the way by finishing seventh in 17:12.
On the girls' side, Maclay finished second — 15 points behind Providence. Aucilla Christian placed fifth and earned a trip to the state meet.
Kurgatt finished first in a time of 18:16. Teammates Kristin Sweeney finished third in 19:02, while Elizabeth Santoro was 11th in 20:48.
Aucilla Christian's Taylor Copeland finished ninth in 20:31, while Meagan Giddens was 12th in 20:49.
Region 1-2A meet
The Wakulla girls qualified for the state meet by placing sixth in the Region 1-2A meet.
Marty Wiedeman led the way for Wakulla, placing eighth in 19:57. Cora Atkinson finished 11th in 20:01.
On the boys' side, Wakulla's Stanley Linton and Florida High's Joseph Garcia will be going as individuals.
Linton finished second in 16:13 and Garcia was 10th in 16:52.
— See results from all Big Bend teams in regional meets in Monday's paper.
Maclay wins district cross country titles
Tallahassee Democrat
Nov 5, 2011
The Maclay girls and boys cross country teams captured titles at the District 3-1A meet on Friday at Maclay's home course.
Maclay's girls won their 13th district championship in the last 15 years, while the boys have won 12 district titles in 15 years.
"It's tough to be at your peak for three weeks in a row," said Maclay coach Gary Droze about districts, followed by regionals and the state meet. "The districts are tricky. You want to win, but you don't want to run into the ground.
"So I told the kids to try to win with the least effort needed."
A week of sunny afternoons evaporated the course's infamous holding pond, letting the harriers gallop through five kilometers completely mud-free.
Maclay's Stefanie Kurgatt exploited the dry, cool weather to set a girls' course record, winning by over two minutes in a season-best 18:15. Teammate Kristin Sweeney gave the Marauders a 1-2 punch with her runner-up finish in 20:28.
Aucilla Christian's Taylor Copeland clung to Sweeney long enough to continue her spate of sub-21:00 performances, taking third in 20:44.
Teamwise, Maclay bested Aucilla Christian, 21 to 35 points, but Aucilla's team average of 22:32 was their best of the year.
Both Maclay and Aucilla Christian advance to the Region 1-1A meet next Saturday at Alligator Lake Park in Lake City.
Qualifying individually for regionals were John Paul II's Aileen Kadzis (9th, 22:33) and Victoria Hurlbut (12th, 24:16) — on the basis of finishing in the top 13 overall.
The boys' 5K race began with a two-versus-two battle through the first 1,000 meters, with North Florida Christian's Luke Strickland and Charles Venable mixing it up with Maclay's Travis Covert and Connor Daughton. But on the wooded back section of the circuit, Covert employed his home-course advantage, surging to a slight lead through a series of tight turns.
By the second mile, Covert's tactics dropped the Eagle duo, as well as his own teammate.
Covert and Connor finished first (17:02) and second (17:13).
The brace of NFC runners faded only slightly, however, and held off late charges from Maclay's Matt Antworth and Jack Rutledge.
Strickland (3rd. 17:25) and Venable (4th, 17:31), led North Florida Christian to a strong second place team finish (42 points), topped only by Maclay's winning total of 25 points, and earned a spot at regionals.
Aucilla Christian's Jay Finlayson authored another consistent race to finish seventh overall (18:03), which led his squad to a region-qualifying third-place team finish (55 points).
Area cross country teams gear up for district meets
By Mike Stella
Tallahassee Democrat
Prep sports coordinator
Nov 4, 2011
There will be a lot of running going on in town this weekend.
The high school cross country district meets kick up this weekend and several will be hosted in Tallahassee.
The District 3-1A meet will be run on the Maclay course beginning at 4 p.m. today and will include Maclay, Aucilla Christian, Jefferson County, John Paul II and North Florida Christian.
Maclay sports some of the best runners in the Big Bend, including Stefanie Kurgatt (18:22) and Kristin Sweeney (19:22) on the girls' side, and Travis Covert and James Daughton on the boys' side.
"We are considering this as a good tune-up, a good workout," said Maclay coach Gary Droze.
Aucilla Christian has a dynamic duo of Megan Giddens and Taylor Copeland, who finished second and third respectively in the City Championships last week.
Also look for NFC's Luke Strickland (17:05) and Seth Venable (17:35).
The District 2-3A meet takes place starting at 8 a.m. Saturday at the Apalachee Regioal Park and includes Big Bend teams Chiles, Leon and Lincoln.
The Chiles girls team will begin a quest to win their fourth straight state title — while the boys look to make some waves at the state meet as well.
Senior Lily Williams leads the Timberwolves girls and the Big Bend with a best time of 17:29, followed by senior teammates Carly Thomas (17:55) and Rachel Givens (18:06). Leon's Autumn Wable (19:27) and Lincoln's Naliyah Gilbert (21:29) should lead their respective teams.
On the boys' side, Chiles' Taylor Buzzard (15:49) and Jacob Krell (16:06) are the top two in the Big Bend. They are followed by Leon's Ben McMahon (16:11) and Will Henderson (16:11) and Lincoln's Jacob Slupecki (16:20).
The District 2-2A meet includes Florida High, Godby, Marianna, Rickards, Wakulla, Taylor County and East Gadsden.
Florida High's girls were one spot away from making the state meet last season and have a strong team back to compete at districts — including Savana Osterbye (21:08) and Langlee Toothman (21:20).
Florida High coach Carrie-Lynn Angelique Hauer is confident in her team to win districts and use the momentum to make the state meet.
"I believe they can (win districts)," Hauer said. "We're working real hard for it."
On the boys side, Wakulla's Stanley Linton has the third best time in the Big Bend this season with a 16:11. Florida High's Joseph Garcia should be in the battle with a best time of 17:22.
Maclay boys, girls win cross country meet
Tallahassee Democrat
Oct. 29, 2011
The Maclay boys and girls cross country teams captured titles at the City Championships on Friday at Maclay.
In the boys' race, Maclay's Travis Covert attempted to run away from Lincoln standout Jacob Slupecki.
The tactic succeeded through the first half of the race, but Slupecki gradually reeled in Covert, passed him at two miles, and held form to win by eight seconds — 17:15 to 17:23.
Similarly, the team battle was in large part a two-team duel between the Trojans and Marauders.
Both squads put all five of their scorers in the top 16 spots of the 84-runner field.
Maclay clung to a slight advantage established on the second circuit, finally taking the title with 30 points to Lincoln's 42.
"It was especially nice for the guys," said Maclay coach Gary Droze about earning the win. "We lost to Lincoln in the Panhandle Championships.
"We have a tremendous relationship with Lincoln. ... We have the same concept: to have fun and race hard. We duke it out and then shake hands after."
Rounding out the nine were Marianna (95), Aucilla (104), Wakulla (118), Florida High (129), North Florida Christian (210), Godby (233) and John Paul II (253).
Rounding out the top 5 boys runners were Lincoln's Hunter Scott (17:36), Maclay's Connor Daughton (17:37) and Aucilla's Jay Finlayson (17:48).
The district meets begin next week. Maclay hosts the District 3-1A meet on the same course at 4 p.m. Friday.
In the girls' race, Maclay's lead runner Stefanie Kurgatt surged to the front immediately, which gave her the advantage of not having to swallow any water splashed up by rivals during her trips through the holding pond.
Kurgatt extended her lead by almost a minute on each circuit, eventually winning by 21/2 minutes in 18:32 — her second-fastest time of the season.
Aucilla Christian's Megan Giddens (21:06) and Taylor Copeland (21:08) finished second and third, respectively.
Rounding out the top 5 were Marianna's Lindsey Toole Marianna (21:26) and Florida High's Savana Osterbye (21:42).
Teamwise, a vastly-improved Aucilla Christian squad gave notice that it will be a postseason contender, finishing second out of five teams and just 15 points behind Maclay (58-43) on the Marauders' home course.
Lincoln (62), Florida High (82) and Wakulla (91) finished out the scoring.
And now, a little love for our runner/swimmers Kristin and Dennis...
Rickards boys, Maclay girls earn district swimming titles
By Mike Stella
Tallahassee Democrat
Prep sports coordinator
The Rickards High boys and the Maclay girls swimming teams captured titles at the District 1-1A meet on Friday in Panama City.
"This is big for them," Rickards coach Julie Lawson said. "They did not win last year (finishing third) and they had a chip on their shoulder.
"They feel like they should have gone undefeated this season, but we lost a couple when we weren't totally healthy. But we were healthy today and we came out and swam well in the finals and had three or four swimmers finish in the top 8 (in many events)."
In the boys meet, Florida High finished third and Maclay was fourth. In the girls meet, Florida High was third and Rickards was fourth.
Highlighting the boys action for Rickards was the 200 medley relay and 200 freestyle relay teams remaining undefeated this season by winning district titles in the events. The teams consisted of Andrew Chen, Preston Turnage, Riley Ralston and Joey Briggs.
Briggs went on to win the 200 freestyle and the 100 butterfly.
In the 50 freestyle, Rickards had four of the top six swimmers: Preston Turnage (first), Ralston (third), Asher Hamilton (fourth) and Stephen Barton (sixth).
In the 100 freestyle, Rickards had Ralston finish first, Hamilton finish third and Evan Wilson finish fifth.
The boys 400 free relay finished third (Hamilton, Barton, Kenny Soyars, Wilson).
Other top finishers for Rickards were: Turnage (second in 100 back), Chen (second in 100 breaststroke) and Soyars (4th in 100 breaststroke).
Rickards' Jennifer Griffith led the girls by finishing second in the 100 back and second in the 200 free.
In all, Rickards will be sending 10 boys and nine girls to the Bolles School Cassidy Aquatic Center in Jacksonville on Thursday.
The Maclay girls were led by Kristin Sweeney, who finished first in the 200 free. Kirsten Spann finished first in the diving and Caty Hanson finished first in the 100 breaststroke.
Four of Maclay's middle school swimmers advanced to regionals in the 200 individual medley — Bay Hanson, Hunter Marie Parker, Lindsey Cunningham and Caldwell Harris.
"It really feels amazing," said Maclay coach David Neuman of winning the title. "The kids were really looking forward to this. The last time we won the district title was 2005. This is a real exciting moment for our team."
On the boys side for Maclay, Dennis Keane (50 free) and Vasilije Dobrosavljevic (100 breaststroke, 200 IM) put in strong performances.
In all, 17 swimmers will be going to regionals for Maclay.
Florida High had several individual champions, including Megan Walker in the 100 butterfly and the 100 back, as well as Morgan Glazer in the 500 free and Richmond Abellera in the boys diving event.
Also winning for Florida High was the girls 400 free relay team of Glazer, Kathleen Salmon, Kelsey James and Walker.
Logan O'Byrne finished second in the boys 200 free, Thomas Cook was second in the 100 free and the boys 400 free relay team of Alex Cook, Austin Kirtley, Thomas Cook and Matt Sampson finished second.
Williams leads Chiles to FSU Invitational title
By Mike Stella
Tallahassee Democrat
Prep sports coordinator
12:25 AM, Sep. 25, 2011
Lily Williams helped lead the Chiles High girls cross country team to the title at the FSU Invitational on Saturday at Apalachee Regional Park.
Williams won the individual title by running 18:00, eight seconds ahead of Holy Trinity freshman Julie Woolrath.
But again, the secret to the Timberwolves' success was three runners finishing in the top six — senior Carly Thomas finished fourth in 18:27 and Rachel Givens placed sixth in 18:58.
"We ran pretty well, I guess," Chiles coach Scott Gowan said. "The conditions were not great. It was real hot and humid. ... But it was great to have three girls in the top six and those other three runners were real good."
Maclay junior Stefanie Kurgatt finished fifth in a time of 18:41, leading her team to a sixth-place finish in the Invitational Division.
Williams was in third place at the mile mark, behind Woolrath and Gulf's Kari Grippo (who wound up finishing third).
But between the mile-and-a-half and the two-mile mark, Williams took over the lead and held on for the win.
"Each week we go in there with a game plan," Gowan said. "She did good to follow that plan.
"I told the girls to run conservative early (because of the conditions). ... I don't think there were too many personal records today."
Williams was pleased with her performance.
"The two girls got out to a quick pace," Williams said. "I went and stayed at the same pace. I didn't want to kill it too hard too early. It was my goal to be in first at the two-mile mark.
"I gave it my best effort. I'm pretty happy. It was tough that it was hot and humid. I'm pretty happy with the time."
Gowan was just as pleased with the other top Chiles finishers — including Jessica Gillard finishing 21st in 19:59.
"Jessica was much better than she was two weeks ago," said Gowan of the meet at the Bob Hans Invitational in Jacksonville which Chiles won too. "She had a 15-second improvement and this was a tougher course."
On the boys' side, Chiles' senior Taylor Buzzard was the top Big Bend finisher, ending up in 12th place in a time of 16:17.
Holy Trinity's Daniel Moore won the race in 15:43.
The Timberwolves were the top Big Bend team finishing seventh overall, while Leon finished 11th and Lincoln finished 13th.
"They had a good day, but they should have finished in the top five," Gowan said. "It was inexperience. They started out too aggressive early. They have got to be more patient and be more disciplined."
Senior Jacob Slupecki led Lincoln with a 17th place finish in 16:29, while senior Ben McMahon led Leon with a 31st place finish in 16:44.
Maclay finished 16th with junior Travis Covert finishing in 45th place in 16:56.
Open Division
In the Open Division, the Leon girls finished fifth with junior Autumn Wable finished third individually in a time of 20:50.
Auciilla Christian finished ninth with eighth-grader Megan Giddens leading the way with a seventh-place finish in 21:18. Teammate and fellow-eighth-grader Taylor Copeland finished eighth in 21:19.
John Paul II sophomore Aileen Kadzis finished 30th in 23:27.
On the boys' side, Wakulla senior Stanley Linton finished fourth in 16:52. The War Eagles finished eighth as a team.
NFC's Luke Strickland finished 13th in 17:58, Godby's Jarod Hoffman finished 25th in 18:35.
Maclay's Kurgatt wins at Katie Caples
By Mike Stella
Tallahassee Democrat
Prep sports coordinator
12:04 AM, Sep. 19, 2011
Maclay senior Stefanie Kurgatt won the Girls Elite Division at the Katie Caples Invitational on Saturday night in Jacksonville.
Kurgatt won with a time of 19:23 in what turned out to be a crazy cross country race.
Julie Wollrath of Holy Trinity and Shelby Davidson of Cocoa Beach began the race with the lead, but they veered off the course — and some of the pack followed, including Kurgatt.
After about a minute, Kurgatt noticed they were off course and met up with runners on course.
Kurgatt employed what Maclay coach Gary Droze called a team philosophy — "savor chaos" — took the lead and never looked back.
"When I caught up, I thought to myself 'just stay calm'," Kurgatt said. "I didn't know what my pace was and I was out of breath."
Kurgatt added: "I wasn't negative. I just wanted to see what I could do."
Maclay wound up finishing 10th in the meet. Kristin Sweeney finished ninth in 20:28.
Maclay boys, Wakulla girls win at Lincoln Invitational
By Mike Stella
Tallahassee Democrat
Prep sports coordinator
1:23 AM, Sep. 18, 2011
The Maclay boys and the Wakulla girls cross country teams took home victories at the Lincoln Invitational at Tom Brown Park on Saturday.
In the boys race, Lincoln senior Jacob Slupecki finished first in a time of 16:49.
"I thought Jacob ran really well today — for it being the first meet of the season," Lincoln coach Perry Shaw said.
"I felt pretty good," Slupecki said. "I wanted to stay out in front. On the last lap I just grinded it out. There was a big gap at the hill. ... I'm happy with it."
Maclay's Travis Covert finished second in 17:06, followed by Wakulla's Stanley Linton (17:21), Maclay's Connor Daughton (17:24) and NFC's Seth Venable (17:35).
In the team competition, Maclay edged out Lincoln by four points. Wakulla finished third.
Maclay coach Gary Droze was pleased with his team's performance, especially with his team missing one of its key runners due to a soccer tournament.
"It's tough to beat Lincoln," Droze said. "We had a few key runners that made the difference — like Jack Rutledge. He started out in, like, 20th place and knew we had a top runner out and moved up 10 or 11 spots and finished ninth."
In the girls race, Aucilla Christian eighth-grader Meagan Giddens finished first in 20:46. She was followed by her eighth-grade teammate Taylor Copeland (20:50).
Lincoln's Kellie Hays finished third in 21:53, followed by Wakulla's Marty Wiedeman (21:53) and Cora Atkinson (22:00).
Wakulla edged Lincoln in the team competition by two points. Florida High finished third.
"I thought the boys and girls ran real well," Shaw said. "It will be a good test next week. ... We'll get a good idea where we are at."
The next race for many local teams will be at the FSU Invitational next Saturday at Apalachee Regional Park.