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Forsyth runners speed through state
West, South boast top 10 finishes
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Forsyth County News

A handful of runners from Forsyth County finished in the state’s top 10 Saturday and one team cracked the top five, as the cross country season concluded in the state meet at Carrolton High School.

West Forsyth held the local banner highest, as the Wolverine girls finished fourth in Class AAA with an average time of 20:51. West finished behind Columbus, Riverwood and Woodward Academy, with the Wolverines’ 151 points putting them just five points out of third place.

Leading the way for the Lady Wolverines — who recorded their second straight top-five finish as a team — were Taylor Roeck (19:27) and Region 7-AAA champion Kat Gibson (19:43), who finished sixth and seventh, respectively.

Kelsey Baker, Sarah Stone, Hannah Bodie, Taylor Kern and Liz Earls rounded out the lineup for West.

West coach Clayton Tillery said he felt his entire lineup achieved near the limits of their individual abilities.

“It was probably as good of a day as we could have hoped for. Kids ran good, really good,” he said.

Tillery said that having Roeck and Gibson lead the team was a plus all season, with Roeck better suited to hilly courses and Gibson excelling on flat surfaces.

“It was great having that one-two punch because we always knew one was going to be really, really good and one was going to be really good,” the coach said.

In Class AAAAA, South Forsyth had two individuals crack the top 10, with Gator Jackson (16:24) finishing eighth for the boys team, while Allie Schaich — who qualified on her own — came in seventh in the girls race (19:25).

“Any runner that finishes in the top 10 of the state’s most competitive division is exceptional,” South coach Jerry Edmondson said, describing Jackson as the team leader and adding that Schaich “has an unwavering desire to compete at a high level.”

Dylan Walker (16:51) was South’s next closest finisher in the boys race, followed by Trevor Grant, Austin Smith, Ryan Prisco, Ben Miles and Tyler Curtin.

South’s boys finished 11th as a team, with an average time of 17:21. Region 7-AAAAA rivals Peachtree Ridge and Collins Hill finished 1-2 in the team standings.

Forsyth Central’s girls competed in the Class AAAA race, coming in 18th, with an average time of 23:17.
Ani Popp was the top finisher for the Lady Bulldogs, finishing 48th in 21:52.

Also competing for Central were Allison Mahaffey, Danielle Cureton, Madison Cheeves, Sarah Holly and Valerie Smith.