As the Greyhounds boys cross country runners walked off the course on Friday morning at the GHSA State Championships in Carrollton, they did so having made history with a third-place finish, the best in school history and with Luke Thornton’s seventh-place finish making him the first JCHS boys runner to make it to the awards podium at the state meet.
But for Jones County’s group of seniors, it was hard not to feel bittersweet, as the Greyhounds came up short of a chance at a state title, finishing second to Westminster and Starr’s Mill, the latter of which the Greyhounds beat five times head-tohead this season.
Jones County’s seniors will leave with four top-10 state finishes, a sectional title, and four region championships in a row.
“There’s a lot to be thankful for, for sure,” Greyhounds head coach Geoff Moore said.
Friday was Jones County’s second top-five state finish in four years, and the current classification of teams made this year’s third-place even more impressive, according to Moore.
“This one was a lot tougher,” the coach said. “We had a lot tougher teams to go against.”
Led by Thornton, the Greyhounds had an average time of 17:03, and Gavin Robinson finished 20th with a time of 16:56.12. Clay Lacy rolled to a finish of 29th on a time of 17:09.54, ahead of Grady Newby and Shaun Williams in 36th and 43rd with times of 17:17.30 and 17:24.81. Tyler Marshall’s run of 17:31.96 was good for 49th. All of that added up to a strong morning for the Greyhounds, but not quite enough to claim a state title.
“We were in position; it just wasn’t our day,” Moore said. “They’re more disappointed than I am, but they still finished third in the state. They had the best average time that have ever had in Carrollton. They’re all winners, they just happened to have their worst day of the year at the worst possible time. Sometimes, that’ll happen.”
And while the top end of the lineup does graduate in May, a strong group of runners from the middle school and JV ranks to primed to step up next year.
We’ll be just fine,” Moore said. “This program is not going anywhere.”
