CLINTON — The J.Z. George boys cross country team won its first 2A state title Saturday, and senior LaTifa Swims captured her third individual girls championship.
The Jaguars defeated defending champion East Union 28-38 at the MHSAA state meet at Choctaw Trails in Clinton.
The Lady Jaguars finished second overall to East Union by three points, 44-47.
Teams can run up to seven competitors with the top five finishes being added up to compute the team score. Boys run a 5K, and girls run a 4K.
The boys team only had five runners, Tquan Partlow (2nd), Denarius White (4th), Antonio Washington (6th), Jabbaria Amos (7th) and Dameond Brown (15th).
Coach Heath Dudley said his top four runners took care of business, and Brown, a freshman, delivered a strong performance in the fifth position, a spot the team has struggled with during the season.
“These guys have worked extremely hard,” Dudley said. “We probably put ourselves in the top five teams in the state no matter what the classification.”
All five boys will be returning next year to defend their title.
The girls runners were Swims (1st), Tiffany Hobbs (6th), Dandrea Peterson (7th), Nyesha Washington (15th), Kadijah Cobbins (18th) and Kadijah Hoye (24th).
“We ran well. We just got beat by the better team on that day,” Dudley said.
Swims competed in J.Z. George’s first ever cross country meet six years ago as a seventh grader, laying the foundation for the program’s success, Dudley said. He said they will miss her work ethic and dedication on the track and in the classroom.
“We’re going to miss her just being in our school. You just don’t have somebody like that (often),” he said.
Dudley said J.Z. George’s track and cross country programs have a family atmosphere. Teammates stick together at meets, cheering each other on, and they all handle themselves in a first-class manner, he said.
Obviously, the approach has been successful.
The George boys have brought home four state track championships, and the girls have won three, plus previous girls cross country titles.
Contact Charlie Smith at csmith@gwcommonwealth.com.
