Russell, Moorehead lead Sherwood boys to third at GIAA state meet

MACON — Two top-10 finishes propelled the Sherwood Christian boys to third place, while Southwest Georgia’s Marigrace Garcia Simmons claimed an individual title Saturday at the GIAA cross country state championships.

Competing at the Georgia Premiere Cross Country Course, Sherwood’s Natnael Russell placed eighth in 17 minutes, 57.39 seconds, and Sam Moorehead followed in 10th at 18:15.67. Their performances anchored a 103-point finish for the Eagles, who placed behind champion Heritage Prep’s 35 points and runner-up Southland Academy’s 43.

Thompson Bennett finished 22nd and KJ Bevel took 23rd, giving Sherwood four runners among the top 25. Tanner Mingo completed the Eagles’ scoring with a 45th-place finish.

In the girls’ race, Simmons captured the individual state championship in 21:05.20. Sherwood’s Kaylee Hatcher also earned a top-10 finish, placing seventh in 23:25.20 to lead the Lady Eagles.

Sherwood finished fourth with 87 points, seven behind third-place Edmund Burke. Heritage Prep completed a sweep of the team titles with 22 points, while Westminster placed second with 61 and Edmund Burke followed with 80.

The Lady Eagles secured their finish despite losing one of their usual leading runners during the race. Jordyn Ban, normally Sherwood’s second finisher, suffered an ankle injury and could not finish.

Behind Hatcher, Sydney Dampler placed 18th and Sarah Postlewaite finished 20th. Makenna Mingo followed in 28th, and Macy Hatcher rounded out Sherwood’s scoring in