(Photo by Chris Tucker)
One of the best races of the weekend was at the Alligator Lake XC Invitational as Emma Tucker of Chiles, Bridget Morse of Columbia, and Maggie Rice of Newberry went stride for stride until the last 100 meters of the race and crossed just tenths of a second within each other. Tucker was first in 19:01.27 with Morse and Rice behind her in 19:01.49 and 19:01.92. Watch the finish courtesy of Dusty Smith and B3R Promotions.
Tucker had this to say after the race.
"The last 100 meters was the definitely the most fun and exciting part of the race. Coming into it, I was in third and behind by a couple of steps and wasn't entirely sure I had enough distance left to catch them. I was extremely aware of the finish line, but also that the two other girls weren't out of my range or ability and I just went for it."
The Niceville girls kept their undefeated team win streak alive. After winning the UF Mt. Dew Invitational, the Eagles lead by Hannah Schneidewind's fifth place finish tallied 84 points to beat Harrison High School of Georgia.
In the varsity boys race, it was Blake Lowery of Gainesville with another impressive showing. After a top ten finish at the UF Mt. Dew Invitational, the senior ran the second fastest time of the season and of his career, a 16:01.82 beating his nearest competitor by over 17 seconds. Rivals Chiles and Leon battled it on the team front with the defending 3A state champions scoring 89 points.
More Coverage
- Alligator Lake XC Invitational Featured Photo Album By Cedric Gillette (1,536 Photos)
- Alligator Lake XC Invitational Featured Photo Album By Chris Tucker
- Alligator Lake XC Invitational Meet Page