he Jefferson Dragons girls’ cross country team will be heading for state competition Saturday in Carrollton after placing second in the region meet at Riverside Military Academy last weekend.
The girls finished four points behind North Oconee, while edging Dawson County by a point.
Jessica Runkel finished fourth overall with a personal best time of 21:02, while Alison Missler also recorded a personal best time of 21:40 in finishing sixth.
Other finishers included Kathy Buffington in 14th with a 22:42; Lauren Phillips in 18th with a 22:59; Mariah Porras in 22nd with a 23:21; Laura Price in 24th with a 23:32; and Holly Barron in 41st with a 25:11.
While it was a good day for personal times for the boys, they fell short of making the trip to Carrollton as a team with a seventh place effort.
Wesley Milton will be making the trip, however. His sixth place finish with a 17:35 earned him a spot on the starting line at the State meet.
Other finishers included Trae Timmerman, who finished 31st with a personal record time of 19:27; Michael Stephenson in 40th with a 19:56; Austin Bragg in 48th with a personal record of 20:20; Clay Richards in 49th with a 20:23; Josh Deremer in 57th with a 20:51; and Caleb Edwards in 61st with a 23:25.
Coach Charles Elfer also pointed to the performances from several eight graders, including Wil Roberts, Mathew Deremer, Jake Marlowe, Andrew Ocock and Sam Fouche, saying their performances “bodes well for the future.”
