Five high school cross country standouts from the Chattanooga area received recognition from the Tennessee Sports Writers Association when its all-state teams were released Wednesday night.
Four of those were from TSSAA Division II-AA, with the other, Toby Van de Ven of St. Andrew’s-Sewanee, making the DII-A boys’ list.
Similarly, all but one of the area selections were seniors, with Van de Ven and fellow 12th graders Jack Bowen (McCallie), Gilly Shumate (GPS) and Zach Youngblood (Chattanooga Christian School) joined by Addy Cotter, who is an eighth grader at Baylor.
Even before reaching high school, Cotter won five high school meets for the Lady Red Raiders this past fall: the Heritage 5-Star Stride, John Freeman Invitational, McCallie Invitational, Fast Break Challenge and Front Runner Area Championship. Cotter finished two of those 5-kilometer (3.1-mile) races in 18 minutes and 28 seconds, while her 18:39 mark was good for fourth overall at the DII-AA girls’ state meet.
Bowen, a North Carolina signee, finished second at state for the third time in his prep career with the Blue Tornado. His 14:40 finish at the Randolph Invitational is believed to be the fastest 5K time ever for a Chattanooga-area prep cross country runner. He also won the Nike XC Town Twilight in 14:41, and he placed 25th at the Foot Locker National Championship race in San Diego.