Teams to watch1. Baylor girls: The Lady Red Raiders return their top six runners from the two-time defending Division II-AA state champions, including five all-staters.2. Notre Dame girls: The Lady Irish finished fourth in the Class A/AA state meet.3. Collegedale Academy boys: The Eagles have won four consecutive Region 3-A/AA meets.4. Dalton boys: The Catamounts won the 2009 Georgia Region 7-AAAA meet and now are in Class AAA.Runners to watch1. Hannah Jumper, Baylor: She was the Division II-AA state champion in 2009.2. Alex Mullin, Notre Dame: She earned Class A/AA all-state honors for the second time.3. Dianna Eddington, McMinn Central: She has been all-state three times in Class A/AA.4. Robert Bridges, Red Bank: He was the Region 3-A/AA champion and earned all-state honors.5. Paul Patterson, Bradley Central: He emerged on the scene by winning the Region 3-AAA meet.
Notre Dame senior Alex Mullin never will have problems with looseness before a cross country race.
“I stretch a lot before a race,” she said. “It’s a nervous habit I have.”
It’s highly doubtful that anybody will mind her habit. The Notre Dame senior is a two-time Class A/AA all-state runner, coming onto the scene with a fifth-place finish as a freshman.
She took her sophomore year off to play for the Lady Irish soccer team but returned last year and placed sixth in the state meet. Her time, combined with teammate Cay Hendrickson’s seventh-place finish, helped the Lady Irish finish fourth in the Class A/AA state meet.
Mullin placed in the top six in every meet in which she competed last year, but her best times came on the Baylor course. Both of her sub-20-minute races were there.
“I just love the Baylor course,” she said. “It’s really flat, shady and there’s always good competition.”
Leaving soccer was a tough choice for Mullin, but she admitted that “the options were better in cross country.
“I really did miss it the first year I was away, but gradually I don’t miss it nearly as much,” she said.
A self-proclaimed “nerd,” Mullin scored a 29 on the ACT and has a 3.9 grade point average. She hasn’t decided whether she’s going to run cross country in college, but she should have a bevy of options based on her long stride and past accomplishments.
“I’ve talked to a few schools so far,” she said. “I would like to run in college; I’m just going to see where it goes.”
A hip injury has slowed her preseason training, but Mullin expects to be back by the third race of the season, primarily to prep for the postseason.
“I had to take a lot of time off this summer,” she said. “I’ve only been back in training for a couple weeks and have just been running a couple of miles – just gradually trying to get back into a routine.
“I’m not really sure what to expect from this season. I just know I want to be at my best by the region and state meets.”