There was good news and better news from Union City’s two runners at the state cross country meet.
School Communications Director Mike Hutchens said sophomore Woodrow McKinnis posted a top-tier finish, while freshman Ainsley Sadler came in among the upper half of the girls’ field while representing the Golden Tornado program in the Class A-AA event at Sander’s Ferry Park.
McKinnis finished 30th in a large field of 255 runners, while Sadler came in 89th out of 243 participants.
Not only were the efforts of McKinnis and Sadler noteworthy, but the fact that both underclassmen have multiple years remaining in their prep careers bodes well for the high school teams.
“I’m excited about how well they did today, but I’m even more excited about their future,” Tornado head coach Thel Taylor said after Thursday’s races. “I thought they improved each week and each time out, and that’s certainly what you want to see – especially when you get to the postseason level.
“Their times were competitive with what they’ve posted all year, and to do that against fields of well over 200 runners is impressive. Now, the key is for this to be a starting point and not a finishing one as they grow and mature in the sport.”
McKinnis, who ran with the pack leaders from start to finish, was clocked at 17:02.07 in the 5K boys’ race. Sadler, meanwhile, who twice won the state middle school individual championship, finished with a time of 22:42.42 and maintained a steady pace throughout her race.
Their times were indeed comparable with ones each posted in recent weeks, though both runners privately had hoped to finish even higher in their respective races.
“There obviously were some things for us to build on with this season, and we’ll get a little more specific in our offseason work and training to try and get better for next year,” continued Taylor, who also works with Tornado distance runners as an assistant track coach. “If you want to run like an athlete, you have to live like an athlete. That includes proper nutrition and rest.
“We certainly don’t want to overtrain, but we incorporated some speed training this year, and we’ll probably do a little more of that next year. All in all, I’m just really pleased with today and hope it can serve as motivation for not only Woodrow and Ainsley but all of our kids.”
Ava Moody of Anderson County won the girls’ championship with a time of 18:17.36, while Liberty Creek’s Jaden Hills claimed the boys’ title after running the course at 15:43.48.
(photo: Mike Hutchens – School Communications Director)
