Photo by Chris Todd
Corinth High School – 2021 Class 4A Girls Cross Country State Champions
Cross Country state dominance continues at Corinth Lady Warriors win 2021 state 4A title, boys miss title by mere seven points
By TANNER MARLAR
For Crossroads Magazine
As the Corinth High School boys and girls cross country teams sat in their hotels on a damp, chilly night in Jackson, Miss., they had plans to do anything but sleep. For hours, the two squads pined over their notes, over the rosters of teams they were to be competing with the next day. They would pour over MileSplit rankings, analyze every tiny detail down to the last millisecond of record times – all in preparation for another chance for gold the next day – this time for all the marbles, the Cross Country 4A State Championship. Amidst all of that hustle, bustle and excitement, though, it came time for a tradition. First year girls head coach Emory Kirk had never participated in it, only heard. Only heard that is, until now. Kirk sat down with each of her girls who had made the trip to Choctaw Trails that week together in one room. Shoulder to shoulder, the girls that had endured and conquered all season to earn this opportunity finally, for the first time in a long time, sat in silence, 2021-22 Sports Rewind Edition
if but for just a moment. “The whole Corinth ritual thing was new to me,” said Kirk, “but the night before (the meet) we go out and eat with our teams, and then we meet together with our team. And we all just talk about getting everything out in the air before race morning. That way we can go in with a clear mind and a clear heart, so everything is just out there. You can kind of get your emotions out of the way.” According to Kirk, despite all the wins and surprises of this season that came during meets, this was her defining moment. This is when she knew it could be done in just her first year. “What stuck out to me, and this goes back to the whole team, they just want to support each other. Even the alternates were pinpointing saying ‘well I’m going to go here’ and ‘I’m going to go there’ and ‘we’re going to watch this girl’ and ‘we’re going to tell you when this girl is coming up behind you’,” Kirk said. “That was fun for me to see – all of them talk it out, all of them get a game plan.” That game plan worked to perfection for the Lady Warriors, as the next day they went home
to take first place in the 2021 MHSAA Cross Country State Championship race for 4A. Senior Emma Hall was the team’s top finisher, ending with a 20:28.65 for 5th place overall. Freshman teammate Elise Wilbanks soon followed in 7th place with a 21:09.40 – both of which are blistering times for Choctaw Trails, one of if not the toughest course in the state. Junior Lexie Faulkner followed with a 21:47.75 for 10th place, before freshman Adelyn Mathis and junior Lauren Beech finished back-to-back in 15th and 16th, rounding out the top 5 for the Lady Warriors. It truly was a group effort for the Lady Warriors, as they didn’t just win, they thrashed the next closest team, beating them by more than 70 points. Out of 130 runners who participated in the race, Corinth didn’t have a single girl finish outside of the top 25. That’s unheard of, and it earned Kirk the honor of being named coach of the year in her first season at the helm. “I’m very thankful, and I’m blessed. I love running, and I just hope that pours out to those girls
CROSSROADS MAGAZINE
that running is something you can take throughout your life, and being coach of the year is because those girls kicked their own tails and ran the mess out of themselves to make me look good,” said Kirk of her cdoaching honors. Although the girls took home the gold, do not be fooled into thinking the Corinth boys squad wasn’t right in the midst of the action themselves. They took home second place honors, only missing out of the top spot by seven points. The cross country kicker? Nobody who finished in Corinth’s top five boys runners is graduating. Every single scored runner, including second place overall finisher Parker LeGoff, is back for the fall 2022n season, and according to head coach Luke Hatcher, they’re chomping at the Warrior bit to get back on the course. Hatcher claims the goal is the same as it always has been, to win it all. If that’s the case, next year’s rewind might sing the same tune – the sound of proud Warrior drums – when it comes to 4A cross country. PAGE 27
