_(1).jpg)
Northeast Arkansas is Back
While athletes in Northwest Arkansas do their best to grab all the headlines they can each week, the 2024 cross country season has been a lot more balanced and a big part of that has been because of the emergence of distance running in Northeast Arkansas.
The Arkansas cross country season kicked off at the CBC Warrior Invitational where Aubrey Minton and Harper Huckabee wasted no time making statements. Minton, the 5A state champion last year, ran a 17:40.56, which is still an AR #4 this season, while Huckabee was the first runner under 16:00 this season.
Huckabee led the Jonesboro boys to a victory that day and the Golden Hurricanes have only gotten better since adding Hudson Copeland, a second sub 16 runner, to the mix, and ranking as the 8th fastest team in the Milesplit XC Teams Scores.
Speaking of Jonesboro, have we mentioned Lauren Thompson? After finishing 6th as a freshman at the 6A state meet last fall, Thompson has established herself as one of the best in the state, picking up two race wins and running the 8th fastest time in the state this season.
This spring, Starlyn Edwards introduced herself to the state, breaking two 5A state records en route to a pair of state titles. Now, the senior owns the 14th fastest time in the state and is helping lead a young Paragould program to prominence. Led by her mom, Monica Edwards, the Rams find themselves on an upward trajectory, one that could lead them to the top of 5A in a few years.