If you go to Central Buick in Jonesboro, you may or may not end up driving home in a new car, but you will certainly take home some stories! Tyler Pemberton, graduating class of 2005 at Greene County Tech, recalls a powerhouse era of the school. Pemberton’s tale is one that many cross county athletes can appreciate. Tyler and his friends all played basketball and/or baseball, but joined cross country to build their endurance. Some of the boys stopped playing basketball, but still wanted a fall sport — cross country fit the bill.
Tyler laughs as he recalls, “it turned out, most of us were pretty good at running.” A familiar accident that happens to so many athletes from other sports: they became distance runners.
His first season, in 2003, Pemberton remembers the team as already being strong. Coach Greg Richey was an inspiration to the boys and knew most of them through coaching basketball. In fact, it was Richey that pushed the boys to run cross country in the first place: "our strategy for basketball was to win via endurance.” Tyler remembers Coach Richey giving “outlandish workouts,” and he spoke of Richey highly, saying that the team “all had so much respect for him because he ran with us.”
The team earned runner-up in 2003.
Pemberton explains that going into his junior year, they hadn’t lost a runner to graduation, and “we knew we had business to take care of, so we handled it.” The opening season meets went well. Pemberton recalls placing in most of the meets, and he says going into each meet “we knew the odds were in our favor.”
When November 6, 2004, finally arrived the team stripped off their warm-ups for the last time that season and walked towards the starting line of the Arkansas State Cross Country Championships. On the line, Tyler recalls, “we had a bit of butterflies but we were confident — we had a certain swagger and when we stepped on the line, we knew we were the best team... we just knew.”
Pemberton remembers the feeling of hitting that first mile a bit too fast — 17 seconds too fast, actually, and a slight moment of runners’ panic set in.
"I thought 'I either need to go hard or idle down just a bit.' I remember the last stretch, leading down into the finish line, I remember getting to the finish line, and hearing my team shout, ‘We got it! We did it!’
He said that as they ran to receive their trophy, “there was this sense of excitement, and a feeling of completion — we started out that year with a goal and we felt like we had achieved that goal.” Making it all the more meaningful, Pemberton reiterates a common refrain about Coach Richy: “we all had so much respect for him... it was cool to win that state title for him.”
Michael Miller of Greene County Tech, class of 2006, was the workhorse of the team. Tyler spoke highly of him, saying he was a “hard worker and determined." The following season, Michael won the individual state 4A cross country title and ran 16:52 at Chili Pepper that season. According to Pemberton, Michael switched his focus only to running sports and D1s started looking at him as a result of that season. Miller competed at Arkansas State and graduated in 2010. Says Pemberton, “Michael... he led by example. He pushed himself and he pushed us. He was a great guy to have as your number one.”
Another runner from the Eagle’s Gilded Era was Seth Freeman. Freeman’s marks improved throughout his career at Greene County Tech, steadily dropping his state time from 18:45.39 in 2003, to 18:21.31 and a sixth place finish in 2004, to a 17:29.53 and a third place finish. Freeman ended his cross country career at GTC with a fourth-place showing at state, then went on to compete at ASU with Miller.
Cory Dunkin was another key player for Tech. In 2004, as a sophomore, Dunkin finished seventh at state with a time of 18:29.73 and seventh again his junior year with a nice drop in time of an 18:14.39.
For this basketball-turned cross team — MIller, Freeman, Dunkin, Cruz, Josh Turner, Eric WIlliams, and Tyler Pemberton — the mid 2000s were a special time. Trading a ball for a trophy is not a bad way to remember one’s high school career!
Do you have a cross country story you'd like to share? If you want to be a part of the “I remember” series, please contact mscontent1912@gmail.com.