The 2021 Catoosa-Walker County Cross Country Dream Teams
Zoie St. John (Fr., Heritage)
2021 Catoosa County Girls’ Cross Country Runner of the Year
Making the transition from two-mile middle school courses to 3.2-mile high school courses can be daunting for freshman cross country runners.
However, that certainly was not the case for Heritage rookie Zoie St. John, this year’s Catoosa County Girls’ Cross Country Runner of the Year.
St. John joined the traditionrich Lady Generals’ program and wasted no time in establishing herself as a performance leader, clocking a team-best 22:04 in her very first race as a prep runner.
Her freshman resume would end up including six top-12 finishes, five top-eight finishes, and her first high school victory at the 5-Star Stride on her own home course in late September, which saw her post a seasonbest time of 21:12.
She ended her first season at Heritage with a sixth-place finish at the Region 7-AAAA Championships in Jasper with a 21:16 and she would cross the line in 22:06 at state in Carrollton to finish in 23rd place overall.
Gavin Chandler (Sr., Heritage) 2021 Catoosa County Boys’ Cross Country Co-Runner of the Year
After being named the Catoosa County Boys’ Cross Country Runner of the Year for the past two seasons, Gavin Chandler went into his final season knowing more big things were expected.
And that’s exactly what the Heritage High School senior delivered.
With a season average under 18 minutes, Chandler found his stride in mid-September and helped the Generals combine a solid mix of veterans and rookies into a team that went on to place a very respectable 11th at the Class AAAA State Championships in Carrollton in early November.
Chandler had a streak of six races in a row in which he finished at 17:50 or better, including 17:00 at the Southern Showcase in Huntsville, Ala., and a season and careerbest 16:50 at the LaFayette Invitational. He would win both events and added two runner-up and one third-place finish in the North Georgia Cross Country League.
He finished his stellar prep career with a third-place showing (17:29) at the Region 7-AAAA Championships, an 18:48 at state, and a share of the Catoosa County Boys’ Cross Country Runner of the Year award for a third straight year.
Davis Justice (Sr., Heritage) 2021 Catoosa County Boys’ Cross Country Co-Runner of the Year
Perhaps no runner in the Heritage Generals’ cross country program made a bigger leap from last season than Davis Justice did in 2021.
After finishing his junior year with a respectable average time of 19:30, Justice took off more than a full minute off that number by averaging 18:27 in 12 races in his senior campaign. He set a new personal-best in his very first race of the season and proceeded to better that number three more times before the end of the year.
His top time of the season was a 17:33 at the LaFayette Invitational, a mark which will serve as his all-time best in a Heritage uniform. He finished third in that race, one of seven top-10 finishes he turned in this fall, led by a runner-up finish in an NGXCL race in Dalton on Sept. 9.
Justice broke 18 minutes five times and placed seventh overall three separate times in his final season, twice on his own home course and once at the Region 7-AAAA Championships in Jasper.
The 2021 Catoosa County Boys’ Cross Country Co-Runner of the Year crossed the finish line in a time of 18:32 at state in his final race as a General and was the highest-placing Heritage boys’ runner (31st overall).
Haley Hartman (Jr., Gordon Lee) 2021 Walker County Girls’ Cross Country Runner of the Year
After enjoying a breakout sophomore season, Gordon Lee junior Haley Hartman was expected to be a leader for the Lady Trojans this past fall.
She responded by taking her running up another level and, today, she is being honored with her first Walker County Girls’ Cross Country Runner of the Year award.
In her varsity races this past season, Hartman finished under 25 minutes every time out and had five finishes under 23:30, including a season-best 22:14 at the 5-Star Stride at Heritage High School on Sept. 27.
She finished the year with five top-10 finishes, including a victory at the Walker County Cross Country Championships at LaFayette (23:19).
Hartman followed up that race in late October with a fourth-place showing at the Region 6-A Public School meet at Georgia Highlands College in Rome, clocking in at 22:27, and she went on to place eighth at the Class A Public School State Championships at Carrollton High School in early November with a time of 22:51.
Tucker Henderson (So., LaFayette)
2021 Walker County Boys’ Cross Country Runner of the Year
A year older and a year wiser, LaFayette’s Tucker Henderson was expected to make another jump in his cross country career this past fall. However, few could expect the astronomical leap he would take as a sophomore.
He took his game to another level this past fall by winning six times in 10 races, earning runner-up honors twice and finishing third once, while enjoying a seven-race streak in which he finished at 17:46 or better.
His best time of the year was a 17:14 on his own home course, which came just three days after clocking what had been a career-best 17:16 at the 5-Star Stride at Heritage.
He went on to cross the line first at the Walker County Championships in LaFayette and at the Region 6-AAA Championships in Dalton to help the Ramblers qualify for state in Carrollton. There, he finished in the top 30 at 18:15, shaving off nearly 90 seconds from his time at state a year ago.
The 2021 NGXCL champion’s average time was nearly a minute faster than last year’s as he earned his second Walker County Boys’ Cross Country Runner of the Year honor.