What a difference a year makes. 

This past week, the girls and boys cross country teams from Quitman High School participated in the LHSAA Division IV Cross Country State Meet held on the campus of Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, LA.

After qualifying by the girls winning the regional meet and the boys coming in third, the two squads both compiled top ten finishes, with the girls coming in 6th place and the boys checking in with a 10th place finish.

This is on the heels of both teams coming in 23rd place in last year’s meet, prompting QHS head cross country coach Cindy Pardue to praise her teams for their improved showings and reflect on the past season.

QHS Girls Cross Country recap: 

“We had three varsity girls, Megan Kelly, Addi Faber, and Kaleigh King, who were all running strong this season, and in the race before Regionals, we were able to pull up two 8th graders, Anna Pardue and Audrina Martin, who turned out to be two key runners that helped us secure 1st place at Regionals and had personal bests at the state meet as did Megan, who finished in 15th place.”

QHS Boys Cross Country recap:

“On the boys’ side, Gage Horton and Luke Sims ran well all season but we had trouble pulling together a whole squad. About mid-season, we were able to add Mason Thomas and move up 8th-graders  Carson Savana and Josiah Ramsey. Their addition allowed us to earn our way to the state and finish in 10th place.”

Pardue also thanked Jessica Sims for her help with the teams and gave appreciation to graduating seniors Megan Kelley, James Brown, Jayden Harts, Gage Horton, and Sean Henry for their effort and help with the younger members of the team. 

“The boys and the girls worked very hard this year and learned how to run together as a team. With Jessica Sims helping me along the way, I cannot wait to see how these kids continue to improve in the future.”