Pulaski County Sweeps Southern Harrier
By Carlton Hughes
“Our team ran mentally tough and focused.”
Pulaski County Coach Nancy New’s quote was evident at the 2013 Southern Harrier Classic in Somerset on September 14, as the Maroons racked up an array of impressive finishes in their own backyard. Pulaski recorded first-place team honors in five events: Boys and Girls Varsity, Boys and Girls Middle School, and Elementary Girls.
“Everyone on our teams ran better times than they have all season, and our top varsity girl set a new course record,” said New.
“As a team we closed gaps all day,” added coach Mark Bruin. “We’re very proud.”
In the Boys Varsity race, the Maroons’ Mason Blevins and Morgan Stevens took the top two spots with times of 17:11 and 17:28 respectively, followed by a pair of Wayne County runners—Quentyn Parmley in third at 17:29 and Trevor Shearer at 17:42 for fourth place. Southwestern’s Jordan Carrington came in next in fifth with a time of 17:50. Pulaski and Wayne County dominated the rest of the top ten, with only Dalton Walden of Whitley County breaking into the pack in seventh at 17:55. The Maroons had top finishers in Brennan Perkins (sixth place, 17:50), Austin Hyden (eighth, 18:01), and Sam Smith (ninth, 18:06). Wayne County’s Andrew Dobbs came in tenth with a time of 18:47.
Wayne County placed second in the team standings, followed by Letcher Central in third.
Pulaski continued its domination on the Girls Varsity side, with the top two finishers in freshman Alyssa Hyden at 21:00 and seventh grader Devin Mayfield at 21:25. Wayne County’s Sadie Martin placed third with a 21:31 time, followed by Sabrina Elliott from Knox Central at 22:45 and Janie Ward of Model with a time of 22:50. Rounding out the top ten were Jennifer Sawyer of Wayne County (22:53), Kaitlyn Stittums of Harlan County (22:58), Sydney New of Pulaski (23:13), Savannah Parmley of Wayne County (23:23), and Ashley Phelps of Southwestern (23:49).
Wayne County once again followed Pulaski in the second position as a team, with Rockcastle County in third place.
In Boys Junior Varsity, Harlan County took first place with Letcher Central second. Pulaski County had the top individual finishers with Duncan Finch in the top spot (19:44) and Dylan Wilson in second (21:19). There were no complete teams in Girls Junior Varsity, but Letcher Central swept the first three slots: Grayson Collier in first at 26:44, Megan Cornett in second with a time of 29:37, and Kyli Short in third at 30:11.
The Wayne County Cardinals swept the competition in the Boys Elementary race with the top four finishers: Nathan West (6:37), Alex Rose (7:11), Aaron Hesse (7:27), and Cory Rose (7:30). Southwestern finished second as a team, with Pulaski County in third.
Pulaski’s Lauren Smith led the way in the Girls’ Elementary, leading her team to victory. Rockcastle County was second, and Somerset placed third.