By By Adam Robinson – sports editor
The T.R. Miller cross-country team competed in the Pace Invitational in Pace, Fla., last week. The boys team came away with a third place finish out of seven teams.
For the T.R. Miller boys, Geoff Youngblood was the top finisher for the Tigers as he finished in 12th place out of 110 boys. Youngblood's time was 19:30.
Brandon Nelson and Corey Cunningham were the next finishers for T.R. Miller as they finished 18th and 19th respectively. Nelson and Cunningham had exact times of 19:50.
Tyler Parker finished in 38th place with a time of 21:42 and rounding out the top-five for T.R. Miller was Corey Redfearn who finished in 48th place with a time of 22:26.
Jeff Gill finished in 50th place along with Cole Pruitt and Taylor Terry in 65th and 75th.
Washington, the class 4A defending champion in Florida, finished in first place in the Invitational followed by Navarre, T.R. Miller, Jay, Escambia, Tate and Pace.
On the girls side, Crystal Higdon was the top finisher for the Tigers as she came in 7th place with a time of 22:40. Amber Nelson finished in 15th place followed by Shelby Youngblood in 16th place.
T.R. Miller was scheduled to compete in the Gulf Coast Stampede in Pensacola on Saturday.
The T.R. Miller cross country team also competed in the Pine Forest Invitational this past week, and the boys team placed a 14th finish our of 31 team's.
Cross County coach Rob Atkinson said he was really pleased with the improvements that his team is making.
In the Pine Forest race, Corey Cunningham was the top finisher for the Tigers as he places 56th overall with a time of 18:01.
Geoffrey Youngblood finished second for the Tigers and 78th overall as he had a time of 18:30. That time was also the time for Brandon Nelson as he placed third for T.R. Miller and 79th overall. Rounding out the top-five for T.R. Miller were Cole Pruitt and Corey Redfearn.
Pruitt placed 127th overall with a time of 20:14 and Redfearn places 146th with a time of 20:46.
On the girls side, Crystal Higdon placed 41st for the Tigers overall as she ran the course with a time of 21:36.
For the middle school runners, Amber Nelson completed the two-mile course in a time of 14:41 earning her an eighth place finish. Shelby Youngblood finished ninth with a time of 14:48 and Taylor Guthrie rounded out the Tigers with a 21st place finish with a time of 17:46.
The Tigers will compete again next Tuesday, October 9, when they will travel to Pace.