By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor
MONTEVALLO – The starting gun officially fired on the 2024 cross country season, and runners got a chance to hit the course in a different format during the Thompson Warrior 2-Mile Invitational on Thursday, Aug. 29, and the Oak Mountain Eagles took some of the top finishes.
After entering the season with big expectations, Oak Mountain’s John Shoemaker claimed his first win of the season in his first start, running a time of 9:30.26 on the University of Montevallo cross country course to secure first place.
Shoemaker came into the season off a second-place finish in the Class 7A state championship, five wins in 2023 and a win at the North-South race in July.
His teammate on the girls side, Ava Fields, came in second with a time of 11:58.64 and was the highest county finisher in the girls Warrior 2 Mile.
She was one of three county runners to place in the top five in the season-opening race.
Briarwood Christian’s Mary Grace Parker secured a fourth-place time of 12:05.13 after finishing second in the North-South race. Spain Park’s Madison Harvey was just a few steps behind her in fifth behind a time of 12:05.32.