GRAY DEYOSports Writer

The Tullahoma XC, with their season on the line at Macon County, showed up and showed out. The boys’ XC team as a whole qualified for state, while the girls’ team had a couple of runners qualify individually.

The top four teams at the regional meet at Macon on the boys’ side qualify for the state meet, and the Wildcats XC team just sneaked in. They secured the fourth and final spot, finishing fourth at the event out of 13 teams. The runners who will represent Tullahoma at state on the boys’ team are the following: Lukas Price, Wyatt Dorsett, Lincoln Bitton, Brodie Howard, Jackson Ites, Everett Tinsley, and Jeffery LopezShrum. William Nichols (alternate) and Major Montoye (alternate) will serve as the reserve runners for the Wildcats at the event.

A winning culture is beginning to take shape for the boys’ XC program. Prior to 2023, the team had a 17-year drought of not qualifying for state as a team. Now, in two of their last three years, they have accomplished that feat.

For the girls’ side, they were unable to qualify as a team for the event, but they will still be well represented, with two runners earning a spot in the state event. Those two runners for Tullahoma are KG Nichols and Julianna Ites. .  

This will be Ites and Nichols’ second year in a row qualifying individually for state. They were also a part of the 2023 team that qualified as a team for state, where they went on to finish third overall. The two runners who will serve as reserves for the Lady Wildcats are Hannah Eakin and Natalie Davis.

The state meet will be on Nov. 6 and will be at Shelby Farms Park in Memphis. It will start at 2 p.m.