©2009 NPT PHOTO BY PAUL MEADOR

Cocke County placed three runners on the All-Conference Team
at the IMAC Conference Cross Country Championship Thursday
in Dandridge. The runners included, from left, Brooke Ray,
Dusty Rymer and Courtney Williamson.

DANDRIDGE-The Cocke County High School Cross Country squad seemed to be peaking at the right time heading toward the end of the season.

"We went to a meet in Pigeon Forge a few weeks back," said CCHS head coach Mark Hawk. "We had been working hard all season. The kids were dedicated to it. We had a slow start to the season because the kids didn't put in the work over the summer. So, we had some catching up to do. But, they surprised me. They worked, and they worked hard and we continued to improve. So, heading into the Pigeon Forge meet, I had a message for them, that we were going to win and that nothing else was acceptable."

The Cocke County runners got the message. Running against squads from Pigeon Forge, Sevier County, Seymour, Gatlinburg-Pittman and Kings Academy, the Big Red took home top honors with the Smoky Bears second and the Highlanders third.

"That was a big win for us," said coach Hawk. "We really wanted to beat Sevier County because they are new to the IMAC Conference this year."

Anthony Beck led the Big Red charge, followed by Taylor Hawk, Leo Woods, Lamar Woods, Dusty Rhodes and Thomas Coulter.

The Lady Red finished third overall, but got strong performances from Courtney Williamson and Brooke Ray, followed by Ashley Gregg, Alley Sprouse and Kelly Holt.

"Courtney has had a great season and has been a pleasant surprise," said coach Hawk. "She's kind of leveled off a bit, and Brooke has been pushing her. I'm expecting big things from these two in the coming weeks."

The squad then got a two-week break, and time for some tweaking.

"It was great to have those two weeks off," said coach Hawk. "That gave us time to put in some hard work and to get ready for that final push. We really worked at putting on some late speed in our runs. We have been slow starters this year, so we need that late speed and final push."

The Cocke County squad then headed to the prestigious Trailblazer Cross-Country Invitational, the 37th running of the event, at Daniel Boone High School in Gray last Saturday, October 17. There they would compete against 24 other boy's and 18 other girl's squads on the same course the Region 1A Championship will be run on.

"Our kids really don't like that course," said coach Hawk. "It's got a lot of hills, a lot of twists and turns. But it's a good course, a challenging course. The Trailblazer gives us a chance to run the course we'll run in the Region."

Against the top runners in East Tennessee and Virginia, junior Leo Woods stepped up his pace to lead the Big Red, finishing 35th overall with a time of 18:39.04. Sophomore Taylor Hawk wasn't far behind at 18:49.53, followed by junior Dusty Rymer at 19:12.71, freshman Lamar Woods at 19:22.52, junior Thomas Colter at 19:50.04, junior Zack Holt at 20:44.20 and junior Brian Conner at 21:20.32.

"Our strengths this year have been our youth (no seniors on the boy's side)," said coach Hawk, "and being close in times, our pack times."

The Big Red finished ninth overall against tough competition.

Sophomore Brooke Ray came on strong to lead the Lady Red at 23:05.91, closely followed by sophomore Courtney Williamson at 23:17.56, junior Ashley Gregg at 24:20.03 and junior Alley Sprouse at 39:14.94.

Just five days later, the Cocke County Harriers were lacing up the running shoes again, this time at the Inter Mountain Athletic Conference Championship Meet, hosted by Jefferson County High School at Field of Dreams in Dandridge.

"We were without our top runner (Anthony Beck) for the second straight meet," said coach Hawk. "So I told the guys before the start that our backs were to the wall. It was time for a gut check. Somebody was going to have to step up."

Dusty Rymer did just that, finishing ninth overall with a time of 17:52.

"He tickled me to death," said coach Hawk. "He had the run of the season and we were proud of him. He stepped it up when we needed it."

By finishing in the top ten, Rymer was also named to the All-Conference Team. Following Rymer were Leo Woods at 18:02, Lamar Woods at 18:08, Taylor Hawk at 18:24, Thomas Colter at 19:35, Zach Holt at 19:36, Brian Conner at 21:26, Riley Webb at 22:48 and Ryder Richardson at 24:00.

Meanwhile, the Lady Red started strong with Brooke Ray in the lead through the first loop of the two-loop course. But, midway through the second loop, Ray began to fade.

"She had the flu," said coach Hawk. "But there she was, running her way through it. If she had been healthy, I'm sure things would have been different."

While Ray began to fade, Courtney Williamson stepped up her pace to finish third overall at 22:39. Ray finished strong in seventh at 23:30, followed by Ashley Gregg at 24:45, Alley Sprouse at 31:36, and the squad's lone senior, Kelly Holt, at 37:47.

By finishing in the top ten, both Williamson and Ray were named to the All-Conference Team.

And, both the Big Red and Lady Red both finished second to perennial power Morristown West.

"We did what we came to do," said coach Hawk. "We had to work a lot harder to get there, but we got the job done. I'm proud of these kids and what they've accomplished so far. Everybody except Kelly will be back next year and I'm expecting big things from them. If they put in the work in the off-season, you should see us on a totally different level. I'm really looking forward to that."

In the meantime, the Region 1A Championship Meet looms next, back at Daniel Boone this Thursday, October 29, starting at 1 p.m.

"I'm taking all of them," said coach Hawk. "It's going to be tough for us, but we'll see what happens."