Herrington, Sanders, Fincher record top-20 finishes

By JEFF GILLESPIE Sports Editor
jeff.gillespie@rockdalecitizen.com 

CARROLLTON – The Heritage girls reached their goal with a podium finish at the Class AAAA 
State Cross Country Meet on Saturday on a revamped course at Carrollton Elementary School.
Freshman Lauren Herrington finished eighth overall to claim all-state honors as the Lady 
Patriots nipped St. Pius for fourth place and the final spot on the podium.
But the Heritage girls weren’t the only story.
Rockdale sophomore Carys Fincher recorded a top-20 individual finish in the girls race, 
while Heritage senior David Sanders posted a top-15 finish in his final race for the 
Patriots .
In the girls race, Heritage needed a strong finish from its No. 6 runner  Lindsay Wells to 
wrap up fourth place. The Lady Patriots and Lady Lions were tied at 126 points after five 
runners, but Wells’ 43rd-place finish in 21:44 beat St. Pius’ No. 6 runner Laura Papania, 
who placed 57th.
“We sat down this year and made it a goal of getting one of those top four podium 
positions. I can’t say enough about how hard the whole team has worked,” said Heritage 
coach Brian Smith. “It just goes to show how tough this sport really is. We worked 
extremely hard to make the podium this year, and we only improved by one place from last 
year.
“The girls just continue to show that they are great athletes and great people. They’re 
just a joy to work with.”
But it was Herrington who set the tone for Heritage, turning the area’s best time of the 
season at 20:04 to finish in eighth. North Forsyth’s Laura Mayo won the individual title 
in 19:12.
“Lauren just did an outstanding job today. She’s a fierce competitor,” said Smith. “She 
trains every day and has strong goals. To be an all-state runner as a freshman is fabulous.”

Sophomore Soibhan Wolcott in 23rd (21:06), junior Jenna Kimble in 30th (21:25), freshman 
Chelsea Kimble in 31st (21:26) and sophomore Erin Fahey in 42nd (21:40) rounded out 
Heritage’s top five. The Lady Patriots’ other runner, senior Katie Ginnane, placed 81st 
in 22:49.
Chelsea Kimble, Wells and Ginnane joined Herrington in recording their best times of the 
season.

Rockdale’s Fincher finished 17th overall in the girls race, producing her top time this 
season at 20:51. Overall, the Lady Bulldogs, who qualified for state by grabbing the 
eighth and final spot at last week’s sectional, finished 20th with 527 points in their 
first state appearance in school history.
Katie Johnson in 118th (24:03), Kayla Johnson in 133rd (24:54), Alicia Bellis in 138th 
(25:07) and Jenna Williamson in 154th (26:43) completed Rockdale’s top five.
Marist won the team title with 49 points, North Forsyth was second at 86 and South Forsyth 
was third at 111.
In the boys race, Sanders equaled his all-time personal best with a 14th-place finish in 
17:07 – beating his best time of the season by one second. Last year, he finished in 20th 
in the state meet at 17:17.
The Patriots finished 14th in the team standings with an average time of 18:24 and a team 
score of 350. David Tarr in 38th (17:47), Derek Wu in 99th (18:53), Robert Gray in 106th 
(18:58) and Ken Clingenpeel in 118th (19:16) rounded out the Heritage top five.
 Marist also won the boys race with 36 points followed by Chapel Hill (86), Region 8-AAAA 
champion Habersham Central (131), Druid Hills (181) and Alexander (192). Marist’s James 
Rafferty was the individual winner in 16:49.
“David has been battling an illness a little bit toward the end of October. He’s just now 
starting to feel better,” said Smith. “He ran a 17:07 and set his personal best. He’s 
been the best boys runner since I’ve been here – if not the history of the school.
“The boys team has had the best team average in school history, at least since I’ve been 
here. The guys moved up five places from last year, so that shows how much improvement the 
program is making.”