One of if not the hardest course in Georgia yielded some of the fastest times ever and showed that a home course advantage can prove fruitful for the host school.
Boys Varsity
In a race that pitted the #3 All-Class ranked host Milton Eagles against the #6 All-Class ranked Blessed Trinity Titans, the home team Eagles proved too much to handle in a very hotly contested race. The host Milton Eagles (1st-44 pts), led by the undefeated junior Sam Bowers, put three runners ahead of the Titans’ 2nd runner to secure the Fulton County title and move their streak to four straight varsity boys titles in a row in the states 2nd largest county. Bowers moved ahead late to secure the win and the new course record (1st-17:07) by one second over the old record (set by Milton alum Jack Bluth, now running for the Air Force Academy). This is Bowers’ 4th meet win in a row (ATL Classic, Early Bird, Double Dip & Fulton County). Behind Bowers, the next four finishers beat the previous second-best time ever run on the Milton course (same course since 2007, slow and hilly). Runner-up was fellow Milton junior Michael Malkowski (2nd-17:13), who bested the prior 2nd-best time on the course by 17 seconds! The next five finishers, Ben McCoy of Blessed Trinity (3rd-17:21), Brennan Silliman of Woodward Academy (4th-17:22) and Zach Morgan of Cambridge (5th-17:29) all bested the 17:30 run by Sid Vaughn of Lakeside-Evans in 2011. Behind Milton in the team scores was Blessed Trinity (2nd-64 pts) & Cambridge (3rd-80 pts) along with another nine schools.
Girls Varsity
With Landmark Christian pulling out three days before the meet, the Fulton County girl’s team title was the host #1 ranked All-Class Lady Eagles of Milton to lose. Early on in the contest, it looked like Milton was on their way to a perfect score but even though they experienced some hiccups, Milton scored 18 pts (1st-18 pts) to best 11 scoring schools. Senior Marie Repasy of Milton took the lead just over 1200 meters into the race and extended it throughout. Her final time of 20:21 was the 9th fastest time ever recorded on the course (since 2007) and was good for a 40-second win and a 35-second PR on the course! Behind Repasy, Milton landed their two freshman sensations in Faith Bobak (2nd-21:01) and Abby Rindt (3rd-21:06). Maddie Heller of Blessed Trinity (4th-21:24) was close to 20 seconds back. The team title was never in question as the Lady Eagles of Milton outdistanced Blessed Trinity (2nd-79 pts) & Johns Creek (3rd-108 pts). This was Milton’s first girl’s county team title since 2012, as Northview had won the last three years in a row!
Best Overall Program Award
Unique to this meet, Fulton County awards a Best Overall Program trophy to the team that scores best in the Open, JV and Varsity boys & girls races COMBINED! The Eagles of Milton captured their 7th straight Best Overall Team Program scoring 19 pts out of a possible 20 pts with wins in the Open Girls & Open Boys, JV Girls and Varsity Girls and Boys races. Blessed Trinity was 2nd with 10 team points.
