Girls Cross Country Team, Chris Jones win Region
Girls take second Region Title in eight years
By TODD FORREST Sentinel Writer

Coach Jackie Hughes has led the Girls Cross Country squad to it's second Region Championship since 2000 (2000 was Union County's first season in Region 8AA) with a total of 61 points. Coming in second place was North Oconee. Dawson County finished third, and Rabun County rounded out the top four.

Out of roughly 75 runners, Holli Abernathy finished sixth overall with a time of 21:25, Mary Ann Schramke came in tenth at 22:57, Emma Krier took 11th place, coming in at 23:04, and Katy Browning was 12th at 23:07.

Erika Bunpermkoon, Nicole Goldbacher, Sydney Pope, and Erin Grable finish out the Girls Cross Country roster.

The state meet will be held this Saturday at 10:30 A.M. in Carrollton.

Chris Jones takes second straight Region crown

Chris Jones took the indi- vidual title in 8AA in back to back seasons. Jones finished first (out of about 75 runners) with a time of 17:15 and will look for his second state title, his first in Cross Country. Last year Jones took the state championship in Track and Field and could become the first athlete in school history to win a state title in two different sports.

The boys squad finished in a tie for fifth, however, only the top four teams advance to state. After Jones, Beau Kelley finished second on the team and 15th overall with a time of 19:09. Victor Gonzalez was 25th, coming in at 19:30. Right beside Gonzalez was Shane Kelley with a time of 19:31. Luke Kelley was 41st at 20:18, Vincent Thomas finished in 22:11, and Todd Crosky completed the course in 25:32.

East Jackson's squad took the overall title with North Oconee finishing as the runnerup. Oglethorpe County took third and Banks County came in fourth.

Jones will compete in the State Meet this Saturday in Carrollton. Jones will start thirty minutes before the girls at 10:00 A.M.