Get ready for another year of middle school cross country, Tallahassee!

The 2014 middle school cross-country season for Leon County Schools is set. Unlike recent years, there will be five meets instead of four. Here's what is on the menu:

Leon County Schools 2014 Middle School Cross-Country Schedule
Date	Time	Meet	Venue
September 3 Wednesday	6:00 PM Girls 6:30 PM Boys	Fort Braden Run	Fort Braden Park
September 10 Wednesday	6:00 PM Girls 6:30 PM Boys	Mustang Invitational	Montford Middle School
September 18 Thursday	10:45 AM Girls 11:15 AM Boys	Everhart Invitational	Gretchen Everhart School
September 24 Wednesday	6:00 PM Girls 6:30 PM Boys	Swift Creek Invitational	Alford Greenway
October 1 Wednesday	6:00 PM Girls 6:30 PM Boys	LCS Championship	Apalachee Regional Park

Even before 2012, when Tallahassee first got the nod to host the FHSAA High School Cross-Country Championships, the Capital City had become a bastion of cross-country running. The middle school program has been an important part of that. Since 2007 six athletes from Tallahassee high schools have won nine state cross country titles: Joe Franklin (2007), Matt Mizereck (2007, 2008, 2009), Patrick Swain (2009), Carly Thomas (2009), Rachel Givens (2012), Sukhi Khosla (2013). Of those six, four of those athletes ran middle school cross country in Leon County Schools. A fifth, Patrick Swain, raced for Maclay School during his middle school years. Tallahassee high schools also claimed six team titles during those same years; each of those squads was heavy with former middle school runners. Middle school experience may not be essential to later success, but it certainly doesn't seem to hurt.


The public middle schools end their season with the championship meet on October 1, but the harriers at Holy Comforter Episcopal School will still be racing. On Thursday, October 23, HCES will host their annual Crusader Classic Cross-Country Meet on Lawson's Course, a beautiful venue behind the school. The Crusader Classic races are 3K, in contrast to the Leon County Schools races which are two miles. It's all cross country.


Those are the dedicated middle school meets, but there will also be middle school races at other meets in the area, including the Cougar Cross-Country Challenge on September 6 and the Quail Trail Invitational south of Thomasville, Georgia, on September 27.


Links

• Distance Prep's Northwest Florida Report on the upcoming middle school cross country season
  http://www.distancepreps.com/gprofile.php?mgroup_id=31488&do=news&news_id=268690
  
  
• The 2013 LCS middle school cross-country season on Trouble Afoot!
  
  • Fort Braden Run: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2013/09/fort-braden-2013.html
    
  • Mustang Meet: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2013/09/mustang-2013.html
    
  • Everhart Invitational: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2013/09/owl-run-2013.html
    
  • Championship: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2013/10/lcs-champs-2013.html
    
  
  
• The 2012 LCS middle school cross-country season on Trouble Afoot!
  
  • Battle at Tom Brown: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/09/battle-2012.html
    
  • Fort Braden Run: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/09/fort-braden-2012.html
    
  • Everhart Invitational: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/09/owl-run-2012.html
    
  • Championship: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/09/lcs-champs-2012.html
    
  
  
• The 2011 LCS middle school cross-country season on Trouble Afoot!
  
  • Fort Braden Run: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2011/09/fort-braden-2011.html
    
  • Everhart Invitational: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2011/09/owl-run-2011.html
    
  • Championship (boys): http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2011/09/lcs-ms-boys-2011.html
    
  • Championship (girls): http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2011/09/lcs-ms-girls-2011.html
    
  
  
• The 2010 LCS middle school cross-country season on Trouble Afoot!
  
  • Battle at Tom Brown: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/09/battle-2010.html
    
  • Fort Braden Run: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/09/ft-braden-xc-2010.html
    
  • Everhart Invitational: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/09/owl-run-2010.html
    
  • Championship: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/10/lcs-champs-2010.html
    
  
  
• 2009 LCS middle school cross country coverage on Trouble Afoot!
  
  • Everhart Invitational: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2009/10/zimmerman-and-williams-winners-at-owl.html
    
  
  
• The HCES Crusader Cross-Country Classic on Trouble Afoot!
  
  • 2013: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2013/09/crusaders-2013.html
    
  • 2012: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/10/crusaders-2-2012.html
    
  • 2012: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/09/crusaders-2012.html
    
  • 2009: http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2009/10/poole-bartlett-victorious-at-holy.html
    
  
  
• More races in the region, cross country and otherwise
  http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/search/label/calendar?max-results=1
  
  

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