Jacob Benton and MariGrace Garcia-Simmons rejoice in wins at the Rejoice Run

Because Donalsonville, Georgia is a relatively small town, there are many oppotunities to run a road race there. Nevertheless, since 2007, the Rejoice Run 5K has been giving athletes an annual chance to race on the streets of Donalsonville. Such a chance was Saturday morning, 19 October 2024--the date of the seventeenth Rejoice Run 5K. Jacob Benton of Winter Springs, Florida won the race, going 19:27. MariGrace Garcia-Simmons, took the women's title, placing second overall in 21:10.


James Thompson, a sophomore on the Southwest Georgia Academy cross-country team, took second in the men's standings, coming in third overall in 22:01. Another schoolboy harrier, Whigham Middle School eighth-grader Houston Sanders, was the third man and fourth overall in 22:41. Rod Middleton of Fairhope, Alabama was the first master runner in the race, the fifth man and sixth overall in 23:56.


For MariGrace Garcia-Simmons, a sophomore member of the Southwest Georgia Academy cross-country team, it was her second year in a row of winning the Rejoice Run. It was also the fourth year in a row that a Southwest Georgia Academy harrier had won the women's division in Donalsonville; SWGA athlete Emmalee Johnson had started that streak by taking the titles in 2021 and 2022.


Iron City, Georgia athlete Mary Hunt was the first woman master in the Rejoice Run and the second female finisher, twelfth overall in 25:56. Hunt had been the first woman in the race in 2018. A few steps behind Hunt, Crystal Sekula of Bainbridge, Georgia took third in the women's standings, placing thirteenth overall in 26:01.


56 athletes finished the 2024 Rejoice Run 5K.


Top Ten Men, 2024 Rejoice Run 5K

1. 19:26.50, Jacob Benton (M, 38) Winter Springs, FL
2. 22:00.15, James Thompson (M, 15) Blakely, GA
3. 22:40.32, Houston Sanders (M, 13) Cairo, GA
4. 23:10.94, Owen Hunt (M, 14) Iron City, GA
5. 23:55.32, Rod Middleton (M, 60) Fairhope, AL
6. 24:09.83, Harold Benton (M, 67) Leesburg, GA
7. 24:41.37, Craig Lenz (M, 45) Donalsonville, GA
8. 25:18.13, Dexter Lewis (M, 37) Bainbridge, GA
9. 25:22.10, Heath Sanders (M, 48) Cairo, GA
10. 25:33.35, Tracy Harrison (M, 47) Whigham, GA

Top Ten Women, 2024 Rejoice Run 5K

1. 21:09.10, Marigrace Garcia-Simmons (F, 15) Cuthbert, GA
2. 25:55.22, Mary Hunt (F, 44) Iron City, GA
3. 26:00.74, Crystal Sekula (F, 37) Bainbridge, GA
4. 27:47.64, Carolyn Middleton (F, 55) Fairhope, AL
5. 28:03.43, Ashley Shingler (F, 42) Donalsonville, GA
6. 28:28.40, K. Smith (F, 12) Donalsonville, GA
7. 28:42.98, Traci Hall (F, 46) Bainbridge, GA
8. 28:55.05, Hillary Roberts (F, 17) Donalsonville, GA
9. 28:56.24, Alison Whitfield (F, 49) Bainbridge, GA
10. 28:59.35, Rebecca Neely (F, 37) Donalsonville, GA

Rejoice Run 5K winners, 2007 - 2024
Date	Men	Women	Finishers
20 October 2007	18:50 Myles Gibson	26:18 Deborah Ansley	33
18 October 2008	16:33 Jessie Close	23:15 Erika Pemberton	52
17 October 2009	18:20 Alex Close	22:20 Debbie Wittmer	59
16 October 2010	16:53 Jessie Close	22:14 Debbie Wittmer	59
15 October 2011	18:10 Myles Gibson	25:10 Ashley Merritt	67
20 October 2012	20:03, Mark McCarra	21:49, Debbie Witmer	110
19 October 2013	18:51, Davey Reynolds	22:21, Margaret Winkler	132
18 October 2014	16:53, Ben Pleak	22:16, Margaret Winkler	129
17 October 2015	17:51, Dustin Reynolds	21:20, Macy Williams	152
15 October 2016	16:57, Dustin Reynolds	22:54, Masey Tabb	143
21 October 2017	18:40, Tanner Norman	22:48, Masey Tabb	97
29 December 2018	18:25, Dustin Reynolds	24:31, Mary Hunt	49
19 December 2019	19:12, Myles Gibson	24:49, Macy Batchelor	49
17 October 2020	Replaced by virtual run
16 October 2021	23:40, Brody Enfinger	24:30, Emmalee Johnson	46
15 October 2022	18:08, Walter Elrod	23:11, Emmalee Johnson	59
21 October 2023	20:29, Christian Freeman	23:44, MariGrace Garcia-Simmons	54
19 October 2024	19:27, Jacob Benton	21:10, Marigrace Garcia-Simmons	56

Links

• Complete results of the 2024 Rejoice Run 5K
  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vSRahkYqMqRCSFXQmf3B6sY-yrpLaxhaSCHA7Oc5syFySP1CXb1SlPzWUmc1S4YNvmAS_25ewsFyXC0/pubhtml
  
  
• 2023 story, “Christian Freeman and MariGrace Garcia-Simmons race to a high school sweep of the Rejoice Run”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2023/10/joyces-jog-2023.html
  
  
• 2022 story, “Academy harriers Walker Elrod and Emmalee Johnson rule the Rejoice Run”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2022/10/joyces-jog-2022.html
  
  
• 2019 story, “Nestor couldn't stop Myles Gibson, Macy Batchelor, or the Rejoice Run”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2019/10/joyces-jog-2019.html
  
  
• 2018 story, “Dustin Reynolds and Mary Hunt had the lead roles when the curtain closed on Joyce's Jog”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2018/12/joyces-jog-2018.html
  
  
• 2017 story, “High school cross-country standouts Norman and Tabb win Joyce's Jog”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2017/10/joyces-jog-2017.html
  
  
• 2016 story, “Dustin Reynolds goes 16:57 to get his second Joyce's Jog 5K title”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2016/10/joyces-jog-2016.html
  
  
• 2015 story, “Reynolds and Williams lead the youth brigade at Joyce's Jog”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2015/10/joyces-jog-2015.html
  
  
• 2010 story, “Close and Wittmer run away with Joyce's Jog”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/10/joyces-jog-2010.html
  
  
• Upcoming jogs, runs, and races in Donalsonville and elsewhere in the Tallahassee region
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/search/label/calendar?max-results=1
  
  

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