By BAKER ELLIS / Sports Editor

Shelby County runners across all high school grades are among the top runners in the state through four weeks of the cross-country season in their respective grades. Cole Stidfole of Oak Mountain and Mary Grace Strozier of Pelham are among the state’s fastest regardless of age or classification as well.

Nicole Payne of Oak Mountain is the fastest freshman girl through the first month of the season, her time of 19:27.47 at the Chickasaw Trails Invitational is the fourth-fastest time run by a freshman girl in the state this year and the 19^th-fastest time in the state overall. Katie Strozier, a freshman at Pelham and younger sister to senior Mary Grace, ran a 20:53.14 at the Scottsboro Invitational, which is the 25^th-fastest time run by a freshman girl this year.

Brandon DeMarcus Lee of Thompson ran a 17:31.42 at Chickasaw Trails, good enough for 11^th-fastest for freshman boys so far. Jacob Warner of Spain Park ran a 17:46.05 at the same meet, which is the 14^th-fastest time for freshman boys this season while Bryce Keefover and Jonah Barrett, both of Oak Mountain, have run a 18:01.61 and a 18:12.78 this season, good for 19^th and 25^th-best in the freshman class.

Sarah Kate Lipperd of the Westminster School at Oak Mountain is currently the fastest sophomore girl in the county. Her time of 20:41.43 at the Chickasaw Trails Invitational is the 18^th-fastest time run this season by a sophomore girl. Her male counterpart is Cole Dillard from Spain Park, who ran a 17:27.35 at Chickasaw Trails, good for 11^th-best among sophomore boys. Blake Vaughn of Helena has been clocked at a 17:43.48 this season, good for 19^th-best among his classmates while Morgan Becker of Spain Park has run a 17:49.37, good for 25^th-best.

Isabel Caddo, a junior from Spain Park, currently has the third quickest time among juniors with a 19:20.84, good enough for 13^th-fastest overall in the state to date, while Maddie Hoaglund of the Westminster School at Oak Mountain has finished at 20:17.57, good enough for 12^th-best among junior girls.

Oak Mountain boys pepper the top 25 fastest junior boys times through four weeks. Stidfole has the fastest time in the state not only among juniors but overall in the state at 15:49.81. Caleb Van Geffen ran a 16:26.36 at Chickasaw Trails, good enough for 11^th-best in the class and Chris Tate has finished in 17:07.28, which is the 25^th-fastest time among juniors.

The older Strozier sister, Mary Grace, has the second-fastest time for senior girls and the third-fastest time in the state to date with an 18:39.82. Besides Strozier there are three seniors from Spain Park all on the girls’ leaderboard. Sarah Sims McGrath has been clocked at a 19:12.34, good for fourth among seniors, while teammate Zoe Shore is right behind her at 19:23.73, which is the sixth-fastest time to date. Emily DiMercurio is not far behind her two teammates either, as her time of 20:26.69 is the 16^th-fastest time for senior girls to date.

Oak Mountain’s Sean Drummond is the top and only senior boy to have clocked a time in the top 25 of his class to date with a time of 16:36.27, good enough for ninth-best among seniors.

The 20 runners spread throughout the different top-25’s to date represent the depth of talented runners spread throughout the county.