Hollifield, Bostrom shine at TSSAA championship meet
Clinton’s Alli Hollifield completed the XC state championship course with a time of 22:34. She was the only Lady Dragons runner to qualify for the meet.
For the first time in recent memory, Clinton was represented in the TSSAA Class A/AA state championships.
Both the Dragons and Lady Dragons had a runner qualify for the meet at Sanders Ferry Park in Hendersonville on Thursday.
Lady Dragons senior Alli Hollifield closed out her high school cross-country career with an 86th-place finish at the state championships, crossing the finish line in 22 minutes, 34 seconds.
For the Dragons, sophomore Cooper Bostrom completed the 5,000-meter course in 19:01.85, placing 142nd.
For Hollifield, her appearance at the state meet marked a positive ending after battling injuries during her sophomore and junior seasons.
Bostrom posted a personal-best time on a course he’d never run before.
“Since I took over the program eight or nine years ago, we’ve never had anybody go to state,” Clinton Coach Tim Kumes said. “Cooper had a personal record that day on a new course for him.
“They both have a great attitude, and I hope they can tell the others on the team how much they enjoyed the experience.”
Kumes praised Hollifield.
“She’s a hard worker,” he said. “She’s had some injuries over the past two seasons, and those probably slowed her development, but she peaked.
“She has a great attitude. I have some young girls on the team, and I hope she’s able to tell them what an enjoyable experience this was. She’s such a great kid.”
The coach also lauded Bostrom, who, despite being a sophomore, has emerged as a team leader for the Dragons.
“Cooper is just a tremendous young man, and if he stays healthy over the next two years, we could really see him do some big things,” Kumes said.