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GPS Claims State Cross Country Title
State championship meet marks first win of the season for Bruiser runners
The GPS Cross Country team waited to post its first win of the season when it mattered most, winning the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association Division II Class AA competition this Saturday in Nashville, Tennessee.
GPS bested second place Brentwood Academy by six points, amassing 63 points for the overall state win. Local rival Baylor finished fourth. Leading the way to the win was second-place finisher senior Carley Braman (20:07.62) and freshman Jane Eiselstein placed fourth (20:39.52). Junior Myra Brock (21:12.56) finished 10th and eighth-grader Emmy Richey (22:15.80) placed 20th.
During today’s Chapel, after a congratulatory introduction by Athletic Director Jay Watts, Varsity Head Coach Jeff Gaither takes the stage to share his reaction to the win. “I’ve been coaching for 31 years and this was the biggest surprise in all my years of coaching—and it was the best surprise,” says Gaither, to loud cheers from the crowd of students and faculty.
The entire team then joins Gaither on the stage along with Gina Wells, assistant coach. After Gaither says a few more remarks about their win, Braman hands the team trophy over to Head of School Dr. Autumn Graves.
The entire team then joins Gaither on the stage along with Gina Wells, assistant coach. After Gaither says a few more remarks about their win, Braman hands the team trophy over to Head of School Dr. Autumn Graves.
Gaither later says that he’s most happy for the team’s lead senior, Carley Braman, who was deemed All-State for the fourth year in a row. “Her state meet finishes have been seventh, fourth, third, and then second this year,” Gaither says. “I know she would have liked to have won, but the excitement she had when we learned the team had won showed that the team win meant more to her than an individual win.”
Gaither also sees the far-reaching effects of the state championship. “The memory of Saturday's result will stay with these girls,” he says. “More importantly, it will bind them together—the three seniors and the two eighth graders and those in between—for a long time.”
The Bruisers were runners-up to the state title in 2014 and 2016.
