Houston Middle Girls Cross Country Race to State Championship Victory

The HMS girls cross country team raced their way to the top this season, capturing the TSSAA Cross Country State Championship and cementing their place among the most dominant programs in Tennessee.

Heading into the meet as clear favorites, the Lady Mustangs delivered on every expectation, finishing ahead of powerhouse Woodland Middle out of Brentwood, TN in a decisive team victory. Eighth grader Rhetta Lammi led Houston with a strong seventh-place individual finish and a time of 12:28. Close behind, sixth grader Charlotte Gwantney impressed with a 10th-place finish in her state debut. Piper Olswing (14th), Ryleigh Chester (18th), and Linley Curry (24th) rounded out the team’s top five, securing the points that clinched the championship title.
For Head Coach Scott McNeil, the victory was about so much more than medals. Last year, the Mustangs fell heartbreakingly short when one of their top runners collapsed just 100 meters from the finish due to extreme heat, so this win was about teamwork and perseverance. “It showed that the best team doesn’t always win and that you can’t control everything in cross country,” McNeil said. “At the start of this season, the girls made a goal to go back to that race and win - and they did exactly that.”

Their journey to redemption was marked by dominant performances throughout the fall, including standout showings at Saturday Light Fever, Twilight, the Tupelo Invitational, Sectionals, and Blue Mountain. But for Coach McNeil, the highlight of the season came not on the course, but at a team dinner the night before state. “The team chemistry is phenomenal,” he shared. “Seeing the girls and boys sitting together, eating, talking, and joking, it reminded me why they’re so successful.”

As the team celebrates its state title, the future looks bright. Houston will graduate several talented eighth graders who will strengthen the already dominant program at HHS, while a group of promising sixth and seventh graders are ready to carry on the Mustang legacy at HMS. Congratulations runners!