Jablonski Sisters Sweep Top Spots in State

There was a bit of a stir during the AA girls race at the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) State Cross Country Championships this year, as baffled coaches and spectators from across the state asked each other where Monticello was, and why its comparatively low-ranked pair of runners were leading the pack over the grueling hills of the state course.

Jasper County High School (JCHS) athletes went on to sweep the top two spots among 192 AA runners as junior Alina Jablonski finished as runner-up to her sister and freshman Mari Jablonski as she became the new GHSA AA State Cross Country champion in the 5,000 meter run.

The championship races were held last Friday and Saturday in Carrollton with a total of 290 schools from across Georgia sending nearly 3,000 athletes to the event. These runners had qualified through regional competition for a chance to run for a state title in eight divisions.

JCHS competes in the AA division. The varsity girls failed to qualify as a team, finishing fifth at regionals, but the Jablonskis qualified as individual runners by finishing in the top six overall places. They closed the regular season with Mari ranked 7th and Alina ranked 14th in statewide AA, but these rankings can be misleading. The Cane boys failed to qualify as a team as well as any individuals at regionals.

A few rural schools, like JCHS, tend to compete in smaller local races during the regular season, the results from which aren’t allowable for rank consideration because of the races not being officially timed or courses officially verified as true 5000 meter distances by the GHSA.

It came as a surprise to many spectators when Mari and Alina took an early lead and refused to give it up for the entire 5,050 meter race.

The state course is known for being the toughest many teams face all season; it’s longer than a true 5K, even measured on the tangents and the shortest possible route, and its two loops boast three long uphills and two shorter, steeper uphills, one of which is aptly named Separation Slope for its ability to weed out weaker runners.

That terrain was likely the deciding factor in winning this race. The sisters had trained all summer on hills; groundskeepers at JCHS had taken it upon themselves to carve out a hilly path behind the school for runners to practice on. All summer they kept it mowed and about five days a week, the sisters ran mile after mile there to build strength.

Their strategy for the state race was simple: trust their training and go out hard from the beginning in an attempt to wear down competitors who may be faster on flatter courses but unable to recover as efficiently from hills. It worked. After posting the first mile split at 6:25, only five of the 192 runner field remained within 30 meters of the pair. They held on and slowly expanded their lead, with Mari setting the pace and eventually pulling ahead for the win at 21:37.18. Alina finished with a strong second in 21:52.90.

“I am very proud of Mari and Alina,” said head coach Andy Rewis. “They have all the qualities that a coach would want from athletes on their team. They train hard, they are respectful of the coaches and their teammates, and they set good examples on and off the race course.”