Athletics News

Evan Prince ranked fifth in state heading into 2020 opener

Georgia Milesplit, a site devoted to covering cross county and track and field across the nation, recently named their Top 100 returning runners for both boys and girls across all classifications.

For Class 1A Private, in which Tallulah Falls School resides, junior harrier Evan Prince was ranked as the fifth-best runner in the state. He is looking to crush his personal record time of 16:14 this season. Prince wasn't the only TFS student-athlete to earn recognition.

Teammate and senior Grey Bourlet was ranked 68th, and has a personal best time of 18:40 to his credit. On the girls' side, front-runner Lucy Alexander, a junior, is ranked 59th. She has ran a personal best 22:15.

"Though experienced, mature, highly competitive and exceptionally motivated, Prince is a late-blooming runner whose goals are his gears, whose character compels his approach to everything and whose dreams focus on his team as well as passionately pursuing a purpose so unlike most his age," says coach Scott Neal.

"Fierce, focused and fit, Evan has already served his team and school in multiple behind the scenes ways: whether painting circuit training equipment, course signs, and awards stands or other unsolicited chores, Evan jumps right in without being asked. When he is not good at an exercise, he relentlessly hunts it down and tames it. That process of strengthening weaknesses, of creating deep, intrinsic fortitude, of being proactive really sets Evan as different, in every positive sense of the word. He has the respect of his team, leads by example and continually takes initiative. He is, as one book proclaims, a 'Go Getter.' He is unmotivated by glamor, medals or popularity, yet strives to strengthen relationships, push himself with relentless effort and stand — or in his case — run alone if necessary."

Prince, who finished third in area last season as a sophomore and fifth at the state meet, came in the top five in all nine events he competed in in 2019.