Ja’darius Scott tried to keep his college choice a secret.
Entering a lecture hall at New Hope, the senior runner hoped to surprise his teammates, friends and coaches.
But when Blue Mountain College cross country coach Heather Duley entered the room, Scott flashed a wide-mouthed grin.
“I think I know where you’re going,” one student joked toward him.
No matter. Perched in front of the yellow New Hope backdrop, Scott announced his commitment to run track and cross country at Blue Mountain next season.
“Just a new challenge,” he said of what he’s most looking forward to. “Faster people to run with, have other people to compete with and have a new team to build a family with.”
A distance runner by trade, Scott notched personal bests in the mile and two-mile races at the Mississippi High School Activities Association 4A North State Championships with times of 4:53 and 10:59, respectively.
“It was very fun,” he said. “The races were very competitive, close and it was just a great feeling.”
Scott said he expects to run the 10-kilometer in cross country and the 5-kilometer, mile and two mile races in track at the collegiate level.
Duley referred to her incoming freshman class as one filled with leaders from the prep ranks — including Scott.
“We have a group of freshmen who are all leaders on their high school teams and they’re all going to come in and push the runners that we already have,” she said. “And I think they’re going to come in as freshmen and make an impact on the team and help us all get faster as a group.”
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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