Luke Alverson of James Clemens and John Shoemaker of Oak Mountain both travelled east to Cartersville, GA for the 10th Annual Wingfoot Classic Presented by Publix. The meet has grown in popularity over the last decade and showcased some of the best talent in the southeast. The 2024 addition was no exception as two of Alabama's best went to compete against some of the best in the country. Tommy Latham of Marist and Brady Mullen of Jesuit New Orleans were two of the top competitors that Luke and John hoped to mix it up with.
Early in the race it was Alverson that set the pace and tone as he cruised through the first mile in 4:43. Shoemaker was right in the mix as well as he went through the mile mark in 4:46 sitting in 10th place. By the two mile mark Alverson and Latham had created a small gap of 5 seconds on the rest of the field as they went through the two mile mark in 9:43. Shoemaker of Oak Mountain was in chase as he moved through the mark in 9:49.
By the 3rd mile Latham began to show that his performance at the Southern Showcase was not indicative of his fitness or ability. Latham was able to drop Alverson in the 3rd mile and hold off a late surging Jackson Hogsed of Lambert High School for the 3 second win. Alverson was able to hold onto 3rd place with a very respectable 15:09 finish time, just 13 seconds behind Latham. Shoemaker held his position of 6th that he had established by the 2nd mile and cruised in with a 15:19.