MT. BERRY – For the first time in Colquitt County High athletic history, there’s a GHSA championship in running on its way home.

Junior Elizabeth Funderburk won the 2017 Class 7A 3,200-meter run (two-mile) on Thursday at Berry College’s Valhalla Stadium. She ran in 10:46.92 beating West Forsyth’s Liz Galarza’s 10:51.07.

“I felt really good at the beginning,” said Funderburk via telephone after the race. “I started a little faster than I planned. I maintained the pace, and in the last couple of laps I slowed down a little.”

That’s because, she said, there was nobody close to her. Now the proverbial weight is off her shoulders.

“I’ve reached one of my goals,” said Funderburk, who will run for the 1,600-meter title tonight at Berry. “I won’t feel as much pressure, so now I can go out, do my best, and I can hopefully win another one.”