Two Nashville area cross country runners collapse on first day of TSSAA championships

HENDERSONVILLE – A scary scene unfolded at the TSSAA State Cross Country State Championships on Thursday at Sanders Ferry Park.

Down the final straightaway of the DII-AA girls state championship race, defending state champion Lydia Brunner of Father Ryan collapsed and was taken off the course in an ambulance after being tended to by medical personnel.

Brunner was given oxygen by medical staff while they placed ice on her head. She was alert when later stretchered off the course with ice behind her neck. As medical staff attended to Brunner, members of the Father Ryan cross country team circled in prayer, alongside members of the Pope John Paul II team. Messages with Father Ryan school officials requesting an update on Brunner were not immediately available.

Brunner won the DII-AA state cross country championship as a freshman, running a 17:52.93, while her teammate Maggie Slattery finished in second with a 17:59.16.

CPA runner collapses at finish line, given medical attention

It is not uncommon for cross country or long-distance track runners to collapse near the end of races, when exertion and intensity peaks near the finish line. EMS personnel and athletic trainers are stationed at the cross country championship finish line as in years past, and the Hendersonville Fire Department is providing an all-terrain vehicle that can access the running trail for potential emergencies, TSSAA assistant executive director Emily Crowell said.

In the day's second race, the DII-AA boys state championship race, CPA sophomore Nicholas Maddux collapsed upon crossing the finish line and was taken away in an ambulance after receiving medical attention.

Before the ambulance left Sanders Ferry Park, Maddux was speaking and moving on his own, with members of the CPA staff crediting the work of on-site paramedics for their quick response.

Upon crossing the finish line Maddux, the son of former Vanderbilt men's basketball player Drew Maddux, fell into the arms of a staff member who helped carry him away from the crowd of runners crossing the finish line behind him. Maddux then fell to the ground where he quickly received medical attention.

CPA staff asked for prayers for Maddux and his family.

Harrison Campbell covers high school sports for The Daily Herald and The Tennessean. Email him at and follow him on X (formerly Twitter) .