NATCHEZ — A first place victory for Brad Yarbrough in the Junior Auxiliary 5K race Saturday morning was perhaps the least satisfying victory he’s ever experienced.

That’s because eight minutes before Brad crossed the finish line, his son Hunter Yarbrough finished the race with a dazzling time of 18:15.

“18:15 is the best I’ve ever run,” Hunter said, immediately following the race. “I hope the time’s not messed up.”

Brad crossed the finish line at 26:23.

“I hate to tell on my son, but he ran the wrong way,” Brad said to JA member Lauren Burns.

Without the guidance of a cop car, which usually leads the races, Hunter was confused and missed a left turn onto Martin Luther King Jr. Street. Brad said Hunter had such a commanding lead that he would have won the race had he stayed the course.

“He was so far ahead of me that I couldn’t yell to him to turn,” Brad said.

Hunter was disappointed with the disqualification, but it didn’t compare to the anguish of his father, Brad.

“I can’t enjoy my victory,” Brad said. “Hunter should have won.”

Finishing after Brad was Dianne Hargon at 26:44, Brandon Goussett at 27:35, Shannon Jex at 27:52 and Crystal Isbell at 27:54.

Alen Laird won the 10K race with a time of 47:05, while Don Bates came in second with a 47:11 finish. Beaux Pilgrim came in third with a 47:24, Kristin Foster came in fourth at 47:48 and Beth Pilgrim came in fifth with a 48:51.

Amy Gamberi won the 5K walk with a 33:08 time. Diane Rice came and Aagie Hall came in second with a 53:50 time and Mark McCann finished with a 54:09 time.

Familiar faces raced toward the finish line in the Junior Auxiliary “Fun Run” Saturday morning.

The race came down to last year’s first and second-place winners, as the 2013 defending champion Roger Johnson, 10, ran neck-and-neck with Jonathan Ratcliff, 12.

The last stretch saw Ratcliff run past Johnson and capture first place, while Johnson came in second.

“It was tougher than last year,” Ratcliff said. “I ran harder this year. He stayed with the cop car last year the whole time, but we were running side by side this year.”

Johnson said Ratcliff picked up his speed toward the finish line, and he felt the nerves got to him.

“I was a bit nervous,” Johnson said. “I’ve been running around the house and running around the block to prepare.”

Johnson’s father, Thomas Kato Jackson, who ran track at North Natchez Adams High School, used the last three months to prepare his son physically for the race.

“Basically, I just wanted him to have fun,” Jackson said. “Two years ago, he kept coming up to me going, ‘Daddy, I want to run.’ He never ran a day in his life. He didn’t win, but he came in fifth at 8 years old. Last year, he ran four days before the meet and he won, so I was like this kid has talent.”

Coming in third place in the “Fun Run” was Jonathan’s sister, Rebecca Ratcliff.