2022 NCHSAA 1A Men’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | South Stanly Men win three-way tiebreaker over Christ the King & Cherokee
KERNERSVILLE, NC – The Ivey Redmon Complex saw one of the closest finishes in the history of the NCHSAA’s Cross Country State Championships at the facility in the 1A Team Championship. South Stanly won a three-way tiebreaker over Christ the King & Cherokee after all three teams finished the race with 77 points each for their top five runners. South Stanly’s sophomore Eli Thompson likely had no idea how important his trip across the line would be for his team, as the team’s sixth place runner.
However, when Eli Thompson crossed in 19:39.53 in 60th place overall and the 46th runner in the team competition, he was just six seconds ahead of the sixth runner from Cherokee, Ayden Thompson, which gave the Bulls the upper-hand in the sixth-runner tiebreaker. The win gives South Stanly their first State Championship in Men’s Cross Country.
Freshman O’Malley Salinas from Andrews rolled to victory, winning by nearly 15 seconds as he crossed the line in 16:46.83 ahead of second-place Blake Nicholson from Christ the King who came home in 17:01.60. Salinas becomes the first runner from Andrews to win an individual State Championship.
Christ the King, though tied with Cherokee and South Stanly with 77 points, finished third with their sixth runner, Mason Roberts, finishing in 21:34.22. The Crusaders top three were impressive though, as Nicholson finished second overall and senior teammate Logan Ades came in fourth overall at 17:21.12. Senior Joseph Locke crossed in 17:31.91 and eighth overall for the Crusaders, helping them to the best average time in the 1A Men’s Race as they posted a team average of 18:00.31.
South Stanly was led by Joshawa Huneycutt who placed sixth in the individual race. The junior, Huneycutt, finished in 17:22.81. The Bulls averaged 18:11.15 as Ranfere Garcia and Davis Wright ran together to finish in 12th and 13th overall for the Bulls, helping them into the three-way tie.
2022 NCHSAA 1A Women’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | Swain County wins second straight team title as Cherokee’s Swimmer shines
KERNERSVILLE, NC – Dvdaya Swimmer, a freshman from Cherokee, cruised to victory by over 36 seconds, crossing the line in 20:08.32 to win the Braves first individual state championship in program history. Swimmer outpaced a pair of runners from Swain County, Amaya Hicks and Annie Lewis, who crossed in 20:45.01 and 20:54.13 respectively, helping the Maroon Devils to a dominating 59-114 margin over Eno River Academy and the Devils second straight team title.
The Maroon Devils averaged 21:58.51 as all five of Swain County’s runners finished in the top 42 of the individual race, and the top 30 of the team competition. Gracie Monteith was the third-best finisher for Swain, crossing in 10th place and 21:37.61. Marden Harvey, another freshman, raced to a 28th place spot in 23:00.76 while fellow freshman Angelina Lomelli crossed in 42nd at 23:35.00.
2022 NCHSAA 2A Men’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | Owen picks up fifth State Championship as Anstrom earns Seaforth’s first individual championship
KERNERSVILLE, NC – Sophomore Jack Anstrom strided in ahead of Andrew Parker from NC School of Science and Math to win the first State Championship for Seaforth High School in the school’s young history. Anstrom ripped the tape in 16:15.43 just ahead of Parker who crossed in 16:17.67.
The Warhorses from Owen won the school’s first team state championship since 2008. Owen runners combined to edge Lincoln Charter 83-91 on the strength of their top two finishers. Elijah Jones, a senior for Owen, finished third overall, ending his cross country career in 16:19.20 on the Kernersville Course. Fellow Warhorses senior Jaheem O’Hara finished 8th overall with a time of 17:00.91.
2022 NCHSAA 2A Women’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | NCSSM smashes past Brevard as Lincolnton’s Katherine Hopkins rolls to title
KERNERSVILLE, NC – For the second straight year, the Unicorn runners from the NC School of Science and Mathematics collected a team state championship at Ivey Redmon Complex. The Unicorns outscored Brevard 64-130, leaving no doubt about their team title with junior Anika Raburn leading the way for NCSSM as she finished second overall in 20:19.18.
Raburn was only bested by Lincolnton senior Katherine Hopkins. Hopkins was dominant in her run, clipping the tape in 19:20.05, almost a full minute in front of the rest of the field. Hopkins becomes the first Lincolnton runner, male or female, to win an individual Cross Country State Championship.
NCSSM’s remaining scoring runners included Lily Scarlett who finished 14th overall in 21:25.31 as her teammate Raina Martens checked in just behind her at 21:25.60. Another NCSSM pair clocked in side-by-side as Emberleigh Pauley-Brown out-sprinted teammate Lynda Rios to the line in 31st and 32nd respectively at 22:09.59 and 22:14.43.
2022 NCHSAA 3A Men’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | Croatan nips North Lincoln for team honors as Orange’s Schmid shines
KERNERSVILLE, NC – Gabriel Schmid led the way for the 3A Men’s Race. The junior from Orange outlegged North Lincoln’s Stephen Fernetti to the line, winning the individual 3A State Championship with a time of 15:44.28. Schmid’s victory was the third individual State Championship in the history of Orange High’s Cross Country program. He becomes just the second runner to win a title at Orange, joining two-time winner Bradsher Wilkins, who won in 1997 and 1998, as the only other runner with the individual State Champion distinction.
Croatan runners ran together and managed to push one another to the program’s first team State Championship. Senior James Wallace was the top finisher for Croatan, clocking in at 11th overall in 16:55.79 with junior teammate Tyrese Cone right on his heels in 12th at 16:56.10. North Lincoln’s Fernetti crossed in 16:00.64, leading North Lincoln to a second-place finish in the team competition. North Lincoln had a slightly better average time than Croatan, as the Knights were just a tenth of a second faster on average, but the Cougars clipped them on placement points 143-149.
2022 NCHSAA 3A Women’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | North Lincoln wins their third straight as Pate leads the Knights to another title
KERNERSVILLE, NC – Macy Pate became just the second female to win an individual Cross Country State Championship from North Lincoln, crossing the line in 18:58.80 to win the 3A State Championship over second-place Noelle Houlihan from West Henderson. Pate joins two-time individual champion, Angie Allen, as the only other North Lincoln females to win an individual championship.
The North Lincoln women won their third straight team State Championship as they outscored West Henderson 50-68. The Knights averaged almost 15 seconds better than West Henderson, posting an average time of 19:58.19 for the afternoon. Bella Wood joined Parks as a top-ten finisher for North Lincoln, placing fifth overall and crossing in 19:30.72. Bella Green and Olivia Ferraro finished 13th and 14th respectively for North, crossing in 20:13.80 and 20:18.27.
2022 NCHSAA 4A Men’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | Pinecrest’s Gilbertson nips Townshend as Green Hope wins program’s third team title
KERNERSVILLE, NC – Pinecrest’s Zack Gilbertson edged Weddington’s Caden Townshend by just over two seconds to claim the Patriots first individual State Championship in Men’s Cross Country since Jeff Moody won back-to-back individual titles for Pinecrest in 1973 and 1974. Gilbertson outkicked Townshend to cross the line in 15:28.67.
Green Hope edged Charlotte Catholic 124-166 in the team count, winning the Falcons third Men’s Cross Country State Championship. It was the Falcons first team title since 2017. Senior Gavin Hansen led the way for Green Hope, finishing third overall in a time of 15:40.70. Luke Young was the second highest finishing Falcon on the day, crossing the line in 16:21.24 and 21st place. Fellow Senior Liam Young was not far behind in 25th as he finished the course in 16:22.58.
2022 NCHSAA 4A Women’s Cross Country State Championship Recap | Cuthbertson makes it five in a row as Kermes rolls to school’s third individual crown
KERNERSVILLE, NC – Cuthbertson’s women’s team blasted their way to a fifth straight State Championship, outscoring Cardinal Gibbons 32-81. The Cavaliers’ 32 is the lowest team score in a 4A Race since Green Hope’s 34 in 2010. The 1984 Chapel Hill score of 28 still stands as the lowest team score in a 4A Women’s Race. Stella Kermes capped her junior season with an individual State Championship, clipping the tape in 17:40.94. She outdueled Myers Park’s Mary Bonner Dalton who finished second with a time of 17:44.41.
Cuthbertson also got top ten finishes from Charlotte Bell, Justine Preisano and Alyssa Preisano. Bell finished in fifth, posting a time of 18:24.23. Justine Preisano was just behind her in sixth at 18:31.36. Her older sister, Alyssa Preisano, came in ninth posting a time of 18:33.08.
