Running Shorts

NCHSAA cross country state championships: Mount Tabor boys chase another title

Eddie Wooten -

Take away your No. 1 runner because of injury. Saddle another runner that you're counting on to score points with the flu and a nagging injury.

And still win a regional championship?

Mount Tabor's boys cross country team did just that a week ago in the Class 4-A Midwest Regional, and now it will try to repeat as state champion Saturday in the N.C. High School Athletic Association meet in Kernersville.

"We're not going in at full strength," Spartans coach Patrick Cromwell says, "but we're going in at full heart and hope."

The team lost its top runner, senior Andrew Burrell, to a quad strain in early October. He continued to experience pain during a run on Saturday and won't compete in the state meet, where he turned in a key performance in November 2021.

But senior Jeremy Kern, who missed the regional with the aforementioned flu and nagging injury, will be back.

"He's going in, regardless," Cromwell says, with a laugh.

Their absences created opportunities for others to take leading roles. Georgia-bound senior Conner Inman, moving into the top position, has done that. And sophomore Andrew Riley, senior Connor Riley and senior Luke Armentrout picked off runners in the regional race's final stages to help the Spartans edge Waxhaw Marvin Ridge by three points.

"They delivered," Cromwell says.

The boys program – the girls team will compete Saturday as well – has won state championships in three of the last seven seasons, five overall, and is in the NCHSAA's championship race for the 37th straight year.

Cromwell considers Cary Green Hope and Raleigh Broughton favorites but says the race at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex will be there for the taking.

"If we have a strong day, and we know that course better than everybody, and somebody falters, I think we're gonna be right there," Cromwell says. "We're going to win it. We're not going to run conservative. We're going to take it out and be in it."

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Guide to the state championships

Kernersville will host boys and girls state cross country championships in all four N.C. High School Athletic Association classifications Saturday. What you need to know:

Site

Ivey Redmon Sports Complex

788 Beeson Road, Kernersville

Schedule

Saturday's races

9 a.m.: Class 2-A boys

9:40 a.m.: Class 4-A boys

10:20 a.m.: Class 2-A girls

11 a.m.: Class 4-A girls

2 p.m.: Class 1-A boys

2:40 p.m.: Class 3-A boys

3:20 p.m.: Class 1-A girls

4 p.m.: Class 3-A girls

Admission

$10, includes parking

Click here to buy tickets for the morning session

Click here to buy tickets for the afternoon session

Who qualified?

The top 25 percent of teams in a regional or the top four, whichever was greater, advanced. The top seven individual not on a qualifying team also advanced. A wrapup of regional races can be found below.

How they score

The five fastest individuals on each team will be scored to determine team points.

Teams and individuals to watch

• The Mount Tabor boys, who won the Class 4-A Midwest Regional, won the state championship last season.

• The Atkins boys won the Class 3-A Midwest Regional, led by fifth-place Will Downs and eighth-place Jake Cartagena. Atkins, coached by Alicia Clement, is in its second athletics year of competing in Class 3-A, and this team finished 12th in the state meet in 2021. The Atkins girls, coached by Bill Cason, are in the Class 3-A state meet for the first time.

• Reynolds' Chandler Welsh won the Class 4-A Midwest Regional girls race.

• The Bishop McGuinness girls won the Class 1-A Midwest Regional, with fourth-place finisher Claire Sullivan leading the Villains.

Regional roundup

The qualifiers from the Triad and nearby from NCHSAA regionals held Saturday. The -x denotes finishers qualifying for the state meet as individuals.

BOYS

Class 4-A Midwest

At Ivey Redmon Sports Complex, Kernersville

Area teams advancing

1. Mount Tabor

6. Reagan

7. West Forsyth

Top area finishers

3. Tate Shore, Reagan, 15:59.98

4. Conner Inman, Mount Tabor, 16:01.87

6. Wesley Haggstrom, West Forsyth, 16:13.16

7. Luke Armentrout, Mount Tabor, 16:20.79

9. Jonah Mussomeli, Mount Tabor, 16:23.74

x-12. Cedar Nichols-Barnhart, Reynolds, 16:35.96

x-13. Jacob Barrow, Grimsley, 16:39.21

x-24. Thomas Essic, Davie County, 16:54.24

x-26. Owen Sulecki, Davie County, 16:56.04

Other Mount Tabor scorers

16. Connor Riley, 16:41.66

21. Andrew Riley, 16:49.03

Other Reagan scorers

30.  Blake Farmer, 16:59.20

34. Brennan Kaplan, 17:08.75

54. Charles Jones, 17:33.50

65. Ian Gates, 17:42.31

Other West Forsyth scorers

15. Connor Haldeman, 16:41.43

43. Gunnar Douglass, 17:22.25

56. Wyatt Stephens, 17:36.30

71. Owen Newsom, 17:51.21

73. Colby Groce, 17:52.32

Class 3-A Midwest

At Ivey Redmon Sports Complex, Kernersville

Area teams advancing

1. Atkins

5. Oak Grove

Top area finishers

x-3. Nicholas Epps, Southern Guilford, 16:43.58

5. Will Downs, Atkins, 17:02.88

8. Jake Cartagena, Atkins, 17:16.85

10. Hunter Creech, Oak Grove, 17:20.26

x-18. Grayson Byrd, North Davidson, 18:08.49

Other Atkins scorers

18. Christopher Allen, 18:05.83

20. Max Mason, 18:17.02

30. William Whittington, 18:50.32

Class 3-A Mideast

At WakeMed Soccer Complex, Cary

Top area finisher

x-21. Henri Lanzoni, Burlington Williams, 17:42.00

Class 2-A Midwest

At Fisher River Park, Dobson

Area teams advancing

1. West Stokes

3. East Davidson

Top area finishers

x-1. Ignacio Morales, Surry Central, 16:37.93

x-3. Zach Hazelwood, Wheatmore, 17:02.86

4. Greg Grasso, West Stokes, 17:04.32

9. Zeb Mathis, West Stokes, 17:31.24

x-10. Robert Burton, Providence Grove, 17:35.03

x-14. Miguel Vega, North Surry, 18:09.56

x-15. Kaden Pratt, McMichael, 18:16.20

x-17. Jose Pina-Velasquez, Forbush, 18:27.74

Class 1-A Midwest

At Ivey Redmon Sports Complex, Kernersville

Area teams advancing

2. South Davidson

4. Cornerstone Charter

Top area finishers

x-3. Arrington Culbertson, Bishop McGuinness, 17:24:46.

7. Ethan Byerly, South Davidson, 17:47.62.

8. Jackson Wilde, South Davidson, 18:06.71

9. Christopher Villegas, South Davidson, 18:20.79

x-10. Caden Ratcliff, Mount Airy, 18:24.54

x-11. Alessandro Lopez-Morales, Bishop McGuinness, 18:28.55

x-12. Connor Ball, Elkin, 18:29.8

GIRLS

Class 4-A Midwest

At Ivey Redmon Sports Complex, Kernersville

4. Mount Tabor

5. West Forsyth

6. Reynolds

Top area finishers

1. Chandler Welsh, Reynolds, 17:52.90

6. Joiner Evans, Mount Tabor, 18:29.65

x-9. Allie Kinlaw, Page, 18:35.98

x-13. Sarah Fassinger, Reagan, 18:58.85

x-23. Logan Ehrhardt, Southeast Guilford, 19:50.99

x-24. Drew Mascia, Grimsley, 19:51.76

Other Mount Tabor scorers

16. Katie McFerrin, 19:30.05

19. Eliza Brand, 19:37.93

46. Maggie Whitworth, 20:58.75

48. Hannah Riley, 21:05.17

West Forsyth scorers

14. Lulu Serang, 19:21.65

22. Abby Reutinger, 19:49.53

28. Tenley Douglass, 20:05.48

32. Sophie Cowart, 20:13.17

43. Lillian Douglass, 20:53.88

Other Reynolds scorers

21. Caroline Echols, 19:42.10

44. Mary Grace Iauco, 20:53.97

51. Katy Cox, 21:12.92

64. Nina Howards, 21:47.99

Class 3-A Midwest

At Ivey Redmon Sports Complex, Kernersville

Area teams advancing

2. Atkins

3. Central Davidson

4. Oak Grove

Top area finishers

2. Jillian Parks, Central Davidson, 19:28.19

4. Caroline Downs, Atkins, 20:51.61

Other Atkins scorers

17. Paige Kiesling, 22:32.06

25. Taylor Shen, 23:02.19

27. Ellie Scott, 23:28.56

43. Kristina Frischholz, 24:20.56

Class 3-A Mideast

At WakeMed Soccer Complex, Cary

Area teams advancing

4. Eastern Alamance

Top area finisher

3. Catherine Parker, Eastern Alamance, 20:28.15

Class 2-A Midwest

At Fisher River Park, Dobson

Area teams advancing

1. East Davidson

4. Providence Grove

Top area finishers

2. Erin Gardner, East Davidson, 20:28.69

3. Grace Prevette, East Davidson, 20:40.04

4. Fatima Cepeda, East Davidson, 20:57.68

x-6. Cynthia Chaire, North Surry, 21:23.30

x-7. Addison Goins, East Surry, 21:24.01

x-12. Maggie DeRemer, West Davidson, 22:00.67

x-19. Aubrey Simmons, McMichael, 22:46.10

x-23. Marley Gouker, West Davidson, 23:01.57

x-24. Katie Furno, Forbush, 23:02.55

Class 1-A Midwest

At Ivey Redmon Sports Complex, Kernersville

Area teams advancing

1. Bishop McGuinness

3. Cornerstone Charter

Top finishers

x-1. Brecken Snotherly, Eastern Randolph, 20:42.06

4. Claire Sullivan, Bishop McGuinness, 21:31.62

x-5. Brooke Haynes, Mount Airy, 22:00.65

x-6. Ragan Speer, Elkin, 22:17.10

x-8. Emilee Corn, Mount Airy, 22:25.74

9. Hailey Titus, Cornerstone Charter, 22:28.21

10. Sofia Walter, Bishop McGuinness, 22;40.24

x-16. Hayley Fultz, South Stokes, 23:31.26