By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Watauga’s district middle school athletic teams are known as the Wolverines and in both the boys and girls races of the Clash of the Classes, the Wolverines chewed up the competition, at least figuratively.
The Middle School Girls race got things going as the first event, with the starter’s gun going off about as close to 9 a.m. sharp as one my hope with 28 total teams and a few unattached racers among the 773 student athletes registered for the 10 events.
Twenty of the competitors were wearing the Watauga colors among the almost 40 entrants in the Middle School Girls division. A young local star may have emerged in the person of Kate James Moore, still just a seventh grader, who finished the 2-mile course in 13:42.72 to capture the No. 1 title, roughly 38 seconds ahead of Watauga eighth graders Sophia Stull (No. 2, 14:19.42) and Ayla Tunstill (No. 3, 14:26.16).
In the Middle School Boys division, Watauga’s Jonah Pearson ran away from the field to finish No. 1 (12:14.17). Teammate Sean Rea, an eighth grader like Pearson, gave the Wolverines a 1-2 punch as the No. 2 (12:48.37). Keeping it local, Grace Academy of Boone’s Evan Gordon, a seventh grader, surprised the rest of the field as the No. 3 (12:55.51), and sixth grade brother Brandon Gordon finished as the No. 8 harrier in the field of 53 student athletes.
Top Middle School Boys Finishers
1 759 Pearson, Jonah 8 Watauga Middle 12:14.17 1
2 761 Rea, Sean 8 Watauga Middle 12:48.37 2
3 186 Gordon, Evan 7 Grace Academy Boone 12:55.51
4 234 Crews, Liam 8 Kannapolis Middle School 12:57.93 3
5 435 Jordan, Nash 7 Rugby Middle School 13:21.64
6 294 Bhatt, Micah 8 Lakeshore Middle School 14:10.02 4
7 297 Deschenes, Tysen 8 Lakeshore Middle School 14:13.63 5
8 185 Gordon, Brandon 6 Grace Academy Boone 14:17.02
9 296 Crawford, Ashton 8 Lakeshore Middle School 14:21.38 6
10 303 Scott, Brody 6 Lakeshore Middle School 14:23.59 7
11 434 Green, Aiden 8 Rugby Middle School 14:37.34
12 188 Willingham, Grayson 7 Grace Academy Boone 14:37.63
13 439 Epperson, Alex 6 Run Cabarrus 14:44.20
14 304 Short, Alex 8 Lakeshore Middle School 14:51.27 8
15 237 Hudson, Baylen 8 Kannapolis Middle School 14:59.24 9
16 745 Duvall, Caleb 8 Watauga Middle 15:02.22 10
17 753 Hodges, Yates 7 Watauga Middle 15:07.76 11
18 482 Mauser, Levi 9 Surry Home Educators 15:22.14 12
19 295 Cook, Colin 7 Lakeshore Middle School 15:33.88 13
20 770 Walker, Patrick 7 University School of John 15:39.95
21 487 Stovall, Milo 6 Surry Home Educators 15:41.66 14
22 739 Braxton, John 6 Watauga Middle 15:58.34 15
23 300 Leonard, Paxton 8 Lakeshore Middle School 15:59.15 16
24 302 Nervegna, Michael 8 Lakeshore Middle School 15:59.39
25 187 Slagle, Isaac 6 Grace Academy Boone 15:59.87
26 768 Lizarralde, Christian 8 Lakeshore Middle School 16:19.22
27 238 Russell, Isaac 8 Kannapolis Middle School 16:47.10 17
28 305 Wisecup, Jackson 8 Lakeshore Middle School 16:51.55
29 479 Mauser, Corban 6 Surry Home Educators 16:55.04 18
30 752 Hannon, Jax 6 Watauga Middle 17:02.83 19
Top Middle School Girls Finishers
1 728 Moore, Kate James 7 Watauga Middle 13:42.72 1
2 735 Stull, Sophia 8 Watauga Middle 14:19.42 2
3 737 Tunstill, Ayla 8 Watauga Middle 14:26.16 3
4 433 Saft, Ambrin 8 Rugby Middle School 14:48.91
5 733 Reule, Hannah 6 Watauga Middle 15:03.96 4
6 292 McCracken, Prescilla 8 Lakeshore Middle School 15:53.09 5
7 431 Kunath, Ella 8 Rugby Middle School 15:56.97
8 430 bailey, ella grace 7 Rugby Middle School 16:05.42
9 183 Willingham, Avery 5 Grace Academy Boone 16:16.89
10 720 Goodman-Meade, Ella 7 Watauga Middle 16:17.13 6
11 722 Hannon, Eva 8 Watauga Middle 16:18.00 7
12 233 Penaloza, Zulema 8 Kannapolis Middle School 16:55.95
13 721 Greer, Addie 7 Watauga Middle 17:00.06 8
14 769 Walker, Margaret 5 University School of John 17:26.07
15 732 Resendiz, Liliana 7 Watauga Middle 17:31.20
16 731 Powell, Merritt 8 Watauga Middle 17:40.90
17 727 Kelley, Mia 7 Watauga Middle 17:45.92
18 723 Hans, Vivian 8 Watauga Middle 17:56.66
19 291 Forystek, Lily 8 Lakeshore Middle School 18:22.29 9
20 293 Volpe, Paige 8 Lakeshore Middle School 18:24.05 10
21 724 Heistand, AB 7 Watauga Middle 18:49.37
22 730 Olson, Lilly 8 Watauga Middle 18:55.83
23 468 Tyler, Caroline 6 Surry Home Educators 19:07.20
24 767 Scace, Ava 7 Grace Academy Boone 19:17.18
25 289 Bauernfeind, Addison 7 Lakeshore Middle School 19:48.52 11
26 719 Davenport, Estalee 7 Watauga Middle 19:49.90
27 290 Clark, Catelyn 7 Lakeshore Middle School 19:57.92 12
28 467 Thomas, Lilyanah 8 Surry Home Educators 20:03.21
29 466 Gullion, Ivory 8 Surry Home Educators 20:20.56
30 729 Morgan, Riley 8 Watauga Middle 20:40.75
31 716 Casco, Bianca 7 Watauga Middle 20:44.18
32 736 Taylor, Caitlyn 6 Watauga Middle 21:27.34
33 432 Parks, Payton 8 Rugby Middle School 22:21.66
34 717 Clough, Elliott 6 Watauga Middle 22:39.56
35 714 Ainsworth, Finley 6 Watauga Middle 22:40.36
36 718 Cobb, Ellie 6 Watauga Middle 33:01.10
