By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A muddy course may have slowed down some of the times but not enthusiasm on Aug. 17 at the State Farm Intramural Fields of Appalachian State University. Among the 28 schools with 773 student athletes participating there were a number of early season personal bests, including impressive team and individual performances during the annual, Pioneer ‘Clash of the Classes.’
“It is the only high school cross country event at least in this region, if not in the state where freshman girls run only against other freshman girls, senior boys run only against senior boys, and so on. So in many respects it is an age group peer evaluation,” said Watauga head coach Randy McDonough after the last of the ten races had been run, starting with middle school girls at 9 a.m., followed by middle school boys, freshman girls, freshmen boys, sophomore girls, sophomore boys, junior girls, junior boys, senior girls and senior boys. The gun sounded for the last of the races a little after 1 p.m., making for a long but exciting celebration of all things cross country.
It was a picturesque, festival-like scene as the sun broke intermittently from behind the billowing Cumulus clouds. Sometimes the multi-colored tents surrounding the race course were bathed in glittering sunlight, other times in the clouds’ deep shadows, if only for a couple of minutes. Rain-free weather in the mid-60s to mid-70s might have been “hot” for the many competing harriers from the High Country, but it was a welcome “cool” for the participants from off the mountain — where they might have been running in 90-plus degree heat.
Host Watauga had several notable performances:
- Will Bradbury recorded the fastest time of the day in running away with the Senior Boys title in a sparkling, 10:13.23. The next closest of the 50 runners to cross the finish line was Keegan Saft of West Henderson, in 10:33.35.
- Watauga’s Annabelle Stewart captured the Senior Girls event, crossing the line in 12:22.77, with Hough’s Kaely Patterson (12:28.36) and West Forsyth’s Lulu Serang (12:35.24) following at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.
- Pioneer freshman Cali Townsend said before her race she was “ready to fly” — and did she ever, winning the event in 12:20.63, well ahead of Lake Norman’s No. 2 finisher, Claire Zimmerman (12:39.20) out of the large field of 61 girls competing. Only one other female runner posted a faster time for the course, Kasey Dingman of Lake Norman (12:04.58), in the highly competitive, 11th grade girls race.
- In the Middle School Boys race, Watauga went 1-2 with a pair of 8th graders, Jonah Pearson at No. 1 (12:14.17) and Sean Rea at No. 2 (12:48.37). Another Boone area student took No. 3, Evan Gordon of Grace Academy (12:55.51).
- Watauga junior Janie Beach-Verhay ran with the lead pack most of the race, crossing the line No. 6 out of the 63 distaff harriers in the field, including a large contingent of 14 Pioneer juniors.
- It was a 1-2-3 sweep of the top positions in the Middle School Girls division, with seventh grader Kate James Moore racing to the No. 1 finish in 13:42.72, followed by a pair of eighth graders in Sophia Stull (14:19.42) and Ayla Tunstill (14:26.16).
- In a field of over 70 sophomore girls, Watauga’s Lainey Johnston finished in the No. 11 position as the top Pioneer competitor at the grade level, in 14:08.56. Ava Nutter of Daniel Boone High School (Gray, Tenn.) topped the field in 12:35.55.
Among the participating schools were:
- Watauga
- Daniel Boone (Gray, Tenn.)
- West Forsyth (Clemmons, N.C.)
- William A. Hough (Cornelius, N.C.)
- University School of Johnson City (Tenn.)
- West Henderson (Hendersonville, N.C.)
- Hickory Ridge (Harrisburg, N.C.)
- North Buncombe (Weaverville, N.C.)
- West Stokes (King, N.C.)
- Ardrey Kell (Charlotte, N.C.)
- McDowell (Marion, N.C.)
- A.L. Brown (Kannapolis, N.C.)
- Mooresville (N.C.)
- Lake Norman (Mooresville, N.C.)
- West Cabarrus (Concord, N.C.)
- Providence Day (Charlotte, N.C.)
- A.C. Reynolds (Asheville, N.C.)
- Surry Central (Dobson, N.C.)
- South Caldwell (Hudson, N.C.)
- Surry Home Educators (Mt. Airy, N.C.)
- Avery County (Newland, N.C.)
Middle school teams included:
- Watauga District Middle Schools
- Grace Academy (Boone, N.C.)
- Kannapolis MS (N.C.)
- Rugby MS (Hendersonville, N.C.)
- Lakeshore MS (Mooresville, N.C.)
- Run Cabarrus (club, Concord, N.C.)
- Surry Home Educators (Mt. Airy, N.C.)
- University School of Johnson City (Tenn.)
There were also several unattached student athletes.
