By David Rogers. BRISTOL, Tenn. (remote) — With nearly 300 cross country athletes competing in each of the middle school boys and girls division, the 2025 Run for the Hills races at South Holston Dam were primed for harrier excitement. The Watauga District Middle School team (11 girls and 10 boys) didn’t disappoint, with strong performances highlighted by Kate James Moore’s No. 2 finish in the girls race.
GIRLS RACE
Liberty Bell eighth grader Cate Holden finished No. 1 (8:48.80) out of the 238 student athletes competing in the 2400-Meter Girls Division, which included 21 schools qualifying for team scoring. In addition, there were several athletes from schools with fewer than five runners entered, as well as a handful of unattached competitors.
Watauga’s Moore finished just 14 seconds behind Holden for the 1.49 miles’ distance, in 9:07.10, and more than 10 seconds ahead of No. 3 finisher, Isabella Regalado, of Jonesborough MS. A total of 12 student-athletes from eight different schools crossed the finish line in under 10 minutes.
Watauga earned a No. 6 placing in the team competition, which was won by Holden’s Liberty Bell. All but two of the Boone-based girls finished in the top half of the field, including Eden Gates (No. 32), Hannah Reule (No. 36), Liliana Resendiz (No. 39), Addie Greer (No. 57), Estalee Davenport (No. 62), Mia Kelley (No. 71), Anna Brooks Heistand (No. 97), and Abbie Cutchens (No. 105). Watauga 6th grader competed with the older runners, finishing strong at No. 142, followed by 7th grade student, Ellie Cobb at No. 229.
According to Meredith Moore, Kate James Moore’s runner-up time of 9:07.10 is the sixth fastest time in the history of the Run for the Hills event.
BOYS RACE
Indian Trail MS of Johnson City only finished No. 8 in the Boys Division team competition, but had the event’s No. 1 individual performer in 8th grader Justin Wicker (8:17.70). Out of 282 athletes competing in the Boys Division, Watauga District MS didn’t have any team members finish higher than No. 31, but all five individuals calculated in the team score finished in the top 100. That included Yates Hodges (No. 33), Ben Trivette (No. 34), John Braxton (No. 51), William Leonard (No. 60) and Olin Coley (No. 114). Jayden Perez-Zhu, Damien Johnson, and Miles Pearson also finished in the top half of the field. Tye Friedham and Max Friedham also pushed themselves to personal records for the race.
