Kituwah Farm – The Lady Devils took the first step towards their ultimate goal, of competing for a State Championship, by dominating the Smoky Mountain Conference Cross Country Championships on Wednesday. Swain outdistanced 2nd place Cherokee and in the process was one runner away from recording a perfect score. The Lady Devils had 18 points on 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 place finishes.
Arizona Blankenship ran away with the race finishing in a time of 18:56.54, almost two full minutes ahead of teammate Amya Hicks. Hicks finished 2nd with a time of 20:52.00. Gracie Monteith was 4th with a time of 21:17.45, followed by Lily Bjerkness in 5th with a time of 21:21.36 and Emily Ulaner was 6th at 21:44.18.
For her efforts Arizona Blankenship was named the Smoky Mountain Conference Runner of the Year. Swain head coach Jennifer Chatham was named the Women’s Smoky Mountain Conference Coach of the Year.