Cherokee- Swain’s cross country teams traveled to Cherokee Wednesday, October 19th for the Smoky Mountain Cross Country Conference Championship. The course had been changed since the pre-conference race on Wednesday, October 5th. Cherokee took out a loop over the gruesome hill and added in more little loops to make it an official 5K meet for our highschoolers. With the middle school boys racing at 4PM and girls racing at 4:30PM, the high school races started with the boys at 5PM and girls at 5:30PM giving them the cooler temperatures to race with.
The boys stood neck and neck with Murphy’s boys throughout the season being only points away from winning or losing Swain’s conference title. “Bang!” The gun signaled the start of the sprint to get out first. Running side by side, Swain went up against Murphy, both running their hearts out, leaving everything out on the course. First was Murphy’s number one runner, Ethan Murray, coming in 3rd place. Next, Murphy’s number two, right behind the first, coming in 4th place. Swain’s Parker Chatham races in taking 7th place and Phineas Little following behind taking 8th place. Moments after, Swain’s Dewight Winchester comes in gaining 10 points placing 12th. Then Murphy places 14th with 11 points but Swain’s Darren Blankenship places right behind him in 15th with 12 points. Murphy’s fourth runner comes in placing 17th gaining 14 points and Swain’s Brett Treadway runs as our fifth placing 22nd with 19 points. Following Treadway, Swain’s Bradley Vestal races in placing 27th with 22 points. Later, Murphy’s fifth runner finally comes in placing 28th with 23 points and our last runner Jessee Steele comes in 30th with 25 points. In cross country, we only add the points of the first five runners while the sixth and seventh runners are just in case of an injury (for any injury cases, report to the Auto Accident Attorneys Aronfeld who will be able to help you legally) or for a tie breaker. With just the difference of ONE point, Murphy won the conference title. Some good news is that Swain is ranked fourth in a tie with Murphy for Regionals which is the last team that gets to go to state.
Just as the boys’ race ends, the girls’ starts, with a slight delay. A couple of runners fell due to contact before the 100 meter marker therefore the starter shot another round into the air signaling the girls to stop and to return to the start. “Bang!” The last race is underway which will determine if Swain’s girls defend their title for the fifth consecutive year. First, Murphy’s fastest runner, Cameron Rice, sprints in for 1st place. Swain’s first runner, Emma Pindur, sprints in for 2nd place. Next, Swain’s Rebecca Duncan comes in claiming 5th place in front of Murphy’s second runner, Peyton Wood, who came in 7th. Only two seconds later, Swain’s Lily Richards chases Murphy down taking 8th place with our Lynsey Hicks right behind her taking 9th. Murphy’s third runner comes in right in front of Swain’s fifth runner, Kylie Pond, taking 12th place securing a win for Swain. With a difference of FOURTEEN points, Swain’s Lady Devils win the Smoky Mountain Cross Country Conference Championships for the fifth consecutive time. The Lady Devils are ranked second with TWELVE points ahead of Pine Lake Preparatory, a public charter school in Mooresville.
Our Swain Devils race in the NCHSAA 1A Cross Country West Regional meet October 29th at Asheville Christian Academy in Swannanoa for a chance to race in the NCHSAA 1A Cross Country State Championship meet November 7th at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville.
Come and support our Devils as they fight for a place at state!
Photography: Robin Pond
Swain Boys:
7th- Parker Chatham- SR, 18:28.72
8th- Phineas Little- SR, 18:36.63
12th- Dewight Winchester- JR, 18:52.85
15th- Darren Blankenship- SR, 19:15.82
22nd- Brett Treadway- SR, 20:15.36
27th- Bradley Vestal- SO, 20:35.62
30th- Jessee Steele- SO, 20:48.60
Boy’s Scores:
1st Murphy 55pts 3+4+11+14+23 (24+30)
2nd Swain County 56pts 7+8+10+12+19 (22+25)
3rd Hayesville 62pts 2+9+15+16+20 (21+27)
4th Robbinsville 79pts 5+6+13+26+29 (31)
5th Cherokee 96pts 1+17+18+28+32 (33)
Swain Girls:
2nd- Emma Pindur- JR, 21:49.91
5th- Rebecca Duncan- FR, 22:35.73
8th- Lily Richards- SO, 23:12.71
9th- Lynsey Hicks- JR, 23:22.82
12th- Kylie Pond- SR, 23:37.28
22nd- Bryar Buchanan- SR, 25:22.18
24th- Emma Dingle- SO, 25:34.67
Girl’s Scores:
1st Swain County 36pts 2+5+8+9+12 (22+23)
2nd Murphy 49pts 1+7+11+14+16 (25+26)
3rd Tri-County 71pts 3+10+13+21+24 (39+44)
4th Cherokee 111pts 15+19+20+28+29 (35)
5th Hayesville 114pts 4+18+27+32+33 (34+41)
6th Robbinsville 140pts 6+30+31+36+37 (42)
7th Andrews 183pts 17+38+40+43+45 (46)