York and Lancaster County Runners Post Top Finishes at Wendy’s Invitational

Fort Mill High School placed fourth of 29 teams in the White division boys race at the Wendy’s Invitational on Oct. 3, led by junior Owen Ware’s sixth place finish at the Larry McAfee Course at McAlpine Park in Charlotte.

In the White division girls race, South Pointe High School senior Libba Faircloth finished fourth in 18:39.10, the best local result in that field.

The meet, hosted by East Mecklenburg High School, drew about 2,000 finishers from schools across North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia and Tennessee in nine races. The White division produced the fastest boys winning time of the day and the deepest girls field, giving York and Lancaster County teams a measure of where they stand ahead of region and state championship meets.

Fort Mill boys fourth in White race

Ware covered the 5,000 meter course in 16:00.18, about half a second behind Dorman junior Greyson Price. Lexington senior Josh Voegele won in 15:19.88, more than 40 seconds faster than any other boys winner at the meet, and Lexington took the team title with 63 points ahead of J.L. Mann with 76.

Fort Mill scored 176 points, five points behind third place Westminster School. Senior Hudson Haley was 28th in 16:34.60, followed by freshman Ian Zook (45th), sophomore Jacob Audley (50th) and freshman Will Raymond (51st). Only 54 seconds separated Fort Mill’s first and fifth runners.

South Pointe finished 13th with 370 points. Senior Reece Adams led the Stallions in 20th (16:28.75), and junior Copeland Crawford was 47th in 16:54.08.

Faircloth fourth in White girls race

Hoggard senior Amelia Medlin won the White division girls race in 18:08.89, with North Lincoln sophomore Bella Jaworsky and Watauga junior Cali Townsend finishing between Medlin and Faircloth. North Lincoln won the team title, with its top five averaging 19:04. South Pointe finished 24th of 32 teams with 589 points.

Fort Mill placed 11th with 359 points, tying Ashley High School on points and taking the higher spot on the strength of its sixth runner. Sophomore Lauren Allen led the Yellow Jackets in 35th (19:43.77), followed by junior Bailey Nolin in 45th (20:04.41) and senior Mia Zook in 48th (20:06.44). Seventh grader Eve Zook finished 116th in 21:35.97.

Harvey second as Northwestern girls place fourth in Red race

Northwestern High School senior Grace Harvey finished second in the Red division girls race in 18:51.86, the highest individual finish by a York or Lancaster County runner at the meet. AC Flora junior Graicen Edwards won in 17:19.88.

Chloe Laval followed Harvey in eighth place in 20:19.81, with sophomore Piper Lumsden 21st in 20:59.40. Lily Laval placed 44th and Skyler Laval 47th to round out Northwestern’s scoring five. The Trojans totaled 118 points to place fourth of 28 teams, behind Providence (69), Summerville (80) and Millbrook (105).

Indian Land placed 13th with 411 points. Sophomore Charleigh Moore led the Warriors in 52nd (22:03.21), and freshman Zoe Halm was 71st.

Rock Hill sophomore Caroline Ardis finished 34th in 21:19.69. The Bearcats ran four girls and did not record a team score. York freshman Gracie Fuller placed 103rd in 23:43.66.

York’s Spencer leads local runners in Red boys race

York senior Ellis Spencer was the first local finisher in the Red division boys race, placing 21st in 16:43.82. Summerville won the team title with 62 points.

Northwestern senior John Michael Slater finished 35th in 17:01.92. The Trojans placed 14th of 34 teams with 399 points, with their second through fifth runners finishing within eight seconds of each other, from 18:08.02 to 18:15.69.

Indian Land placed 17th with 439 points behind senior Mitchell Bergman, who finished 43rd in 17:13.69. Eighth grader Beckett Bender was 79th for the Warriors in 17:56.78. York placed 24th with 659 points, with eighth grader Quinn Witte its second runner in 113th. Rock Hill finished 31st with 845 points, led by sophomore Logan Worden in 115th (18:33.92).

Pogalz third in junior and senior race

Fort Mill junior Greyson Pogalz placed third in the junior and senior boys race in 17:23.16, behind Lexington juniors Wesley Heimbach and Maddox Florio. Lexington did not field a scored team in that race, making Pogalz the top scoring finisher.

Fort Mill placed sixth of 16 teams with 151 points. Junior Wyatt Gremillion was the second Yellow Jacket across the line in 31st (19:07.16). South Pointe senior Jett Shelton finished 54th in 19:55.71.

Freshman and sophomore boys

Fort Mill freshman River Mullet finished 13th in a field of 406 in the freshman and sophomore boys race, running 18:09.48. Fort Mill placed 18th of 36 teams with 463 points.

South Pointe freshman Asher Thompson placed 57th in 19:15.38, and the Stallions finished 26th with 721 points. Indian Land placed 36th, led by sophomore Jackson Thom in 315th. Rock Hill seventh grader James Keel finished 221st in 21:50.61; the Bearcats did not record a team score.

Fort Mill eighth graders lead unseeded girls

Two Fort Mill eighth graders led the Yellow Jackets in the unseeded girls race. Emma Doheny placed 19th in 22:27.37 and Kaitlin Huggins was 22nd in 22:33.19, with senior Elizabeth Watson 30th. Fort Mill finished seventh of 25 teams with 154 points. Myers Park won with 42.

Indian Land placed 18th with 538 points, and South Pointe was 20th with 569. Rock Hill freshman Kayleigh George finished 153rd in 26:53.24.

Lancaster County schools in Blue division

Andrew Jackson junior Ryder Smith placed 15th of 155 in the Blue division boys race in 17:20.87. North Lincoln senior Eli Rush won in 16:08.23. Lancaster senior Zacchaeus Jeter finished 82nd in 19:35.08. Neither Lancaster County boys team had enough finishers for a team score.

In the Blue division girls race, Lancaster placed 15th of 20 teams with 358 points. Freshman Aubree Martinez finished 54th in 23:32.74, one spot ahead of junior Khloe Martinez. Andrew Jackson placed 17th with 483 points, led by junior Shaelynn Walls in 70th (24:48.76).

Region championship meets are set for later this month, with the South Carolina High School League state championships to follow in November.

Local finishers by division

White Division Boys (200 finishers)

Fort Mill (4th of 29, 176 points)

• 6th, Owen Ware (JR), 16:00.18
• 28th, Hudson Haley (SR), 16:34.60
• 45th, Ian Zook (FR), 16:50.93
• 50th, Jacob Audley (SO), 16:54.92
• 51st, Will Raymond (FR), 16:55.08
• 57th, Nolan Sova (FR), 16:58.33
• 72nd, Liam Doheny (SO), 17:11.52

South Pointe (13th of 29, 370 points)

• 20th, Reece Adams (SR), 16:28.75
• 47th, Copeland Crawford (JR), 16:54.08
• 79th, Hunter Willis (SO), 17:15.44
• 104th, Lucas Watson (JR), 17:35.52
• 126th, Noah Frazier (JR), 17:55.79
• 135th, Gray Shelton (SO), 18:06.56
• 185th, Brody Baardseth (JR), 19:12.74

White Division Girls (208 finishers)

Fort Mill (11th of 32, 359 points)

• 35th, Lauren Allen (SO), 19:43.77
• 45th, Bailey Nolin (JR), 20:04.41
• 48th, Mia Zook (SR), 20:06.44
• 115th, Rachel Vinson (SR), 21:34.56
• 116th, Eve Zook (7th grade), 21:35.97
• 125th, Charlotte Spatola (SO), 21:44.79
• 142nd, Isabel Morstad (SO), 22:05.51

South Pointe (24th of 32, 589 points)

• 4th, Libba Faircloth (SR), 18:39.10
• 107th, Ella Hopkins (JR), 21:24.72
• 132nd, Eden Bryant (FR), 21:49.35
• 164th, Lydia Thompson (SR), 22:48.14
• 180th, Kaydence Williams (SO), 23:35.69
• 192nd, Olivia Stevenson (SO), 24:14.57
• 205th, Daniella Belmonte (FR), 27:23.00

Red Division Girls (197 finishers)

Northwestern (4th of 28, 118 points)

• 2nd, Grace Harvey (SR), 18:51.86
• 8th, Chloe Laval (SR), 20:19.81
• 21st, Piper Lumsden (SO), 20:59.40
• 44th, Lily Laval (SR), 21:39.94
• 47th, Skyler Laval (SR), 21:43.76
• 68th, Bristol McKinnon (SO), 22:36.32
• 72nd, Ashlyn Alosi (FR), 22:38.60

Indian Land (13th of 28, 411 points)

• 52nd, Charleigh Moore (SO), 22:03.21
• 71st, Zoe Halm (FR), 22:37.11
• 92nd, Aubrea Boncore (SR), 23:18.41
• 104th, Ruby Sauer (SO), 23:47.74
• 114th, Channing Turner (SO), 24:05.03
• 117th, Mollie Pope (JR), 24:06.19
• 145th, Isabella D’Alessandro (SO), 25:15.52

Rock Hill (no team score)

• 34th, Caroline Ardis (SO), 21:19.69
• 149th, Nataly Smarr (SO), 25:38.89
• 151st, Harper Daigle (SR), 25:40.23
• 178th, Emma Montgomery (SR), 28:31.55

York (no team score)

• 103rd, Gracie Fuller (FR), 23:43.66
• 161st, Amarie VanNostrand (FR), 26:43.41

Red Division Boys (225 finishers)

Northwestern (14th of 34, 399 points)

• 35th, John Michael Slater (SR), 17:01.92
• 86th, Seth Ayers (SR), 18:08.02
• 88th, Zachary Barnes (JR), 18:08.84
• 93rd, Carter Odom (SR), 18:13.76
• 97th, Alex Miller (SO), 18:15.69
• 98th, Mason Kingsford (SR), 18:17.26
• 119th, Andrew Morton (SR), 18:39.72

Indian Land (17th of 34, 439 points)

• 43rd, Mitchell Bergman (SR), 17:13.69
• 79th, Beckett Bender (8th grade), 17:56.78
• 82nd, Liam Ramsdill (SO), 18:01.50
• 107th, Robert Demastus (SO), 18:29.79
• 128th, Sathila Mudalige (FR), 18:52.94
• 164th, Colin Whitham (JR), 19:36.35
• 174th, Daksh Tyagi (FR), 19:44.80

York (24th of 34, 659 points)

• 21st, Ellis Spencer (SR), 16:43.82
• 113th, Quinn Witte (8th grade), 18:32.50
• 170th, Jayden Garrison (FR), 19:40.10
• 176th, Jackson Clontz (FR), 19:45.45
• 180th, Daniel Kearney (JR), 19:51.10
• 198th, Kevin King (FR), 20:57.54
• 215th, Robert Ashley (FR), 22:13.41

Rock Hill (31st of 34, 845 points)

• 115th, Logan Worden (SO), 18:33.92
• 171st, Jackson Kuhn (7th grade), 19:40.21
• 185th, Raylan Anderson (FR), 20:03.04
• 187th, Jacob Hellmeuller (SO), 20:12.06
• 191st, George Hane (JR), 20:30.73
• 193rd, Kevin Machado (JR), 20:37.08

Junior and Senior Boys (165 finishers)

Fort Mill (6th of 16, 151 points)

• 3rd, Greyson Pogalz (JR), 17:23.16
• 31st, Wyatt Gremillion (JR), 19:07.16
• 40th, Quinlan O’Toole (JR), 19:38.74
• 50th, Ryan Halligan (SR), 19:48.41
• 71st, Ronan Kelly (SR), 20:20.19
• 83rd, John Moracho (JR), 20:47.76
• 98th, Seth Giradot (SR), 21:20.16
• 111th, Zachary Johnson (JR), 21:48.19
• 115th, Jacob Payne (JR), 21:55.94
• 120th, Oliver Cote (SR), 22:08.94
• 159th, Lucas Snyder (JR), 27:14.48

South Pointe (no team score)

• 54th, Jett Shelton (SR), 19:55.71

Freshman and Sophomore Boys (406 finishers)

Fort Mill (18th of 36, 463 points)

• 13th, River Mullet (FR), 18:09.48
• 103rd, Kiefer Luck (SO), 20:00.36
• 115th, Les Gee (SO), 20:10.25
• 119th, Mac Goodson (FR), 20:13.37
• 151st, Chase Bryson (FR), 20:48.44
• 163rd, Grayson Lynn (SO), 20:58.62
• 168th, Luke Manucy (8th grade), 21:04.83
• 185th, Benjamin Girardot (FR), 21:17.76
• 211th, Owen Mandon (8th grade), 21:37.77
• 215th, Zachary Martin (SO), 21:41.73
• 238th, Logan Gay (FR), 22:10.52
• 250th, Ethan Hallner (SO), 22:18.70
• 280th, Jax Jones (8th grade), 22:52.51
• 292nd, Ethan Andersen (8th grade), 23:08.14
• 319th, Soren Roop (SO), 23:39.37
• 334th, Mason Montini (7th grade), 24:12.37
• 336th, Henry Gee (7th grade), 24:12.92
• 372nd, Finn Botkin (8th grade), 26:18.37
• 381st, Asher Helton (FR), 26:45.29

South Pointe (26th of 36, 721 points)

• 57th, Asher Thompson (FR), 19:15.38
• 165th, Jackson Hurst (FR), 21:00.26
• 214th, John Ashbaugh (FR), 21:41.62
• 255th, Leo Sefchick (FR), 22:27.48
• 278th, Grayson Frazier (7th grade), 22:51.92
• 302nd, Callen West (SO), 23:20.25
• 318th, Nico Castaneda-Rivera (8th grade), 23:39.21
• 397th, Levi Thompson (7th grade), 28:56.00
• 404th, Hunter Strout (FR), 31:58.07

Indian Land (36th of 36, 1,088 points)

• 315th, Jackson Thom (SO), 23:35.08
• 335th, Benjamin Edmondson (SO), 24:12.63
• 349th, Matteo Vecchio (8th grade), 24:46.14
• 355th, Dodge Dillman (8th grade), 24:58.42
• 376th, Jack Bremner (FR), 26:32.36

Rock Hill (no team score)

• 221st, James Keel (7th grade), 21:50.61
• 232nd, Jake Chadwick (JR), 22:00.34
• 289th, Landon Allie (SO), 23:03.01
• 322nd, Andrew Blue (JR), 23:41.61

Unseeded Girls (310 finishers)

Fort Mill (7th of 25, 154 points)

• 19th, Emma Doheny (8th grade), 22:27.37
• 22nd, Kaitlin Huggins (8th grade), 22:33.19
• 30th, Elizabeth Watson (SR), 22:51.33
• 41st, Chloe Henson (JR), 23:19.66
• 54th, Sloane Brunelli (7th grade), 23:52.38
• 60th (tie), Cora Ivancic (7th grade), 24:00.96
• 75th, Isabel Zavidson (FR), 24:31.22
• 78th, Grace Hilinski (8th grade), 24:37.91
• 79th, Penelope Knight (JR), 24:38.64
• 83rd, Avery Marshburn (JR), 24:39.46
• 105th, Eliza Johnson (JR), 25:20.12
• 116th, Emma Brinton (8th grade), 25:40.40
• 119th, Ashlynn Connolly (FR), 25:41.54
• 124th, Kiran Panesar (SO), 25:43.86
• 128th, Rylie Marsh (SO), 25:54.81
• 155th, Brynley Aitken (8th grade), 26:54.45
• 158th, Lorelai Tomlinson (FR), 27:00.08
• 159th, Penelope Schulte (8th grade), 27:00.17
• 160th, Abigail Laverty (JR), 27:03.48
• 163rd, Riley Coltharp (8th grade), 27:10.64
• 179th, Sylvia Roop (7th grade), 27:39.83
• 193rd, Emma Pogalz (8th grade), 28:17.70
• 244th, Colleen Nolin (8th grade), 30:19.31
• 258th, Adair Liebold (7th grade), 31:37.19
• 259th, Evie Brooks (JR), 31:39.74
• 297th, Hannah Brinton (JR), 35:38.11

Indian Land (18th of 25, 538 points)

• 148th, Olivia Kim Yiryung (FR), 26:50.59
• 151st, Caroline Berent (SO), 26:51.75
• 200th, Sophia Ramsey (JR), 28:35.21
• 215th, Isabelle Bremner (SR), 29:16.11
• 217th, Delanie Padgett (SO), 29:16.28
• 226th, Sophia McAllister (8th grade), 29:29.97
• 230th, Olivia Nardoza (FR), 29:38.33
• 296th, LoCascio Phoebe (SO), 35:27.72

South Pointe (20th of 25, 569 points)

• 165th, Parker Hall (FR), 27:13.21
• 176th, Emma Kate Wise (JR), 27:31.10
• 185th, Julia Ashbaugh (JR), 27:54.70
• 205th, Grace Yearta (JR), 28:44.03
• 280th, Harper Frazier (7th grade), 32:59.66
• 286th, Mallory Massey (JR), 33:44.60
• 305th, Rachel Torricio (FR), 38:06.49

Rock Hill (no team score)

• 153rd, Kayleigh George (FR), 26:53.24
• 273rd, Evelyn Bocanegra Ponce (JR), 32:27.65

Blue Division Boys (155 finishers)

Andrew Jackson (no team score)

• 15th, Ryder Smith (JR), 17:20.87
• 127th, Carson Sowell (JR), 21:54.34
• 144th, Kason Horton (FR), 23:41.87
• 153rd, Salinger Price (8th grade), 28:20.25

Lancaster (no team score)

• 82nd, Zacchaeus Jeter (SR), 19:35.08
• 97th, Aiden Martinez (JR), 20:08.70
• 151st, Vance Moore (7th grade), 27:31.66

Blue Division Girls (138 finishers)

Lancaster (15th of 20, 358 points)

• 54th, Aubree Martinez (FR), 23:32.74
• 55th, Khloe Martinez (JR), 23:41.48
• 64th, Vivienne Bartlett (FR), 24:07.32
• 110th, Eliana Thompson (JR), 28:22.99
• 112th, Mia Dassaro (JR), 28:59.37

Andrew Jackson (17th of 20, 483 points)

• 70th, Shaelynn Walls (JR), 24:48.76
• 99th, Tinley Knight (7th grade), 27:01.94
• 109th, Stella Faulkenberry (7th grade), 28:16.90
• 124th, Georgia Burns (FR), 31:02.58
• 133rd, Charlee Truesdale (JR), 32:22.48
• 135th, Alyssa Sowell (SR), 32:56.30

Source: Official Wendy’s Invitational results posted on MileSplit, with timing by TDeming Timing and Events.

Photos by Larry Mull