Cross country struts its stuff in season debut
Hayesville – A third-place individual finish in one race and four top-10 placers in another.
The Robbinsville cross country program ventured to Clay County for the Smoky Mountain Conference opener Wednesday, Nov. 18. Blessed by the warmest weather of the week, the Knights shined in their 2020-21 debut.
“All the runners have been working hard in our first few weeks of practice and it showed Wednesday,” boasted Robbinsville cross country coach Kaitlyn Carringer-Adams. “We had six PRs (personal records) and six runners medal at the race, for all of our teams combined.”
The only senior running for Robbinsville this year – Ava Barlow – finished third in the varsity girls race, clocking in at the 24:08.47 mark. Her time was a mere 1:17 behind the winner of the race, Hayesville sophomore Kaysen Krieger.
Three underclassmen helped propel the Black Knights’ varsity team to a second-place finish. Freshman Xander Wachacha (4th place, 20:18.08) finished just three seconds ahead of sophomore Hayden Stewart (5th place), with AAU standout William Cable (sophomore, 7th place) and junior Sully Shanahan (10th place) rounded out an impressive top-10 showing for Robbinsville.
Also competing for the Knights’ varsity boys was Zeb Stewart (15th) and Phoenix Brooks (16th). Overall, Robbinsville posted 39 team points.
Middle school
Robbinsville also took second place in the middle school girls race, scoring 48 team points. Abby Wehr was the top finisher, taking 6th with a time of 15:46.17.
Though the middle school boys did not record a team score, eighth-grader Ethan Webster finished 5th overall, with a time of 14:10.19.
“Even though the times and the medals were great, what was most encouraging to see was how every one of my runners – from middle school to high school – cheered and supported one another,” Carringer-Adams added. “I think that – plus the great performances – gave us all a boost of confidence for how this season is going to go.”