South Pointe High School senior Libba Faircloth and Catawba Ridge High School senior Ryan Pierson each won their races Saturday at the South Carolina High School League 4A state cross country qualifier at The Farm at Newberry.
Eight York and Lancaster County schools competed at the qualifier, which determines which teams and individuals advance to the 4A state championship Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Aiken Steeplechase. Area runners took 10 of the top 40 places in the boys Odd race alone, and at least one local runner finished in the top 10 of every race.
The league divided 4A schools into two qualifier races for each gender, labeled Odd and Even in the official results posted by Timing Inc.
Faircloth wins girls Odd race
Faircloth finished the 5K course in 19:20.12, 11.15 seconds ahead of North Myrtle Beach sophomore Fenna Hollo. Nation Ford High School senior Haley Garcia placed third in 19:51.37.
South Pointe junior Ella Hopkins finished 17th in 20:46.37, just behind Nation Ford junior Karson Woodring in 15th and freshman Eva Mabey in 16th. The three crossed the line about one second apart. South Pointe freshman Eden Bryant was 33rd.
Clover High School eighth grader Ryley Fetty led her team in 26th place at 21:47.86, and seniors Nadia Andrews and Kaya Best and eighth grader Lily Kanbr finished between 35th and 40th. Indian Land High School freshman Zoe Halm placed 28th in 21:50.19, two spots behind Fetty, and sophomore Charleigh Moore was 51st.
Pierson leads five area runners into top nine
Pierson won the boys Odd race in 16:57.00, the only runner in the field under 17 minutes, and finished 10.73 seconds ahead of Aiken sophomore Brayden Ramsey. Four more area runners finished in the top nine.
South Pointe senior Reece Adams and sophomore Hunter Willis placed fourth and fifth, three tenths of a second apart, in 17:18.77 and 17:19.07. Catawba Ridge junior Tyler Merrigan was sixth in 17:21.21, and Lake Wylie High School sophomore Maitland Vanourny was ninth in 17:27.55.
South Pointe put all five of its top runners in the top 22, with sophomore Gray Shelton 17th, junior Noah Frazier 20th and junior Copeland Crawford 22nd. Catawba Ridge juniors William Kowalski and Landry Macdonald finished 15th and 18th. Lake Wylie junior Wesley Rowland placed 13th and junior Gavin Burton was 26th.
Lancaster High School senior Zacchaeus Jeter led his team in 76th place in 19:18.31.
Spencer finishes inches from the win
The boys Even race came down to five runners separated by less than two seconds. May River senior Jackson Wright won in 16:45.70, and York Comprehensive High School senior Ellis Spencer placed fifth in 16:47.53, 1.83 seconds behind. York eighth grader Quinn Witte was 40th.
Clover senior Chase Hensley finished eighth in 17:09.00, with sophomore Todd Ward 23rd. Nation Ford freshman Sparsh Vaghani was ninth in 17:21.13, and three Nation Ford teammates, freshman Alejandro Luna, eighth grader Richard Bailey and senior Robert Saddler, finished 13th through 15th within one second of each other.
Indian Land senior Mitchell Bergman led a tight group for his school in 21st place at 17:53.50. Eighth grader Beckett Bender was 25th and sophomore Liam Ramsdill was 28th, all three within about 14 seconds.
Miller sixth in girls Even race
A.C. Flora junior Graicen Edwards won the girls Even race in 17:42.03, more than a minute and a half ahead of the field. Lake Wylie sophomore Zoë Miller was the top area finisher in sixth place at 20:21.56.
Lake Wylie had five runners finish between sixth and 44th. Juniors Madeline Bessman and Makenna Young placed 31st and 32nd, eighth grader Lucinda Woodard was 36th and eighth grader Emerson Riha was 44th.
Catawba Ridge junior Dorothy Artley finished 13th in 20:49.68 and junior Olivia Gillespie was 17th. Lancaster junior Khloe Martinez placed 58th in 23:13.82, and York freshman Gracie Fuller was 72nd.
State meet Saturday in Aiken
The 4A girls race starts at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Aiken Steeplechase, followed by the 4A boys at 12:30 p.m. Awards for 4A are scheduled for 1:30 p.m., according to the league’s state championship schedule. Spectators enter through the blue gate at 146 Old Wagener Road in Aiken.
Local Finishers, Top Five by School
Catawba Ridge boys (Odd): 1. Ryan Pierson, 16:57.00; 6. Tyler Merrigan, 17:21.21; 15. William Kowalski, 17:44.43; 18. Landry Macdonald, 17:50.62; 42. Mason Greear, 18:32.39
Catawba Ridge girls (Even): 13. Dorothy Artley, 20:49.68; 17. Olivia Gillespie, 21:17.20; 25. Karley Johnson, 21:48.90; 39. Morgan Hartley, 22:16.31; 51. Adele Beard, 22:35.12
Clover boys (Even): 8. Chase Hensley, 17:09.00; 23. Todd Ward, 17:57.70; 46. Jack Baker, 18:37.47; 55. Landon Skogsberg, 18:54.57; 65. Chris Delgado, 19:05.98
Clover girls (Odd): 26. Ryley Fetty, 21:47.86; 35. Nadia Andrews, 22:09.07; 37. Lily Kanbr, 22:14.64; 40. Kaya Best, 22:20.81; 58. Madison Wilson, 22:57.16
Indian Land boys (Even): 21. Mitchell Bergman, 17:53.50; 25. Beckett Bender, 18:01.59; 28. Liam Ramsdill, 18:07.67; 56. Sathila Mudalige, 18:55.22; 60. Robert Demastus, 19:02.52
Indian Land girls (Odd): 28. Zoe Halm, 21:50.19; 51. Charleigh Moore, 22:47.74; 69. Aubrea Boncore, 23:39.76; 74. Ruby Sauer, 24:06.63; 86. Sarah Graham, 24:31.60
Lake Wylie boys (Odd): 9. Maitland Vanourny, 17:27.55; 13. Wesley Rowland, 17:39.36; 26. Gavin Burton, 18:09.16; 40. Sahij Gill, 18:30.29; 45. William Kolodziej, 18:33.46
Lake Wylie girls (Even): 6. Zoë Miller, 20:21.56; 31. Madeline Bessman, 22:02.19; 32. Makenna Young, 22:04.09; 36. Lucinda Woodard, 22:11.25; 44. Emerson Riha, 22:27.36
Lancaster boys (Odd): 76. Zacchaeus Jeter, 19:18.31; 105. Sahid Ramirez, 20:14.87; 113. Aiden Martinez, 20:57.94
Lancaster girls (Even): 58. Khloe Martinez, 23:13.82; 78. Aubree Martinez, 24:13.30; 87. Vivienne Bartlett, 24:57.17; 98. Eliana Thompson, 27:25.13; 108. Mia Dassaro, 28:48.92
Nation Ford boys (Even): 9. Sparsh Vaghani, 17:21.13; 13. Alejandro Luna, 17:41.53; 14. Richard Bailey, 17:41.80; 15. Robert Saddler, 17:42.54; 18. Nick Lasala, 17:49.29
Nation Ford girls (Odd): 3. Haley Garcia, 19:51.37; 15. Karson Woodring, 20:45.31; 16. Eva Mabey, 20:46.16; 39. Madison Frazier, 22:18.01; 42. Brooklyn Cox, 22:24.20
South Pointe boys (Odd): 4. Reece Adams, 17:18.77; 5. Hunter Willis, 17:19.07; 17. Gray Shelton, 17:50.38; 20. Noah Frazier, 17:56.54; 22. Copeland Crawford, 17:57.59
South Pointe girls (Odd): 1. Libba Faircloth, 19:20.12; 17. Ella Hopkins, 20:46.37; 33. Eden Bryant, 21:59.12; 65. Kaydence Williams, 23:27.53; 84. Olivia Stevenson, 24:28.71
York boys (Even): 5. Ellis Spencer, 16:47.53; 40. Quinn Witte, 18:31.19; 98. Daniel Kearney, 20:20.60; 100. Jackson Clontz, 20:22.96; 101. Jayden Garrison, 20:25.25
York girls (Even): 72. Gracie Fuller, 23:57.36; 91. Anna Whitley, 25:40.71; 102. Amarie VanNostrand, 27:46.37
Sources: Official results, SCHSL 4A State Qualifier, Nov. 7, 2026, The Farm at Newberry, Timing Inc.; SCHSL 2026 Cross Country State Championship schedule.
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