Southern Gap placed five runners among the top 13 to capture the first boys’ cross-country team championship in school history Sept. 2 at the SWVA High/Middle Cross Country Rumble.
The Eagles finished with 39 points to edge Wise Central, which placed second with 42. Eastside was third with 47 points, while Jenkins finished fourth with 89.
Wise Central claimed the first two individual positions, but Southern Gap’s depth proved to be the difference. The Eagles placed four runners among the top nine and their fifth scoring runner finished 13th.
Sophomore Ethan Deel led Southern Gap by finishing third in the 5,000-meter race with a time of 20 minutes, 21 seconds.
Sophomore Wyatt Street placed sixth in 21:07, while freshmen Bentley Jackson and Kyler Lester crossed the finish line just six seconds apart. Jackson finished eighth in 21:26, and Lester placed ninth in 21:32.
Freshman Oliver Breeding completed Southern Gap’s team score by finishing 13th in 23:36. The Eagles’ five scoring runners were separated by 3:15.
Southern Gap sophomore Jaccob Smeltzer placed 19th in 25:41, while junior Westen Deel finished 25th in 42:17.
Wise Central junior Ty Arney won the race in 17:54, edging teammate Nathan Wallin by one second. Eastside’s Jason Correa placed fourth in 20:42, while teammate Brandon Edwards finished fifth in 21:01.
Eastside also placed Evan McReynolds seventh, Easton Phelps 11th and Bronston Williams 20th. However, Southern Gap’s strong group of runners allowed the Eagles to finish eight points ahead of Eastside in the team standings.
The team championship added another milestone to Southern Gap’s inaugural athletic season.
Boys varsity 5,000-meter results
Ty Arney, Wise Central, 17:54
Nathan Wallin, Wise Central, 17:55
Ethan Deel, Southern Gap, 20:21
Jason Correa, Eastside, 20:42
Brandon Edwards, Eastside, 21:01
Wyatt Street, Southern Gap, 21:07
Evan McReynolds, Eastside, 21:16
Bentley Jackson, Southern Gap, 21:26
Kyler Lester, Southern Gap, 21:32
Jeremy Wells, Wise Central, 22:14
Easton Phelps, Eastside, 22:31
Noah Vernon, Jenkins, 23:31
Oliver Breeding, Southern Gap, 23:36
Logan Hamilton, Wise Central, 23:42
William Sturgill, Wise Central, 24:13
Sean Jones, Jenkins, 25:04
Bentley Hopkins, Wise Central, 25:25
Joseph Collins, Jenkins, 25:40
Jaccob Smeltzer, Southern Gap, 25:41
Bronston Williams, Eastside, 27:26
Darius Chiphua, Jenkins, 30:18
Allan Jones, Jenkins, 33:13
Joshua Winskey, Jenkins, 37:30
Gregory Gregory Jones, Jenkins, 38:44
Westen Deel, Southern Gap, 42:17
Boys team standings
Southern Gap — 39 points (3-6-8-9-13); average: 21:36; spread: 3:15
Wise Central — 42 points (1-2-10-14-15); average: 21:11; spread: 6:19
Eastside — 47 points (4-5-7-11-20); average: 22:35; spread: 6:44
Jenkins — 89 points (12-16-18-21-22); average: 27:33; spread: 9:42
