Two area high school cross country teams and a dozen individuals will race for state championships this week.
Aiken High’s girls and Fox Creek’s boys each finished in eighth in their respective qualifiers to earn spots to compete for a team title at Sandhill Research and Education Center in Columbia.
Aiken was led by a 13th-place finish by Region 5-AAAA champion Victoria Colon-LaBorde. The Hornets also counted scores from Lindsey Malyszek (34th), Emily Heath (56th), Carolina Pettigrew (65th) and Anne Masters-Calfee (70th).
South Aiken’s girls just missed out in the team race with a 10th-place finish but will send two individuals to state. Lexi Taylor had the best finish of any area runner in a state qualifier by finishing 10th, and Ryley Graham finished in 19th.
The Class AAAA girls’ race is scheduled for 9 a.m. Thursday.
Fox Creek’s boys were led by Region 5-AAA Trey Armstrong, who finished 26th. The Predators also counted scores from Mark Monaco (34th), Sean Monaco (47th), Thomas Kerekanich (53rd) and Logan Castor (54th).
The Class AAA boys’ race is scheduled for noon Thursday.
Aiken High’s boys missed out on a spot in the team championship by finishing 10th, but two team members advanced as individuals. Anthony Defillips, who won the Region 5-AAAA championship, finished 12th, and Luke Fundak finished 17th.
The Class AAAA boys’ race is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Thursday.
Five Ridge Spring-Monetta runners and three from Williston-Elko are listed as entries in the Class A championships.