BLYTHEWOOD – Blythewood and Westwood cross country teams have returned to the course, both opening their seasons in late August. The two teams met up for the second time at the Mike More Classic at Saulda Shoals Park in Irmo on Saturday.
With 21 teams competing in the girls’ run, Blythewood took third place and Westwood finished in the 13 spot. Out of 25 teams in the boys’ race, the Bengals came in second and the Redhawks took 13th.
Blythewood
Senior Jacob Powell took the top spot for the boys out of 277 runners. His first place finish was clocked at 15:35.42. Chapin’s Michael Rose came in second at 16:04.51.
Dillan Boyer was Blythewood’s next finisher at 16:37.40 for fifth place overall. Anthony Knight clocked a time of 17:18.08 for 18th place. Jack Smith finished at 17:33.37 in the 24 spot, and Austin Dwiggins came in 27th at 17:35.61.
Senior Anna Kelly finished first for the Blythewood girls and in second place overall out of 184 runners. Kelly clocked a time of 18:18.21. Morgan Howell, a freshman at Porter Gaud, took first place at 17:16.59.
Freshman Paige Kelly finished next for Blythewood at 20:00.16 in 14th place overall. Madeline Lowery, also a freshman, came in third for Blythewood and 31st overall at 20:51.63. Aubrey Watson, an eighth grader, and Lauren Benson, a senior, rounded out Blythewood’s times. Watson came in 46th place at 21:33.00 and Benson finished in the 49 spot at 21:41.85.
Westwood
Junior Christina Tyndall finished first for the Westwood girls and in 11th place overall with a time of 19:41.46. Rebecca Ashley, a sophomore, came in 42nd place overall at 21:23.01. Senior Olivia Vesselee came in at 25:25.32; Gabrielle Singleton, a sophomore, finished at 25:47.77; and junior Brianna Ratcliff crossed the finish line at 26:20.14.
Freshman Sean Bullock led the way for Westwood’s boys. He finished at 18:05.25 for 45th place overall. Sophomore Aiden Adkins came in at 18:14.48 in 57th place. Blaize Owen, a senior, finished at 18:50.68. Senior Bobby Quick and eighth-grader Ty Owen rounded out Westwood’s times. Quick finished at 19:31.91 and Owen came in at 19:35.83.
Eye Opener
Both schools opened their seasons on Aug. 30 at the Eye Opener, held at The Roger Miliken Center in Spartanburg.
Westwood ran in the Championship division. The boys finished 25th out of 56 teams. The girls’ team finished 31st out of 51 teams.
Christina Tyndall highlighted the day for Westwood, coming in 7th place out of 455 runners with a time of 20:15.30. Blaize Owen was the boys’ top runner on the day, coming in 106th place out of 498 runners at 19:07.90.
Blythewood competed in the International division. The boys came in 23rd out of 49 teams; the girls finished 22nd out of 38 teams.
Jacob Powell finished first for Blythewood with a time of 15:35.30 for 6th place overall out of 496 runners. Anna Kelly was the top finisher for the girls, coming in 14th out of 400 runners with a time of 19:09.50.
Highlander Invitational
Blythewood ran in the Heathwood Hall Highlander Invitational on Sept. 6 in Columbia. With 33 teams competing in the girls’ race, Blythewood finished in sixth place. The Bengal boys took seventh place out of 41 teams.
Jacob Powell and Anna Kelly were again among the top runners in their races. Powell came in second place out of 354 runners, clocking a time of 15:19. Out of 289 runners in the girls’ race, Kelly finished fourth at 18:34.61.
Westwood Meet
Westwood hosted Lower Richland, Midlands STEM Charter School, Richard Winn Academy, and Richland Northeast on Sept 3 for a home meet. Both Redhawk teams claimed first place on the day.
Blaize Owen finished first for the Redhawks at 18:37. Westwood runners claimed the 3-6 spots to clinch first place. Ty Owen finished third at 19:20; Bobby Quick came in fourth at 19:41; Sean Bullock finished next at 19:57 for fifth place; and Aiden Adkins came in on his heel sat 20:06 for sixth place.
Christina Tyndall took first place in the girls’ run at 19:57. Rebecca Ashley came in third at 21:47. Olivia Vesselee (27:08) and Brianna Ratcliff (27:58) took the 6 and 7 spots. Zakiya Carter rounded out Westwood’s times in 11th at 29.42.
Up Next
Both teams are set to compete in the Lake Murray Invitational at Crooked Creek Park in Chapin this Saturday.