BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Telegraph Staff Writer
Union County High School weightlifters Quinn Raulerson and Christian Simmons combined to win two state championships, three region championships and two district championships to highlight the 2022 year for the Tigers.
Raulerson won the Class 1A state title in the 183-pound class of the traditional event (bench press and clean and jerk) with a 700-pound total, while Simmons won the 119 class with a 430 total.
It was Raulerson’s second straight state title.
The duo earned state medals for their performances in the snatch event as well, with Simmons placing second and Raulerson placing third.
Simmons and Raulerson won their classes at the District 7 finals in the traditional event with 395 and 665 totals, respectively. Both also placed second in the snatch. Simmons had a 115 total, while Raulerson had a 185 total.
At the Region 2 finals, Simmons and Raulerson won championships in the traditional event with totals of 405 and 680, respectively. Simmons also won the snatch championship with a 130 total. Raulerson was second in the snatch at 185.
Odum earns 2 state medals in track
Malcolm Odum earned two medals at the Class 2A track and field state championships, placing eighth in the 200m at 21.75 seconds and eighth in the 400m at 49.24 seconds. He became the first UCHS track and field athlete to medal at state since 2009.
Odum claimed the last medal in the 200m by crossing the finish line two-tenths of a second ahead of his twin brother, Martin.
Martin Odum also ran the 400m, placing 13th at 50.32.
At the District 3 finals, Malcolm Odum won the 200m at 22.47, while Martin Odum was third at 23.25.
The top four finishers in each event earned the right to advance to the Region 1 finals.
Martin Odum was second in the 400m at 49.31, while Malcolm Odum was third at 49.83.
At the Region 2 finals, Malcom earned his state berths by placing second in the 200m at 21.65 and fourth in the 400m at 48.89.
Martin Odum qualified for state by placing fourth in the 200m at 22.16 and seventh in the 400m at 49.92.
Volleyball team wins district, region titles
Union’s volleyball team captured two championships en route to winning the most matches in program history and advancing to the Class 1A state semifinals before losing 3-0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-19) to Baker.
The Tigers, as the second seed, claimed the District 6 title by defeating top seed Branford 3-1 (20-25, 25-15, 25-19, 25-20). Jaycee Davis and Emily Wilson had 16 and 12 kills, respectively, with Davis also adding 16 digs and three blocks.
Jordan Hendricks and Kamryn Southerland each recorded 15 assists and three aces. Southerland also had 10 digs.
Jurney Crim and Johns had 15 and 11 digs, respectively, while Indi Knox added nine digs. Bella Johns also had three aces.
Jailyn Simmons led the team in blocks with four, while also recording two aces.
Union had to face Branford again in the first round of the Region 3 playoffs, but the result was the same, with the Tigers winning 3-1 (25-21, 25-20, 20-25, 27-25) score.
That put the Tigers in the Region 3 championship match against Aucilla Christian. Union got 16 kills and 16 digs from Davis in winning 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-22).
Crim and Johns had 14 and 10 digs, respectively, while Simmons had nine.
Hendricks and Southerland recorded 15 and 13 assists, respectively. Each also had six digs.
The Tigers ended their season with a 20-8 record with their state-semifinal loss to Baker. Union got 12 kills and 16 digs from Davis.
Crim had 13 digs, while Hendricks, Johns and Southerland each had eight.
Hendricks and Southerland each had nine assists, while Rylie Parrish had two blocks.
Football wins Region 3-1R championship
Union won its first region championship since 2011 in advancing to the Class 1R football state semifinals before losing 21-11 to Northview.
The Tigers advanced to the Region 3 championship game by defeating Madison County 27-16 in the semifinals. It was Union’s first-ever win over Madison.
Union won the Region 3 title by defeating Lafayette 41-6, getting two rushing touchdowns each from Rayvon Durant and Dayviontae Thompson. Durant rushed for 155 yards on 15 carries, while Thompson had 48 yards on four carries.
Quarterback A.J. Cortese (7-89) and Jamez Jamison (6-44) each had one rushing touchdown.
Auntrell ross had an interception for the defense, while Timmy Taylor recovered a fumble.
Markus Strong and Thomas Williams each made six tackles.
In the loss to Northview, Union’s only touchdown was scored by Durant, who rushed for 71 yards on 20 carries.
Jonathan Edwards kicked a field goal, while the defense got interceptions from Williams and Daylyn Diston.
Dalton Lane recorded 14 tackles, while Strong had seven.
The Tigers ended the season with an 8-3 record.
Baseball team is district champion
Jay Cohen hit a three-run triple as part of an eight-run fourth inning as second seed Union defeated fourth seed Hilliard 12-2 to capture the District 6-1A baseball title.
Cohen and Ayden Elixson went 2 for 2 and 2for 3, respectively, for the Tigers, who recorded 11-0 and 6-3 wins over Bradford and Fort White in the tournament quarterfinals and semifinals. Each batter finished with three RBI.
Tre’von Lee (3 for 3) and Trevor Holtzendorf each had two RBI, while Riggs Davis and Eli Rimes each had one.
Pitcher Ethan Moody earned the win, giving up four hits and striking out seven.
Union had to play Fort White again in the Region 3 semifinals, with the Indians handing the Tigers a 4-2 loss in nine innings. Elixson had Union’s only hits, going 3 for 3 with two RBI.
Luke Johns started on the mound and threw eight innings, giving up four hits and striking out six.
The Tigers finished the season with a 14-12 record.
Whitehead swims her way to state
Union competed in swimming for the first time ever, which resulted in Eva Whitehead qualifying for the Class 1A state finals in two events.
Whitehead’s postseason journey began in the District 1 finals. She was the runner-up in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:17 and third in the 100 backstroke with a time of 1:01.63.
At the Region 1 finals, Whitehead was seventh in the 100 backstroke (59.14) and eighth in the 200 IM (2:13). She earned at-large state berths in each event.
Whitehead finished her season with a 20th-place finish in the 100 backstroke (59.35) and 23rd-place finish in the 200 IM (2:13) at state.
Other highlights
—The softball team was the District 5-1A runner-up, defeating Bradford 16-1 in the semifinals before losing 7-4 to Madison County. The Tigers faced Madison again, winning 10-6 in the Region 3 semifinals, before their season ended with a 4-0 loss to Fort White in the Region 3 title game. Union’s final record was 18-6.
—Caleb Crawford and Alexander Cortese are District 4-1A runners-up in wrestling. They advanced to the Region 1 finals along with six teammates: Alec French (third place), Ian Halfacre (third), Danny Thornton (third), Kale Waters (third), Rodney Barnett (fourth) and Ethan Shea (fourth).
—Besides Simmons and Raulerson, the Tigers had nine advance from the District 7 finals to the Region 2 finals in boys weightlifting: Mikah Wilson (third), Maddox Wheeler (fourth place), Tucker Baynard (fourth), Dayquan Diston (fifth), Thomas Williams (fifth), Erich Seager (fifth), Gabe Castlen (fifth), Daylyn Diston (sixth) and Trenton Klein (sixth).
—Advancing to the region level in track and field: Emma Jeffers (second, 1600m), boys 4x400m (second), boys 4x100m (third), girls 4x100m (fourth), Brycen Boney (fourth, long jump) and Taleyah Smith (fourth, discus).
—Jaira Highland qualified for the Region 2-1A girls weightlifting finals after earning a fifth-place finish at the District 5 finals.
