BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Both of Keystone Heights High School’s cross-country teams are advancing to region-level competition after earning top eight finishes at the District 2-2A meet, which was held Nov. 3 at Jacksonville’s Bishop Kenny High School.
The boys team placed seventh out of 18 teams, finishing behind Bolles, Bishop Kenny, Eastside, Episcopal, Wolfson and Suwannee. Fernandina Beach earned the last regional-qualifying spot with an eighth-place finish.
Noah Yara led the Keystone boys with a time of 17:43, which placed him 26th out of 163. Teammate Ryder Thomas wasn’t far behind with a 29th-place time of 17:47.
Hunter Sheppard and Hunter Gray placed 36th and 43rd, respectively, with times of 17:57 and 18:16, while Ryeland Wahl was 77th with a time of 19:36.
Also running for Keystone were Jason Parales, who had a time of 20:21, Gavin Morford, who had a time of 20:53, Mason Gray, who had a time of 21:31, Oliver Miller, who had a time of 21:41, and Alex Mahaffey, who had a time of 22:02.
Keystone earned the last qualifying spot on the girls, placing eighth ahead of Eastside. Bishop Kenny was first, followed by Episcopal, Bolles, Fernandina Beach, Wolfson, Stanton and Suwannee.
The Indians were led by Ryleigh Thomas, who placed 30th out of 131 with a time of 20:24. Teammate Melody Tyre finished with a 45th-place time of 21:29.
Tessa Gray and Olivia Griffin were 69th and 79th, respectively, with times of 23:37 and 24:40, while Keystone also had the following results: Kirsten Lavin 26:01, Bailee Morris 26:01, Clara Beth Robinson 28:36, Schiley Starling 30:27 and Raina Daniel 32:20.
The Region 1 meet will be held Friday, Nov. 14, at Jacksonville’s Cecil Field Golf Course. The girls race will start at 7:30 a.m., followed by the boys race at 8 a.m.
