The following is a look at the high school varsity teams and individuals that won championships at the district, regional or state levels, earned medals in state competition or that qualified to participate in regional and state competitions in 2021. Any omissions are unintentional.
BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Telegraph Staff Writer
Union County High School won 23 championships at the district, regional and state levels in 2021, with the boys and girls weightlifting teams combining to account for 22.
It was more of the same for the girls team, which produced at least one individual state champion for the sixth straight year. It marked the third time during that span that the Tigers have had at least two individual champs.
Mahailya Reeves won her third straight state title, winning the unlimited class with a 490 total, while Courtney Comer, a state runner-up in 2020, won the 169 class with a 415 total.
Union had three participants in all at the Class 1A finals, with Erica Roseke earning a medal as the runner-up in the 119 class with a 270 total.
The three lifters helped Union place third in the team standings behind state champ Suwannee and runner-up Altha.
Comer, Reeves and Roseke began their run to state by winning their classes at the District 5 finals. It was the third straight district title for Reeves, who had a 460 total, and the second straight title for Comer, who had a 345 total. Roseke’s winning total was 240.
Union’s Lilly Donaldson placed sixth in the 129 class with a 220 total, which earned her the right to advance to the Region 2 finals along with Comer, Reeves and Roseke.
Reeves won her third straight regional championship with a 480 total, while Comer won her second straight title with a 385 total. Roseke won her first-ever regional championship with a 255 total.
Approximately two months after the efforts put forth by Comer, Reeves and Roseke on the state platform, the Tigers were showing out at state again, this time on the boys side. Blake Bass and Quinn Raulerson won the 129 and 183 classes, respectively, making it just the second time in
history that the school has produced two state champs in boys weightlifting. Larry Fleming and Timothy Holmes won titles in 1979.
The Tigers also earned state medals from Arthur Brown, who was the runner-up in the 139 class, Spencer Malm, who was fourth in the 169 class, and Christian Simmons, who was fifth in the 119 class.
Union’s five total medals were the most in program history.
The road to those state accomplishments began at the District 7-1A finals, which saw the Tigers claim the team championship trophy after winning all but two weight classes.
Individual district champions for Union were Simmons (295 total), Bass (455), Brown (440), Malm (505), Raulerson (645), A.J. Cortese in the 219 class (430), Dayven Kelley in the 238 class (380) and Mikah Wilson in the heavyweight class (530).
The top six in each class earned the right to advance to regional competition, which gave Union an additional nine qualifiers, including district runners-up Michael Mohl in the 169 class (450) and Caleb Crawford in the 183 class (460).
Five lifters took third place: Bobo Woodall in the 119 class (230), Brycen Boney in the 154 class (315), Carson Rogers in the 199 class (435), Dylan Lane in the 219 class (330) and Tucker Baynard in the heavyweight class (510).
Also earning regional berths were Zeb Raulerson with a fifth-place finish in the 129 class (215) and Dalton Lane with a sixth-place finish in the 199 class (335).
At the Region 2 finals, Bass and Raulerson won their classes with totals of 465 and 620, respectively, to automatically qualify for state. Earning at-large berths to state were Region 2 runners-up Brown (445) and Malm (510), third-place finisher Simmons (315) and sixth-place finisher Mohl (460).
The state finals saw Bass prove to be the strongest lifter, pound for pound, according to the Schawartz Formula, while Raulerson was determined to be the second strongest lifter. Bass won his championship with a 465 total, while Raulerson won with a 650 total.
Brown earned his runner-up finish with a 435 total, while Malm and Simmons had totals of 535 and 325, respectively.
Mohl placed 13th in his class with a 460 total.
Simmons wrestles way to state tourney
Christian Simmons was the District 4-1A runner-up and placed third at the Region 1 finals to advance to the wrestling state finals.
Simmons, who wrestled in the 106-pound class, dropped his first match at state, but then defeated one opponent 5-3 and pinned another in 1:45. His season came to an end with a 3-1 loss, giving him a 35-19 record for the season.
It was the second season of existence for the Union program, with Simmons being the first wrestler to make it to state.
Union earned the team runner-up trophy at the District 4 finals, which saw Simmons and 11 others earn the right to advance to regional competition.
Simmons, Cade Vaughn (138 class), Ethan Shea (145) and Caleb Crawford (160) each went 1-1 after first-round byes to finish as district runners-up in their respective classes. Simmons advanced to his championship match by pinning an opponent 30 seconds, while Vaughn and Shea also advanced to their championship matches off pins of 1:11 and 3:40, respectively. Crawford rode an 11-2 major decision into his championship match.
Five earned third-place finishes: Kale Waters (113), Rodney Barnett (126), Alexander Cortese (152), Danny Thornton (170) and Brett Abraham (195).
Ian Halfacre (132), Carson Rogers (182) and Mikah Wilson (285) also earned regional berths by virtue of fourth-place finishes.
At the Region 1 finals, Simmons pinned four straight opponents after a 1-1 start to place third and earn the right to go to state. He began by pinning an opponent in 1:09 before getting pinned in 1:54. He then recorded victories in 40 seconds, 1:20, 1:49 and (in the third-place match) 4:14.
Vaughn fell one win shy of wrestling for third place in his class. He pinned his first opponent in 1:41 before getting pinned in 5:07 in the second round. Vaughn then pinned two straight opponents in 2:37 and 2:47 before he was pinned himself in 4:40.
Shea, Cortese, Crawford and Thornton earned a win each at the meet.
Football team goes undefeated until loss in Region 3-1A final
Union put together a memorable football season, going undefeated in the regular season for the first time since 2012 and doing so in dominating fashion, defeating opponents by an average margin of 31 points.
The Tigers were awarded the third seed in Region 3-1A and began the playoffs with a 48-13 win over Trenton in the quarterfinals.
Rayvon Durant rushed for 207 yards and three touchdowns, while the defense held Trenton to six points until the fourth quarter.
One of Durant’s touchdowns covered 69 yards, while quarterback A.J. Cortese, who finished with 126 yards of the team’s 408 rushing total, had a scoring run of 58 yards.
Caleb Crawford rushed for two touchdowns, while Dayviontae “Bubba” Thompson rushed for one.
Cortese completed 4-of-5 passes for 45 yards, with Dayln Diston catching two for 24 yards.
Johnny Edwards was 6-of-7 on extra-point attempts.
Holtzendorf led the team in tackles with 10 and had a fumble recovery that set up Crawford’s first touchdown run.
In the Region 3 semifinals, Union held only a one-score lead at halftime, but the Tigers got two touchdown runs from Cortese and two interception returns for touchdowns from Diston as they outscored Hilliard 31-0 in the second half of what would be a 52-14 win.
Cortese rushed for 114 yards, while Diston’s interception returns covered 51 and 85 yards.
Crawford, who rushed for 80 yards, Durant and Thompson each rushed for a score.
Edwards kicked a 33-yard field goal and was 6-of-7 on PATs.
Holtzendorf, Malcolm Odum and Curran Webb each had a team-high seven tackles.
The Tigers carried a 12-0 record into the Region 3 championship game, but came up short of keeping their season alive, losing 29-27 to Chiefland.
Cortese scored the game’s first touchdown on a 25-yard run, but the Tigers wound up trailing 23-7 before an 11-yard touchdown reception by Diston. Diston added a successful two-point conversion run to make it a 23-15 game at halftime.
Durant, who rushed for 108 yards, scored on a 39-yard run to pull the Tigers to within 23-21 in the third quarter.
The difference in the game proved to be a return of a blocked punt for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, which put the Indians ahead 29-21.
Union drove 62 yards and scored a touchdown on a 1-yard run by Durant with 1:08 remaining. The Tigers’ two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful.
Diston finished the game with five receptions for 66 yards. Cortese completed 7-of-16 passes for 154 yards.
Tigers win 1st volleyball district title in 4 years
They had played for their district championship seven times in the preceding 10 years, but the Tigers hadn’t won a volleyball title since 2017.
The Tigers finally got another championship trophy, defeating Newberry 3-2 (15-25, 25-14, 25-22, 19-25, 15-11) in a hard-fought District 7-1A final.
Union reached the championship match by defeating Hilliard 3-0 (25-11, 25-14, 25-21) in the semifinals. Sabrena Howard had 15 kills, 12 digs and four aces, while Jaycee Davis had nine kills, 11 digs and seven aces. Caleigh Avery added seven digs and six kills, while Jurney Ccrim had 18 digs. Maegan Beatty recorded 32 assists and four service aces.
In the tiebreaker set of the championship match, the Tigers scored two points with Crim serving to take an 11-8 lead. Newberry scored three points before Union closed out the match with four straight points. The winning point came off Davis’ 21st kill of the match.
Davis and Howard each finished with 24 digs, while Howard added 18 kills. Beatty had 36 assists, while Crim led the team in digs (31) and aces (6).
Avery and Emily Wilson each had a team-high three blocks. Beatty and Davis each had two.
The Region 4 playoffs for the Tigers began with a rematch, but this time, Newberry defeated them 3-2 (25-22, 28-26, 22-25, 18-25, 15-13).
Attacks by Howard and Davis, who finished with 26 and 16 kills, respectively, played a large role in the Tigers rebounding from a 2-0 deficit and win the third and fourth sets. Newberry got off to a fast start in the fifth set, taking a 6-2 lead. Union scored three straight points (two with Avery serving) to tie the score at 10-10, but the Panthers would eventually take a 13-10 lead.
Davis recorded a kill and tipped the ball over the net for another point as Union was able to tie the score again, but the Panthers scored two straight points off a block and a kill to win the match.
Beatty finished with 52 assists, while Crim led the team in digs with 24. Howard had 22 digs, while Beatty and Davis had 18 and 17, respectively. Chrissy Quiett added 15 digs.
Avery and Addisyn Worrell had three and two blocks, respectively, while Beatty and Howard each had five aces.
The Tigers finished the season with a 14-9 record.
Softball team wins District 5-1A title
Union scored a total of 23 runs in two games as it breezed through the District 5-1A softball tournament, winning the championship trophy with a 15-5 win over Hilliard.
In the tournament semifinals, Lily Neal gave up two hits and struck out 11 in an 8-2 win over Hamilton County.
Mackenzie Clemons hit a single that drove in two runs in a four-run first inning.
Randa Goodwin went 2-for-4 with an RBI, while Tamia Young went 2-for-2.
Starla Vaughn went 4-for-5 with four RBI to help power the Tigers to the championship win over Hilliard.
Union held a 6-5 lead before scoring four runs in the fifth off Young’s two-RBI single, Reah Jones’ RBI triple and Vaughn’s RBI double.
Young went 2-for-5 with four RBI, while Hannah Rivera went 2-for-4 with two RBI. Jones went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Neal allowed six hits in earning the win.
The Tigers played Taylor County in the Region 3 semifinals, with Union getting outscored 10-1 in the final four innings of a 14-5 loss.
Clemons went 3-for-4, while Vaughn and Leah Clark went 2-for-2 and 2-for-5, respectively.
Union finished its season with a 12-9 record.
Baseball team reaches region finals
The baseball team went 19-3 in the regular season and entered the regional playoffs as the District 6-1A runner-up before losing to Hamilton County in the Region 3 championship game.
Union had no trouble reaching the District 6 title game, defeating Branford 20-2 in the semifinals.
Whip Davis pitched all four innings, holding the Bucs to four hits and one walk. He struck out seven.
Quinten Rawls had one of the highlights of an eight-run first inning, hitting a double with the bases loaded to score all three runners. Davis had a two-RBI single.
It was 10-1 when the Tigers scored another 10 runs in the third. Like Rawls in the first inning, Manny Covey hit a bases-loaded double that scored every runner. Jake O’Steen batted twice, driving in one run on a single and then driving in two on another single.
Davis and O’Steen each finished 3-for-3, while Rawls went 2-for-3.
Payden Clyatt and Tripp Davis each had two RBI, with Davis going 3-for-4.
Jay Cohen and Skyler Shatto each had one RBI, with Cohen going 3-for-3.
In the District 6 championship game, the Tigers took a 1-0 lead on Cohen’s RBI, but Hamilton County took the lead for good with a three-run homer in the fourth, handing Union an eventual 6-2 loss.
Union left six runners stranded in scoring position, while another was thrown out at home.
Cohen drove in both of his team’s runs, while Rawls and Whip Davis went 2-for-4 and 2-for-3, respectively.
The Tigers rebounded from the loss in a big way, with O’Steen driving in five runs in a 19-2 win over Liberty County in the Region 3 semifinals.
Union scored in every inning but one, led 6-0 before Liberty scored and plated 11 runs in the top of the sixth to enforce the mercy rule after the Bulldogs batted in the bottom of the inning.
While Union was scoring plenty of runs, Liberty was being held in check by pitcher Tripp Davis, who threw all six innings, giving up five hits and no walks. He struck out five.
O’Steen, who went 4-for-4, hit a three-run double as part the big sixth inning that also featured RBI singles by Cohen, Whip Davis and Luke Johns and an RBI double by Ayden Elixson. Clyatt drove in a run on a sacrifice fly, while Covey drew a bases-loaded walk to force in a run. Another run was forced in when Rawls was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Whip Davis went 4-for-5 with three RBI, while Tripp Davis went 2-for-3 with an RBI. Cohen was 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Union had 16 hits in all and got two RBI from Covey and one RBI each from Clyatt, Elixson, Johns, Rawls and Eli Rimes.
The win set up a rematch with Hamilton County in the Region 3 championship game, with the Trojans defeating the Tigers 6-3.
Union, which finished the season with a 21-5 record, had only four hits and didn’t score until the sixth inning when Whip Davis drove in a run. That made the score 4-1, but the Trojans plated two runs in the bottom of the inning.
The Tigers scored twice in the seventh, with O’Steen hitting an RBI triple and Cohen driving in a run on a ground out.
Zapp plays at regionals in golf
Caleb Zapp earned the right to compete at the regional level in golf with his performance at the District 3-1A finals.
Zapp made two birdies and shot par on five holes to finish with an 18-hole score of 83. It was the fifth-lowest score overall and the second-lowest among individuals not on the top three teams, which qualified Zapp for the Region 1 finals.
The score of 83 was a 15-stroke improvement for Zapp from the 2020 district finals.
At the Region 1 finals, Zapp placed 58th with a score of 102. He made par on two holes.
