WCPSS has 15 top-10 performances at Cross Country State Championships

Wake County once again proved it’s the home to some of North Carolina’s best distance running talent, with state champions, top-10 finishes, and team podiums across every classification WCPSS schools competed in at the NCHSAA State Cross Country Championships held at Ivey Redmon Sports Complex.

From Middle Creek’s 6A performance led by the McHales, to Holly Springs and Cary’s top-10 showings in 7A, and a historic 8A performance from Broughton and Panther Creek, Wake County’s presence was felt in every race.

Middle Creek’s McHale Sisters Lead 6A Girls to Podium Finish

The Middle Creek Mustangs finished among the top 3 teams in the NCHSAA 6A Girls’ Championship, powered by the McHale sisters, who finished back-to-back in the top six.

Girls 6A Results

Kaleigh McHale – 5th, 18:35.98
Brynn McHale – 6th, 18:37.71
Leah Brooks – 34th, 20:42.23
Reagan Owens – 35th, 20:42.97
Brooke Ellsworth – 42nd, 20:52.07
Sarah Frye – 84th, 22:42.16
Erin Stacey – 85th, 22:45.19

Middle Creek’s five scorers all placed inside the top 45, securing one of the best finishes in program history.

Felton Grove’s Chloe Poyiatzi (86th, 22:47.60) also represented Wake County in the 6A girls’ race.

Middle Creek’s boys placed three runners in the top 45, giving the Mustangs strong performances across both divisions.

Boys 6A Results

William Herzich – 37th, 17:25.75
Jude Broussard – 38th, 17:25.80
Hudson Boelstler – 44th, 17:34.52
Alejandro Reyes – 116th, 19:11.97
Alex Brierly – 122nd, 19:30.47
Brady Kellam – 133rd, 19:48.12

Felton Grove’s Ethan Murphy (108th, 19:03.94) and John Appleton (120th, 19:20.79) added solid performances, as did Nathan Duewer (129th, 19:39.61) and Ethan Jeter (134th, 19:49.99).

Holly Springs and Cary Lead 7A Field; Williams and Derifaj Among State’s Best

Holly Springs’ Brandon Williams continued his standout season with a third-place finish (15:38.06) in the 7A Boys’ Championship, while teammate Cruz Ledford placed 12th (16:05.29) to help lead the Golden Hawks to a top-3 team finish.

On the girls’ side, Arabel Cluff (9th, 18:36.43) and Erin Ahearn (15th, 18:58.22) both earned top-15 finishes, anchoring Holly Springs’ top-five team placement.

Girls 7A Results – Holly Springs & Cary Highlights

Audrey Derifaj (Cary) – 8th, 18:35.28
Arabel Cluff (Holly Springs) – 9th, 18:36.43
Erin Ahearn (Holly Springs) – 15th, 18:58.22
Holly Hughes (Cary) – 29th, 19:36.49
Kendall Snyder (Holly Springs) – 34th, 19:44.97
Khloey Snyder (Holly Springs) – 36th, 19:46.61
Katie von Koch (Holly Springs) – 38th, 19:49.58
Elizabeth Hart (Holly Springs) – 39th, 19:50.41

Cary’s Derifaj and Hughes joined the Holly Springs pack to give Wake County seven runners in the top 40 statewide.

Boys 7A Results – Holly Springs Dominates

Brandon Williams – 3rd, 15:38.06
Cruz Ledford – 12th, 16:05.29
Wyatt Odom – 28th, 16:26.99
Owen Martinez – 35th, 16:33.76
Brendan Keenan – 40th, 16:38.07
Nicholas Fours – 59th, 16:54.96
Aiden Butler – 78th, 17:19.41

Cary, Heritage, Sanderson, and Wake Forest also packed multiple athletes into the 17-minute range.

Broughton, Panther Creek, and Green Level Dominate the 8A Championships

Wake County schools controlled both the boys’ and girls’ races in the 8A division, filling the leaderboard with top-20 finishes and team podiums.

Girls 8A Results

Louisa Betz (Broughton) – 5th, 18:40.50
Ruth Metaferia (Leesville Road) – 6th, 18:42.44
Sadie Wortman (Green Level) – 7th, 18:48.64
Katlyn Brumback (Apex) – 9th, 18:52.76
Abigail Norman (Panther Creek) – 11th, 18:59.72
Jillian Luke (Willow Spring) – 15th, 19:09.60
Kaylene Bustos (Green Level) – 16th, 19:11.18
Lauren Hagg (Athens Drive) – 17th, 19:12.89
Naomi Greengrass (Green Level) – 18th, 19:15.85
Janie Mall (Broughton) – 19th, 19:17.31
Neela Chintapalli (Green Level) – 20th, 19:24.35

Wake County claimed nine of the top 20 spots in the 8A girls’ race, led by Broughton, Green Level, and Panther Creek, each placing multiple runners near the front.

Boys 8A Results

Evan Rounds (Panther Creek) – 2nd, 15:42.82
Samuel Cowell (Apex Friendship) – 3rd, 15:43.27
Mohammed Mohammed (Green Level) – 6th, 15:52.03
Sam Wooten (Broughton) – 7th, 15:57.18
Chase Liming (Broughton) – 8th, 15:58.02
Sawyer Lisk (Leesville Road) – 9th, 16:00.40
Nathan Vo (Green Hope) – 10th, 16:00.50
Cam Kuss (Broughton) – 11th, 16:01.24
Charlie Slawinski (Broughton) – 12th, 16:01.40
Tyler Burke (Broughton) – 14th, 16:04.79

Broughton placed five runners in the top 15, dominating the 8A team standings, while Panther Creek’s Rounds earned a state runner-up finish, leading a powerful contingent that included Ethan Rounds (16th, 16:09.03) and Samuel Pitchford (17th, 16:10.52).

In total, Wake County runners claimed eight of the top 10 and 16 of the top 20 finishes in the 8A boys’ field.

Wake County’s Cross Country Supremacy Continues

Across all divisions, Wake County programs combined for:

3 runners in the top 5 of their respective races
15 top-10 finishes
Over 60 runners inside the top 100 statewide

Wake County Schools Results

6A Girls

5 – Kaleigh McHale (Middle Creek) – 18:35.98
6 – Brynn McHale (Middle Creek) – 18:37.71
34 – Leah Brooks (Middle Creek) – 20:42.23
35 – Reagan Owens (Middle Creek) – 20:42.97
42 – Brooke Ellsworth (Middle Creek) – 20:52.07
84 – Sarah Frye (Middle Creek) – 22:42.16
85 – Erin Stacey (Middle Creek) – 22:45.19
86 – Chloe Poyiatzi (Felton Grove) – 22:47.60

6A Boys

37 – William Herzich (Middle Creek) – 17:25.75
38 – Jude Broussard (Middle Creek) – 17:25.80
44 – Hudson Boelstler (Middle Creek) – 17:34.52
108 – Ethan Murphy (Felton Grove) – 19:03.94
116 – Alejandro Reyes (Middle Creek) – 19:11.97
120 – John Appleton (Felton Grove) – 19:20.79
122 – Alex Brierly (Middle Creek) – 19:30.47
129 – Nathan Duewer (Felton Grove) – 19:39.61
133 – Brady Kellam (Middle Creek) – 19:48.12
134 – Ethan Jeter (Felton Grove) – 19:49.99
135 – Atticus Shaffer (Felton Grove) – 19:50.64
136 – Jayden Kingston (Felton Grove) – 20:00.40
139 – Maxon Shaeffer (Middle Creek) – 20:34.48
141 – Kyle Chudek (Felton Grove) – 20:44.85

7A Girls

8 – Audrey Derifaj (Cary) – 18:35.28
9 – Arabel Cluff (Holly Springs) – 18:36.43
15 – Erin Ahearn (Holly Springs) – 18:58.22
29 – Holly Hughes (Cary) – 19:36.49
34 – Kendall Snyder (Holly Springs) – 19:44.97
36 – Khloey Snyder (Holly Springs) – 19:46.61
38 – Katie von Koch (Holly Springs) – 19:49.58
39 – Elizabeth Hart (Holly Springs) – 19:50.41
55 – Makenzie Lorion (Holly Springs) – 20:27.04
56 – Austyn Anderson (Garner) – 20:27.68
66 – Reagan Redwine (Fuquay-Varina) – 20:41.63
88 – Rachel Hickey (Heritage) – 21:30.26
89 – Mia Lehman (Cary) – 21:32.26
91 – Sadie Dickinson (Heritage) – 21:35.68
98 – Lily Alston (Wake Forest) – 21:42.06
100 – Ava Jones (Wake Forest) – 21:47.49
110 – Peyton Baker (Heritage) -21:59.72
112 – Savannah Haught (Wake Forest) – 22:02.48
115 – Payton Alexander (Heritage) – 22:11.20
124 – Ava McLaurin (Cary) – 22:48.29
125 – Kira Schneider (Cary) – 22:49.22
130 – Beatrice Werdel (Cary) – 23:13.44
134 – Skylar Pittman (Heritage) – 23:41.25
140 – Camille Kennedy (Heritage) – 24:24.50

7A Boys

3 – Brandon Williams (Holly Springs) – 15:38.06
12 – Cruz Ledford (Holly Springs) – 16:05.29
28 – Wyatt Odom (Holly Springs) – 16:26.99
35 – Owen Martinez (Holly Springs) – 16:33.76
40 – Brendan Keenan (Holly Springs) – 16:38.07
51 – James Thomason (Heritage) – 16:49.78
59 – Nicholas Fours (Holly Springs) – 16:54.96
65 – Landen Holland (Wake Forest) – 17:01.36
77 – Connor Boles (Cary) – 17:16.96
78 – Aiden Butler (Holly Springs) – 17:19.41
84 – Zach Ball (Sanderson) – 17:27.05
91 – Bradley Pond (Wake Forest) – 17:33.25
93 – Alexander Kelly (Wake Forest) – 17:36.10
103 – Preston Shaw (Cary) – 17:50.94
105 – Leslie Bell (Wake Forest) – 17:51.59
106 – Zeke Tart (Cary) – 17:51.64
107 – Lukas Allen (Sanderson) – 17:53.11
109 – Aidan Pendse (Sanderson) – 17:54.92
113 – Petros Burleson (Wake Forest) – 17:58.77
114 – Lorenzo Fornaro (Sanderson) – 18:00.30
119 – Jordan Parrella (Wake Forest) – 18:04.50
122 – Roman Black (Cary) – 18:13.56
124 – Cooper Richardson (Sanderson) – 18:15.80
130 – Mac Williamson (Sanderson) – 18:27.93
131 – Lincoln Berry (Cary) – 18:28.98
137 – Erik Bates (Cary) – 18:53.12
138 – Tyler Raitano (Wake Forest) – 18:58.23
139 – Logan Leininger (Cary) – 19:00.89
140 – Rafael Asencio (Sanderson) – 19:02.69

8A Girls

5 – Louisa Betz (Broughton) – 18:40.50
6 – Ruth Metaferia (Leesville Road) – 18:42.44
7 – Sadie Wortman (Green Level) – 18:48.64
9 – Katlyn Brumback (Apex) – 18:52.76
11 – Abigail Norman (Panther Creek) – 18:59.72
15 – Jillian Luke (Willow Spring) – 19:09.60
16 – Kaylene Bustos (Green Level) – 19:11.18
17 – Lauren Hagg (Athens Drive) – 19:12.89
18 – Naomi Greengrass (Green Level) – 19:15.85
19 – Janie Mall (Broughton) – 19:17.31
20 – Neela Chintapalli (Green Level) – 19:24.35
21 – Ella Chamberlain (Apex Friendship) – 19:25.61
22 – Molly Anderson (Athens Drive) – 19:26.09
23 – Genevieve Helfrich (Broughton) – 19:31.63
24 – Olivia Boyette (Apex Friendship) – 19:31.80
27 – Meredith Wildes (Apex Friendship) – 19:35.59
30 – Kayde Lareau (Green Level) – 19:44.14
34 – Josephine Pitchford (Panther Creek) – 19:48.05
36 – Lilah Pastoor (Panther Creek) – 19:52.29
38 – Madeline Cornwell (Green Level) – 19:56.74
39 – Isabel Short (Green Hope) – 19:58.55
41- Lulu Killian (Green Level) – 20:01.97
42 – Samantha Mayhew (Athens Drive) – 20:05.14
47 – Blakely Ainsley (Apex Friendship) – 20:13.13
48 – Claire Kirkpatrick (Broughton) – 20:13.91
49 – Adrianna Donahue (Panther Creek) – 20:16.15
50 – Nivedha Mahadevan (Panther Creek) – 20:17.05
52 – Jamie Johnson (Panther Creek) – 20:19.39
53 – Grace Kirkpatrick (Broughton) – 20:19.42
54 – Alexis Kim (Apex Friendship) – 20:20.45
58 – Ella Anderson (Athens Drive) – 20:33.59
62 – Siyona Varshney (Panther Creek) – 20:41.92
64 – Britain Lail (Broughton) – 20:43.52
69 – Anya Barcello (Athens Drive) – 20:49.95
70 – Makenna Haire (Apex Friendship) – 20:50.58
71 – Payton Rice (Apex Friendship) – 20:52.26
75 – Sydney Dunn (Athens Drive) – 21:03.84
80 – Avery Jackson (Broughton) – 21:16.59
86 – Clara Pierce (Athens Drive) – 21:36.63

8A Boys

2 – Evan Rounds (Panther Creek) – 15:42.82
3 – Samuel Cowell (Apex Friendship) – 15:43.27
6 – Mohammed Mohammed (Green Level) – 15:52.03
7 – Sam Wooten (Broughton) – 15:57.18
8 – Chase Liming (Broughton) – 15:58.02
9 – Sawyer Lisk (Leesville Road) – 16:00.40
10 – Nathan Vo (Green Hope) – 16:00.50
11 – Cam Kuss (Broughton) – 16:01.24
12 – Charlie Slawinski (Broughton) – 16:01.40
14 – Tyler Burke (Broughton) – 16:04.79
16 – Ethan Rounds (Panther Creek) – 16:09.03
17 – Samuel Pitchford (Panther Creek) – 16:10.52
18 – Nick Morizio (Green Level) – 16:14.82
20 – Reed Emanuel (Enloe) – 16:18.09
21 – Gavin Clewley (Leesville Road) – 16:20.29
22 – Cameron Tierney (Apex Friendship) – 16:22.18
24- Joshua Cooper (Willow Spring) – 16:27.55
25 – Gabriel Cardenas (Green Hope) – 16:28.36
26 – Andrew Leary (Green Hope) – 16:30.51
27 – Martin Peytchev (Panther Creek) – 16:31.38
29 – Cole Schmidt (Apex Friendship) – 16:33.33
31 – Jacob Urben (Broughton) – 16:34.91
32 – Laken Anderson (Athens Drive) – 16:34.98
34 – Jack Elchik (Apex Friendship) – 16:37.74
35 – Vrishank Yellanur (Panther Creek) – 16:41.69
36 – Adam Mitchell (Green Hope) – 16:42.96
38 – Matthew Wexler (Apex Friendship) – 16:45.16
40 – Tausiq Thokala (Panther Creek) – 16:47.57
41 – Max Garlinghouse (Green Level) – 16:48.57
42 – Arav Surti (Panther Creek) – 16:49.31
43 – Rafael Dlott (Green Hope) – 16:51.51
44 – Berkman Robotton (Green Hope) – 16:52.02
46 – Miguel Carrasco Gomez (Green Hope) – 16:56.78
50 – Luke Abell (Green Level) – 17:01.92
58 – Wyatt Pearce (Millbrook) – 17:13.30
59 – David Elchik (Apex Friendship) – 17:13.37
60 – Logan McKay (Broughton) – 17:16.98
61 – Kekoa Perkins (Green Level) – 17:17.79
67 – Tyler Riedl (Apex Friendship) – 17:21.56
75 – Henry Schawel (Green Level) – 17:32.30
81 – Niko Killian (Green Level) – 17:49.12