With a typical strong showing from SCHSL Region 7-4A and a pair of team state champions and an individual runner-up from the SCISA ranks, it was another stellar season for cross country teams from throughout the Lowco last fall.
After months of training, putting in high mileage mixed with grueling speed work, Lowco cross country stars showed out when it mattered most — three Lowco squads placed in the top six in the Class 4A boys standings and three area teams were in the top eight in Class 4A girls, while Holy Trinity Classical Christian School swept the SCISA 1A titles and a Hilton Head Christian Academy dynamo finished second overall in SCISA 2A.
But cross country is ultimately an individual sport, and today we honor the top performers from around the Lowco with the first All-Lowco Cross Country Teams presented by NexMove.
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ALL-LOWCO GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY 2020
First Team
Anya Arroyo, MRHS
Arroyo put together an outstanding sophomore campaign, culminating with a runner-up showing at the SCHSL Class 4A State Championships, where she ran an 18:36 5K to finish 11 seconds behind freshman Hannah Vroon of James Island. The duo should have many more duels on the track and cross country course over the next two years.
Cynthia Gudaitis, HHIHS
The Seahawks ran a limited schedule in 2020, but it was clear Gudaitis put in the work between meets. The sophomore brought her best to the state meet, running a strong 18:46 to finish third and lead Hilton Head High to a runner-up finish, just one point behind state champion James Island.
Charlize Antia, BHS
Antia’s outstanding sophomore season peaked with a PR of 19:21 to finish third at the Region 7-4A meet. Don’t let a disappointing showing at the Class 4A state qualifier fool you – she should be a state championship contender for the next two years.
Sarah Neville, HHIHS
Neville saved her best for last in her senior campaign, running a season-best 19:26 to finish fifth at the state qualifier and matching her fifth-place finish at the state meet to help the Seahawks secure a runner-up finish.
Laney Duncan, HHIHS
Duncan enjoyed an outstanding freshman season for the Seahawks, finishing in the top seven at five of six meets, including a PR of 19:21 and fourth-place showing at the Class 4A state qualifier and a seventh-place finish at the state meet.
Devon Yarde, HHCA
You might know the name from her exploits on the court or the pitch, but Yarde is also making waves on the cross country course. Her time of 19:59 at the SCISA 2A state meet was good for a runner-up finish, setting the tone for a freshman season that included state titles in basketball and soccer.
Victoria Sosa, MRHS
Sosa was as steady as could be in her junior season, improving gradually as the season progressed and hitting her season-best with a time of 20:06 at the Class 4A state meet to finish 13th.
Reagan Gilman, HHIHS
Don’t look now, but there’s another Gilman burning up the cross country course for the Seahawks, this time on the girls side. The sophomore ran a strong PR at the state qualifier with a time of 19:57 and notched a solid 16th-place finish at the Class 4A state championship.
Anna Brown, BHS
The junior held down the No. 2 spot for the Eagles all season with her best performance coming at the Region 7-4A meet, where she cracked the top 10 with a season-best 20:43 time.
Kaitlyn McDonagh, BLHS
McDonagh showed steady improvement throughout the season and PR’d with a 20:18 and a top-10 finish at the Class 4A state qualifier before posting the Bobcats’ second-best time at the state meet to place in the top 25.
Ava Gerschutz, BLHS
Gerschutz had a tough day at the Class 4A state championships, missing her PR by nearly two minutes, but that takes nothing away from her outstanding freshman season, which included four top-10 finishes and a pair of 20:04 marks at the region and state qualifier meets.
Brady Mahoney, JPII
The freshman showed massive improvement over the course of the season for the Golden Warriors, culminating with a sixth-place finish and a PR of 21:11 at the SCISA 2A state meet.
Honorable Mention
Aubrey Sampson, BLHS
Penelope Roman, BLHS
Katie Sanofsky, BLHS
Alex Hall, HHIHS
Caroline Stickler, MRHS
Hannah Reedy, HTCCS
Anna Kate Taylor, HHCA
Ava Hahn, HHCA
Ellie Schaub, HTCCS
Alyssa Lewis, BA
Anna Cate Gray, HTCCS
Caroline O’Gorman, MRHS
ALL-LOWCO BOYS CROSS COUNTRY
First Team
Marlon Belden, BHS
After missing most of the season while recovering from an offseason injury, the future Georgetown Hoya ran a season-best 16:26 to place fourth at the Class 4A state qualifier and led the Eagles with an 11th-place showing at the state meet to cap off an outstanding high school career.
Max Struna, HHIHS
Struna paced the Seahawks at both the state qualifier and state championship meets, cracking the 17-minute mark and posting top-10 finishes in both races with a PR of 16:49 in the qualifier. His time of 16:51 and ninth-place finish at the state meet led all Lowco runners.
Jaxon Beebe, MRHS
The Sharks’ most steady performer, Beebe broke the 17-minute barrier in six of his eight races
16:32 at region during his senior season, including a PR of 16:32 and sixth-place finish in Region 7-4A, before finishing strong with a top-15 performance at the Class 4A state meet.
Mills Campbell, MRHS
Another senior Shark who was consistent and reliable all season long, Campbell peaked at the region meet with a PR of 16:44 and finished in 17-flat at the Class 4A state meet to claim 16th place and help the Sharks finish fourth in the team standings.
Nash Mills, BHS
Mills earned the Region 7-4A title with a PR of 16:05, but he wasn’t at full strength for the state qualifier and championship meets. The disappointing marks at the end of the season should only prove to fuel the Eagles’ standout going into his senior season.
Joseph Patterson, BHS
Another strong underclassman for the Eagles, Patterson came on strong near the end of his sophomore season, running a PR of 17:02 at the Class 4A state qualifier to place 14th and following it up with 22nd place in the state meet.
Kyle Martin, HHIHS
The junior was the second Seahawk across the line at the Class 4A state championship finishing just four seconds off his PR of 17:12 from the state qualifier a week earlier despite much more difficult running conditions.
Gavin Moore, BHS
The seventh-grade sensation has made a name for himself in the ultramarathon world, but he’s pretty good at this 5K thing, too, evidenced by a 16:49 PR and ninth-place finish at the Class 4A state qualifier and a solid 27th-place showing at the state meet.
Colin Keck, MRHS
One of several Lowco runners who weren’t at their best during the state meet, Keck’s 31st-place finish wasn’t indicative of his season or career — he broke 17 minutes in six straight races leading up to the season finale, including a blazing 16:05 and runner-up finish at the Region 7-4A meet.
Will Lemire, HHIHS
Another member of the Seahawks’ strong junior class, Lemire peaked at the end of the season, running a season-best 17:03 at the Class 4A state qualifier and cracking the top 30 at the state championship meet.
Armando Macias Jimenez, BLHS
The Bobcats’ star senior wasn’t himself at the Class 4A state meet, but he showed off his skills with a blazing 16:20 PR to place fourth at the Region 7-4A meet and nearly matched it with a 16:21 and sixth-place finish at the state qualifier.
Connor Eby, BHS
The highlight of Eby’s solid sophomore season came at the Region 7-4A meet, where his PR of 16:29 resulted in an impressive top-five finish and marked nearly a one-minute improvement and a sign of things to come the next two years.
Honorable Mention
Nick Gariti, HHIHS
Cohen MacDonald, MRHS
Charlie Bennett, BHS
Sean Hamby, MRHS
Noah Wasserman, MRHS
Caden Thune, HHIHS
Holden Starr, BHS
Charles Deaton, BLHS
Daniel Reedy, HTCCS
Jaxon Arns, HHIHS
Nicholas Cunningham, BLHS
Damian Polite, MRHS