The best in the West

Warhorses race to NCHSAA 2A West Regional Championship

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
October 30, 2022

The top 2A distance runners in Western N.C. met in Swannanoa, Oct. 28, and the Warhorses bested them all. 

The Owen cross country team, led by another first place finish from senior Elijah Jones and a second place showing by Jaheem O’Hara, captured its first NCHSAA 2A West Regional Championship since 2008.

The Western Highlands Conference champions hosted 23 teams for the event, which took place on the course at Asheville Christian Academy and included nearly 250 total runners in the boys and girls 5K races.

Jones and O’Hara led the field of 134 boys the entire race, distancing themselves from the pack well before the 1-mile marker and running side-by-side along much of the course. Jones, who has now won nine of the 10 races he’s competed in this year, pushed into the lead in the final half-mile to finish in 16:19.2, while O’Hara crossed the line in 16:20.6.

The duo’s performance marked the second straight race, and the fourth this season, in which they have finished in the first and second spots. Both seniors recorded two of the top five times in school history with their runs in the regional meet.

While four runners from second place team, Lincoln Charter, finished in the top 10, five Warhorses rounded out the top 20 spots. Sophomore Harding Kinnaird took 11th with a time of 17:23.1, while fellow 10th grader, Eli Lewkowicz and junior Leo Parmenter finished in the 13th and 14th positions.

The victory increases the Warhorses’ confidence, according to head coach Bob Sadlemire, as they head to the NCHAA 2A State Championship Meet, which will be held at 9 a.m., Saturday, Nov. 5, in Kernersville.

“We needed it, because going into state we knew if we came in second it would impact these guys, in terms of their attitude,” he said, following the regional meet. “Beating these runners here today gives them the confidence to go in and win state, which I think they can do.”

The Warhorses are ranked number 1 out of 73 teams in 2A, according to MileSplit, with the top two runners in the region elevating their teammates ahead of the title meet.

“Elijah is pulling people forward with him, and that’s really bringing out the best in Jaheem,” Sadlemire said. “And today, without Harding’s run in our third spot we wouldn’t have won.”

Jones credited O’Hara, his teammate since middle school, for helping him establish a pace in the regional meet.

“We were working off each other pretty much the entire time, and having him push me really kept me honest,” he said. “It’s really nice having that camaraderie, and I think without him being here I wouldn’t be as fast, and without me being here he wouldn’t be as fast. That dynamic has really helped build the team up.”

The regional championship “feels great,” Jones added, but the team’s job isn’t done.

“It’s been a while since our team won regionals, so this is a big confidence boost,” he said. “But this meet is just the next step for us to get to state, and we really want to win it.”

The Warlassies finished sixth out of 14 teams in the girls regional race, led by junior Piper Berry who finished 15th with a time of 22:07.5.

Photos of the Owen Cross Country teams competing in the 2022 NCHSAA 2A West Regional meet can be viewed in the gallery at the top of the page.

SportsFred McCormick