
Eastern senior Brandy Shular crosses the finish line to win this year’s Southern Hills Athletic Conference high school girls cross country championship race. Photo by Wade Linville
To top off a successful high school career of Southern Hills Athletic Conference cross country, Eastern senior Brandy Shular finished as winner of the SHAC Cross Country Championship Meet held Saturday, Oct. 12 at Ripley-Union-Lewis-Huntington High School’s Blue Jay Stadium.
Shular tackled the hilly 5K course near the Ohio River in Ripley to post a finish time of 20:43.00 on a field of 41 runners, becoming the 2024 SHAC high school girls champion.
The Eastern Lady Warriors finished third of six teams in this year’s SHAC Championship Meet.
Eastern junior Kilie Belcher finished eighth overall with a finish time of 22:22.10.
Eastern senior Kallie Smallwood placed 16th with a finish time of 23:49.70.
Eastern freshman Cheyenne Mosbacker placed 19th with a finish time of 24:24.80, and rounding out Eastern’s first five to the finish line was junior Etta Moore, who placed 23rd overall with a time of 25:13.30.
The West Union Lady Dragons finished as the SHAC high school girls champions, while the Manchester Lady Greyhounds finished in second place.
Fayetteville-Perry High School lacked enough runners to field a full team, but Fayetteville junior Alexis Deffren competed as an individual in this year’s SHAC Cross Country Championships. Deffren placed 14th overall with a finish time of 23:31.00.
The top 15 to the finish line earn spots on the All-SHAC XC Team.
The home standing RULH Lady Jays finished in sixth place, led to the finish line by freshman Aubree May, who placed 29th overall with a time of 26:37.60.
In SHAC high school boys’ action, it was Whiteoak’s senior running star, Landen Eyre, leading all runners to the finish line to become the 2024 SHAC XC champion.
Eyre posted a 5K finish time of 15:47.30.
The first runner of a Brown County school to reach the finish line in the high school boys race was Eastern freshman Dalton Day, who placed third on the field of 63 runners with a finish time of 17:33.90.
The Lynchburg-Clay Mustangs finished first of the high school boys teams, followed by Manchester in second place and Fairfield in third place.
The Eastern Warriors finished fourth of nine teams.
Eastern sophomore Kayne Dotson placed 12th overall with a time of 18:40.20.
Eastern freshman Preston Combs placed 18th overall with a time of 19:26.50.
Eastern sophomore Jaidon Florence finished 39th overall with a time of 21:14.20, and rounding out Eastern’s top five to the finish line was senior Kyle Gorton, who placed 54th with a time of 23:30.30.
The Ripley-Union-Lewis-Huntington Blue Jays finished in ninth place.
Sophomore Braylon Scarbrough led the Blue Jays to the finish line, placing 11th overall with a finish time of 18:33.00.
Junior Ian Young was the second Blue Jay to cross the finish line, placing 38th with a time of 21:08.70.
Ripley sophomore Alex Nash placed 42nd with a time of 21:37.40.
Ripley sophomore Jase Lang placed 44th with a time of 21:56.10, and rounding out the Blue Jays’ top five to the finish line was senior Izayah Goins, who placed 47th overall with a time of 22:08.90.
HS BOYS TEAM SCORES
1. Lynchburg-Clay 45
2. Manchester 62
3. Fairfield 108
4. Eastern 122
5. Whiteoak 124
6. North Adams 159
7. Peebles 167
8. West Union 168
9. Ripley 178
HS GIRLS TEAM SCORES
1. West Union 35
2. Manchester 50
3. Eastern 54
4. Fairfield 107
5. North Adams 109
6. Ripley 147