Carson coach Zachary Marchinko with runner-up Eric Gillis, left, and  county champ Jorge Clemente-Garcia, right.

 

By Mike London

mike.london@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY—It’s officially a dynasty.

Six of South Rowan’s eight county championships in boys cross country have come in the last seven years.

The latest title for the Raiders came on the hills of Salisbury Community Park on Thursday and showed that South can keep winning, even without male Julians.

Noah Julian led three South squads to county titles in a career that intersected for one season with that of his younger brother, Eli. Then Eli led two more county champs before Carson interrupted South’s fun and Eli’s senior tour in 2023 with a powerful team that was one of the best in 3A.

Carson still has two phenoms, two of the top runners in the region — Jorge Clemente-Garcia and Eric Gillis — and they ran away from the field on Thursday, posting times of 16:17 and 16:37, respectively. But South survived the Cougars’ potent 1-2 punch and returned to the top of the team leaderboard.

South’s score of 44 edged West Rowan’s 47. Carson placed third with a 59. East Rowan (99) and Salisbury (111) were well back.

“We don’t have any guys like the Julians now, don’t have anyone like those two guys Carson has,” South head coach Tyler Downs said. “We don’t have a lot of flash and glitter about us and we’re not going to blow anyone away, but we’ve got some tough guys and they got the job done.”

Ethan Overby, who ran 17:50 and edged Salisbury’s Samuel Fatovic for third place, has led the Raiders all season and came through again in his role as team leader.

Davis Kemp, a freshman switch-hitting middle infielder who is expected to be the next big thing for South Rowan baseball, ran a PR 18:19 on a tough course that isn’t conducive to PRs . His eighth-place finish was huge.

“He’s going to be Derek Jeter for the baseball team,” Downs said. “He’s a great athlete and we’re just glad he came out here to run with us to stay in shape.”

South’s third runner is also a star in another sport, as Garrison Raper was 3A wrestling state champ at 106 pounds last winter. He placed 10th in 18:40. Cross country cross-training is getting him ready to chase another state title.

On the heels of Raper came two more Raiders, with Keaton Sloop (18:46) and Sam Noe (18:57) taking 11th and 12th and also taking the last two spots on the all-county team.

“We practice pack running, and that paid off for us today,” Downs said.

Every position was critical, back in the pack, as South’s 3-8-10-11-12 was just a bit better than the 5-6-9-13-14 West was posting. If Sloop and Noe had finished 13th and 14th instead of 11th and 12th, the Falcons, who were led by fifth-place Luke Henson (17:57),  would have won.

“Last year our team mantra was ‘pull each other along.'” Downs explained. “This year it’s been —  just go out and do your job. Handle what you can handle and control what you can control. Win your matchup. If you’re our 1, beat their 1. If you’re our 4, beat their 4. I knew coming into today that we would be in the mix for the   championship, but I knew it would be a dogfight. West has been down for a while, but they’re back. They’re good again.”

Storm damage at Dan Nicholas Park, normally the venue for the Rowan County Championships, led to a move to Salisbury Community Park, where Catawba College runs and where the upcoming 3A Midwest Regional will be conducted.

That was a move Downs didn’t mind at all.

“It’s a brutal course with all the hills,” he said. “But it’s our home course. It’s where we train, even though the guys may hate me for it. Not many runners are going to put up PRs on this course, but at this time of year times aren’t that relevant. Right now, all that matters is where did you place. Our guys did enough.”

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NOTES: The Raiders and Falcons could be in the championship mix again on Oct. 17 when the South Piedmont Conference Championships are held at Frank Lisk Park in Concord. Downs said Carson could be dangerous. “The bigger the meet, the more runners, the bigger the impact of guys who can go 1 and 2,” he said. … Carson’s third runner on Thursday was Chance Simmons (18:10), who placed seventh. … West’s Jonathan Medina (6th, 18:05) and Wayne Hall (9th, 18:35) joined Henson as all-county runners. … Jaden Eudy was 17th and was the top East runner.  … West last won the county in 2017. East’s last win was in 2013, while Salisbury last won in 2003. … East has won 19 county titles. Next are South (8), Salisbury (6), West (4) and Carson (3). … Carson head coach Zachary Marchinko ran a county meet record 15:44 in 2015.