Moss Takes 3rd, Hayesville Girls 4th at Keith Payne Invitational

By Travis Dockery

Sportswriter

BRYSON CITY, N.C. — Freshman Makenna Moss placed third in the girls 5,000-meter race Saturday at the Keith Payne Memorial Invitational at Kituwah Mound, pacing Hayesville High School to a fourth-place team finish.

Moss ran 21 minutes, 2.27 seconds. Franklin won the girls team title with 37 points. Cherokee was second with 64, Smoky Mountain third with 67 and Hayesville fourth with 93. Enka finished fifth with 105 and Swain County sixth with 147.

Hayesville’s scoring five on the girls side were Moss (3rd), Marlo Joyce (20th, 25:00.14), Annie Godfrey (34th, 27:12.02), Lily Gordon (36th, 27:22.53) and Libbie Moore (42nd, 28:04.09). Also finishing for the Yellow Jackets were Kaelyn Cook (55th, 29:55.54), Zoe Angelopulos (68th, 36:58.75) and Izzy Hall (71st, 40:26.47).

The Hayesville boys placed sixth with 136 points. Robbinsville won with 27, followed by Enka (67), Andrews (92), Smoky Mountain (96) and Franklin (133). Cherokee was seventh with 153, Swain County eighth with 192 and Summit Charter ninth with 247.

Sophomore Eli Cheeks led the Yellow Jacket boys in 12th place in 18:15.79. Porter Hood was 19th in 18:50.95, Parker Hughes 31st in 19:17.41 and Evan Burks 35th in 19:46.22. Garrison Boyer completed the scoring five in 60th in 21:54.86.

Also finishing for Hayesville were Brandon Prieto-Rivera (67th, 22:28.71), Gage Brown (68th, 22:34.67), Nate Cook (91st, 27:50.97), Matteo Colandrea (98th, 35:13.51), Archie Galloway (100th, 39:46.70) and Ayden Cannon (102nd, 45:01.15).

Girls team scores

1. Franklin 37

2. 2. Cherokee 64

3. 3. Smoky Mountain 67

4. 4. Hayesville 93

5. 5. Enka 105

6. 6. Swain County 147

Boys team scores

1. Robbinsville 27

2. 2. Enka 67

3. 3. Andrews 92

4. 4. Smoky Mountain 96

5. 5. Franklin 133

6. 6. Hayesville 136

7. 7. Cherokee 153

8. 8. Swain County 192

9. 9. Summit Charter 247

Hayesville runners will head to Cherokee County on Saturday, Sept. 19 for the Bulldog XC Open. The high school portion of the event will begin at 9 a.m.