JACKSONVILLE - Keystone Heights High cross country knew they would need a good punter to advance to their region 1-2A championship meet and when junior Ryder Thomas, the punter for the Indians football team, wrapped up his football season on Friday as one of the more prolific punters in the area, he immediately went into full cross country mode with a side dish of soccer to come.

"I punted like six, seven times a game for the football team," said Thomas, as he watched his soccer brethren play in the Twin Lakes Preseason Classic on Saturday. "I wanted to finish my football season, then go full bore for cross country for at least two days, then give my best shot for the team on Monday's district race and see where it carries us as a team. I know I haven't been too effective on Saturday races because of football, but I get two days of kind of rest for the Monday district."

The rest did Thomas some good as he nearly got through the district 2-2A race within shouting distance of his two teammates: Noah Yara, who has been top finisher in most races for Keystone Heights, and Hunter Sheppard, who was a top region distance track runner with Thomas last year.

Against the juggernauts of Bolles and Bishop Kenny, who both fielded a ton of running talent for the race, Yara stayed in his role as top finisher in 26th place at 17:43.00 while Thomas sprinted in just four seconds behind his teammate in 29th place at 17:47.00. Sheppard, adding to the low point count for the top three finishers was in at 36th in 17:57.00 in one of the best team finishes for coach Jessica Thomas.

Bolles and Bishop Kenny, as expected dominated the top team spots with Bolles winning with 26 and Bishop Kenny at 51 with Eastside a distant third at 137. Keystone Heights finished seventh with 189 points to advance to the region 1-2A meet at Cecil Field's New World Golf cross country center in Jacksonville. Keystone Heights was 10th last year at districts to end their season with Thomas a top finisher in 20th at 17:44.0.

For the girls, a second Thomas blossomed in post season races with seventh grade little sister Ryleigh Thomas running 20:24 to finish in 30th behind the Bolles and Bishop Kenny armies up top. Sophomore Melody Tyre, who kept eyesight on Thomas throughout the season, had one of her best races with a 21:29 for 45th place.

"Ryleigh is more excited about her soccer than cross country, but she is a competitor at heart," said mom and coach Jessica Thomas. "She'll run hard until the very end for the team. Melody has had a great improvement from start to finish in her times."

Seventh grader Tessa Gray was third finisher in 69th at 23:37 with junior Olivia Griffin 79th at 24:40. Griffin, injured for most of the season, was top finisher at districts last year in 21:22.

"Olivia has been running despite a back injury," Thomas said. "She's tough, but she is doing her best."

With Bishop Kenny winning with an astounding 23 points and Episcopal edging Bolles 51-60 for the runner-up spot, Keystone Heights grabbed the coveted eighth team spot to earn a ticket to the region meet next week.

(please bold, then delete this message)..Staten, Hanna top 20 lead Lady Spartans

LAKE CITY - All season their times have been slowly (pun intended) eeking to that elusive 20-minute mark and, at the district 2-1A cross country championship race held Nov. 4 in Alligator Park in Lake City, St. Johns Country Day School's duo of freshmen Kate Staten and Ella Rose Hanna finished in the top 20 spots to give the Lady Spartans another region championship meet ticket.

The FHSAA cross country region meets will be held at Cecil Field's New World Golf cross country course on Friday, November 14 as Cecil Field will host a bevy of region meets in all classes. St. Johns girls got to the region and state meets (17th) last year while the boys finished ninth at the region meet out of the top eight to advance to state.

The FHSAA state championship races are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 22 at the Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee.

At Lake City, with Oak Hall senior Estella Collante winning in 18: 59.90 seconds on the mildly rolling hill course in Lake City, Staten, known for her strength running and second half pushes to the finish, got her way to a seventh-place overall finish in 20:12.80 to give St Johns their first finisher. Collante was the defending district champion with graduate Rebecca Stratton, now at Georgia Southern University, third for the Spartans.

Just nine spots behind Staten in the 2025 race, Hanna would emerge from a crowd of sprinting finishers to the finish line to grab 16th place in 21:31.30.
In 2024, Staten, as an eighth grader, finished in 21:33.4 for a 10th place finish as Providence took the team title in a reversal of the 2025 finish with Oak Hall loading up four runners in the top 10 to Providence's three with the fourth in 11th for the team title.

Hanna, in 2024, would finish in 23:47.7 for 31st place as the Spartans improvement has peaked perfectly in the post season 2025.

One other top young runner for St. Johns, a third freshman, Matildo Moores, who was 33rd last year in 24:16.3, finished her district race 2025 in 22:39.00 for 25th place with Eleanor Myers a few steps off in 27th in 22:42.20. Ironically, the Spartans fifth finisher was another Hanna, sixth grader Lillian, who was 29th in 22:50.20.

Oak Hall won with 36 team points to inch past Providence's 40 with Cornerstone Classical Academy third at 76 and St. Johns fourth at 104. For the boys, St. Johns also advances to the region meet with a seventh-place team finish behind winner Providence at 34 points with Maclay second at 66 just ahead of Oak Hall's 69 for third.

Providence junior Sean Cunningham repeated as district champion in 16:06.80 with St. Johns top finisher being Nathan Kipnis in 25th at 18:09.10. Judson Myers was second Spartan in 37th in 18:59.80.