Family comes first, of course. However, Dawson Reeves ’24 and Jackson Burch ’22 know when to turn on the competitive juices, too.
The cousins pushed one another on their home course Wednesday to give Christ School the first and second-place runners in the Carolinas Athletic Association cross country meet. Conditions were cool and pleasant for the boys race on the Greenies’ new three-loop course, and it was essentially a two-man race less than a mile in.
Andrew Hammel ’20 won the CAA meet for three consecutive years, and Dawson extended Christ School’s streak individually to four Wednesday with a winning time of 16 minutes, 34.06 seconds. Jackson was not far behind as the runner-up in 16:53.62.
“It’s amazing. I never would have imagined winning conference as a freshman. I just feel fortunate to be racing right now with COVID going on,” Dawson said. “I felt good. Towards the end, my legs started to feel numb but I knew I had my teammate right behind me, pushing me. I was really happy when I heard Jackson was coming to Christ School this year. We support each other, but we’re competitive, too.”
The Greenies came in third place in the team standings with 55 points behind Asheville Christian Academy (33) and Asheville School (52). Other scoring runners for Christ School were Jack Cross ‘22 (12th place, 19:09.34), A.J. Hesselson ‘22 (22nd, 20:12.26), and Rhodes Feild ‘23 (24th, 20:34.56).
Wednesday was the final scheduled competition for the Greenies before the NCISAA 4-A state meet on Oct. 31 in Charlotte.
Carolinas Athletic Association meet
Wednesday at Christ School
Team scores
1. Asheville Christian Academy 33; 2. Asheville School 52; 3. Christ School 55; 4. Rabun Gap (Ga.) 91; 5. Carolina Day no score.
Individual results (Christ School runners)
1. Dawson Reeves 16:34.06; 2. Jackson Burch 16:53.62; 12. Jack Cross 19:09.34; 22. A.J. Hesselson 20:12.26; 24. Rhodes Feild 20:34.56; 26. Jackson Swango 20:39.16; 27. Matthew Luke 20:39.47; 32. Greyson Harris 21:41.90.