It should literally be a battle down to the wire between defending 5A champion Dorman and runner-up Riverside again this season.
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The Cavaliers earned a 56-91 victory against the Warriors, and the two are the odds-on favorites to fight for the title once more.
Dorman will be led by senior Page Dickey, an all-state selection that is coming off a fourth-place finish. Sophomore Charity Davies (ninth), senior Katerina Hendrix (13th), senior Faith Nelson (16th) and sophomore Georgia Elliott (20th) also return to help attempt to guide the back-to-back run.
The Warriors will be led by senior Jessie Crowley, who placed as individual state runner-up with a time of 18:35.94. Sophomore Elizabeth Rogers (12th) and senior Laura Macgregor (19th) also return to help Riverside try to get over the hump.
Warriors coach Eric Cummings said his team knows the battle with Dorman will be fierce.
"Our girls have been working hard in the offseason and look to bounce back from last year's state runner-up finish," he said. "Our returners, along with some fresh faces in varsity and the top parts of our JV team will make this an interesting season and something to look forward to next year and beyond."
Nation Ford junior Katie Pou returns as individual medalist after posting a time of 18:23.31. Mauldin senior Macey Morgan is coming off a third-place finish. A flurry of young runners including River Bluff eighth-grader Madelyn Gomez (fifth), J.L. Mann freshman Kennedy Roush (sixth), Hillcrest junior Camille Egbula (seventh), James Island eighth-grader Hannah Vroon (eighth), Chapin eighth-grader Abigail White (10th) and Wando freshman Rachael Branch (18th) will look to continue to make noise in Class 5A. Mauldin's Haley Morgan (15th) and Nation Ford's Claire Mattes (17th), both seniors, are a pair of strong veterans returning.