Waccamaw’s Jones finishes cross country career with a bang

It didn’t seem real to Waccamaw’s Amelia Jones.

The senior cross country standout had just dominantly won her third straight Class AA individual state championship, while also leading the Warriors to their first-ever team state title. And when reality finally set in, Jones realized that she had accomplished all her goals and was now part of an elite class of runners that has competed in the state of South Carolina.

“While winning as a team was my main goal, [the individual title] was still so exciting and it actually didn’t hit me for a while,” said Jones, Toast of the Coast Runner of the Year. “Later that day, I was talking to my parents and I told them, ‘I don’t feel like I just won another.’ The whole day was kind of like that, and it was just a crazy feeling that I couldn’t express because I was so excited.”

Jones was also feeling under the weather at the state championship meet in Columbia.

She was shooting to break her personal record, which she set at the 2014 Class AA state championship with a time of 18:53 but didn’t come close as her illness played a factor.

However, with a time of 19:21, Jones outlasted Academic Magnet freshman Kate Kuisel by 26 seconds, the biggest margin of victory of her three individual state title wins.

“It was definitely the hardest race I’ve ever competed in. The night before, I couldn’t even spend the night with the team since I was so sick,” Jones said. “So it was really special, especially since I pushed myself through my sickness to get that title.”

While three-time individual champion sounds nice, Jones still prefers the ring of being called a team champion.

“It’s definitely special being the first to win a team title at Waccamaw,” said Jones, who was also named the State Runner of the Year by the South Carolina Women’s Cross Country Coaches Association. “Future teams can say, ‘Oh, we haven’t won since 2015 … Or, our first title was in 2015.’ And we were that team. So that’s cool to make history for Waccamaw.”

Warriors coach Brian White said his team is so deep that, had Jones not been able to compete due to her sickness, Waccamaw may still have won the team title without her.

The Warriors had six of their seven runners finish in the top 20 that day – four being named all-state selections – and Waccamaw edged Landrum by 39 points, which White said was one of the biggest margins of victory for the school in recent years.

Along with Jones, junior Mary Butler DeSpain (ninth, 20:42), sophomore Briley Arnold (12th, 21:00) and freshman Rylee Allison (13th, 21:06) were each named all-state selections for the Warriors.

“I’m going like, ‘If she doesn’t run, what’s going to happen?’ But when all was said and done, they could have won possibly without her,” said White, Toast of the Coast Coach of the Year. “It was just a great performance from all those girls and I’m just so lucky and so blessed to be a part of it.”

The future is bright at Waccamaw, even without Jones in it.

White believes Jones left enough of a lasting impression with the squad’s returning runners that they’ll pick up right where she left off.

“It was just a great year,” White said. “All the pieces came together the way they should have, and she was a big reason for that. She really helped lead those girls and I’m looking forward to seeing what they can do [next year].”

And while life without the standout runner won’t be easy for Waccamaw, Jones believes with runners like DeSpain, Arnold and Allison all returning, the Warriors will have a good shot to repeat as champions.

“After I leave, I know the girls will still be able to keep it up,” she said. “I’m glad that I was able to contribute to that and help out, and I really think Waccamaw will still have a state championship team even with me leaving. I think they’ll easily make up for it.”

Jones will leave Waccamaw with not only a bunch of hardware, but also a positive outlook on life.

“I learned so much about not only running, but life and that’s something I will keep with me forever,” she said. “I also learned how to lead, which is also something you need throughout your life. I learned how to get through the hard days and I’ve been savoring these last moments. I really think I’ve grown stronger as a person.”

This story was originally published January 20, 2016 at 2:44 PM with the headline "Waccamaw’s Jones finishes cross country career with a bang."