Photo by Phil Stapleton
After two runner-up finishes in 2024 and 2025, Myles Jermyn has won a regional championship.
The Orange senior runner finished first in the 1,600 meters at the 5A Central Regional championships at Southeast Alamance High School in Haw River on Saturday. It is his first regional championship in outdoor track & field after finishing 2nd in the 3,200 meters at the Mideast Regionals in 2024 and 2025.
Jermyn beat Oak Grove’s Hunter Creech to the finish line with a time of 4:20.80. Creech came in second at 4:21.20 as Oak Grove runners took the three spots behind Jermyn. Luke Vannoy came in third at 4:24.82.
Jermyn, who formally signed to run at Duke University last week during a ceremony at Orange High School, also qualified for the 5A State Championships in the 3,200 meters. For the third year in a row, Jermyn finished second in the 3,200 with a time of 9:35.72. Eric Gillis, a senior from Jesse Carson, took first place at 9:28.31.
Last year, Jermyn finished fourth in the 3,200 at the 3A State Championships at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro.
Orange’s Grant Schmid also qualified for the state championships in the 3,200 meters. Schmid nabbed the final automatic qualifying spot by finishing fourth at 9:47.63.
Cedar Ridge senior John Ngunjiri also qualified for the 5A State Championships. Ngunjiri, who led the Cedar Ridge men’s cross country team to the Big 7 Conference championship last October, finished fourth in the 800 meters at 2:02.25.
In the pole vault, Cedar Ridge’s Ender Buchanan finished tied for fifth. Buchanan, who won the 3A State Championship last year, cleared 12-feet. He tied with Orange’s Owen Grant. Seaforth’s Ryan Yoder easily won the regional title by clearing 16-feet.
It was the final athletic event for Orange senior Dallas Johnson, who finished ninth in the 800 meters. Johnson, a four-sport athlete, helped Orange win its first men’s soccer conference championship last year. Last week, Johnson signed to play at Coker University.
