The Harlan County cross country team is set to host a super regional cross country championship for the first time in the program’s history. They will host Class A, Region 7 and host and compete in Class 2A, Region 7.
This will make the Black Bears’ third time hosting a regional meet, with the last time being in 2012. Harlan County also hosted a super regional track meet in 2021.
“I’m really excited to have the opportunity to host this super region for our kids. It’s been a long time since we’ve hosted and it’s a big deal for our program,” Harlan County cross country coach Ryan Vitatoe said. “To have the chance to host a super region is really exciting and is the first time this has ever been done in our county.
Vitatoe says this is the first time he’s applied to hold the region since 2015. Between 2012 and 2023, the team was switched between various regions in Class 2A and 3A.
With 30 teams – 19 in Class A, Region 7 and 11 in Class 2A, Region 7 – expected to compete, Vitatoe is optimistic about his teams’ future performances and says this opportunity is a dream come true.
“We’ll have nearly 30 schools from eastern Kentucky visit our campus, and this is a great opportunity to showcase our facility to schools throughout our part of the state,” Vitatoe said. “This is the kind of event that I dreamed of hosting when I started at HC in 2008, and it’s something I’m proud to be doing for our district and our teams.”
“This has been a long time coming for the Harlan County cross country teams to host the region championships,” Harlan County athletic director Eugene Farmer said. “It’s both an opportunity to showcase our beautiful facility during one of the best times of the year and a way to stimulate our local economy by bringing folks in from all over the eastern part of Kentucky. We are delighted to host an event of this magnitude and we hope that the KHSAA, school administrators, coaches and fans have a pleasurable experience here in Harlan County.”
Vitatoe explained some of the benefits there are to hosting the regional championship.
“The biggest advantage is not having to travel. Typically, we are on the bus two to three hours (one way) to get to our regional host, so to have the chance to skip that is a big deal,” Vitatoe said. “The teams will have the chance to sleep in their own beds and not leave HC super early in the morning as we typically do.
“These kids deserve the opportunity to compete for regional titles at home and I’m very grateful to the KHSAA for the chance to do it. The cool thing is that we’ll get to host the regional track meet in the upcoming 2025 season – so this is a big year for our programs.”
Vitatoe expressed gratitude to the other coaches and parents for their help in preparing for the upcoming meet.
“My coaches, parents and I have worked very hard since mid-July to prepare the course for the meet,” Vitatoe said. “We’ve spent a lot of time filling holes, trimming trees and doing all the other work necessary to have our course ready for this, and I really appreciate all they’ve done. The course is in great shape and it’s going to be a great chance to make a great impression on the schools who are coming to compete. We have a great course and it’s a traditional CC course. It’s a challenging course that you can still run great times on – but you’re gonna have to hurt to do it!”
Vitatoe stated that the team is very enthusiastic about the chance to win another regional championship at home.
“The kids are super excited as well. I know they’re happy to have the opportunity to defend their regional titles at home, and for our seniors, I’m glad they get this opportunity,” Vitatoe said. “It’s crazy to think that these seniors were probably in kindergarten the last time we hosted a regional championship. They deserve this opportunity and our parents and coaches have worked hard to make sure it’s done right!”
“As far as our teams are concerned, you just can’t say enough about hard these kids and coaches have worked to put themselves in this kind of position,” Farmer said. “Much like the race itself, the season is a grind and to be performing at the highest level in the most important time is special. I hope that our community comes out to support these student-athletes, Coach Vitatoe and his entire staff because being in a position to win these region meets is extremely difficult and way too special of an accomplishment to ever take for granted.”
Harlan County will compete in the KHSAA Class 2A, Region 7 meet on Saturday. The girls will run at 2:30 p.m. and the boys at 3:30 p.m.
Class 1A, Region 7’s girls will run at 11 a.m. The boys will run at noon.