High School Standouts: Ty Jones, Riverside Cross Country
Senior Ty Jones is the first boys cross country runner to be named the South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year after an accomplished regular season resume was capped off by winning the 2024 5A Division 2 state meet where he finished the 5000m in 15:54.19.
'I' know I'm in a prestigious group of people,' said Jones. 'I'm just really honored to be selected among 50 individuals across all the 50 states in the U.S. and be recognized just as someone who puts in the work and does good stuff on and off the track.'
Jones also clocked a personal best 15:03.43 in the Starlight Invitational in Greer.
In track and field, Jones holds school records in the 1600 (4:26.02), 3200 (9:33.77) and 5k.
On top of the athletic achievements, Jones is a standout in the classroom with a 4.26 GPA, and in the community where he volunteers his time to events that support ending hunger and faith-based service missions.
Jones is keeping his talents local as a Furman University commit where he plans to continue building up communities.
'I definitely feel like my sport has helped me grow in my faith. I feel like my sport challenges me to, as well as my faith, to just become a better person.' said Jones. 'We do one every year (a community project) that helps with world hunger… definitely be more involved in that because I'll still be in town.'
While Jones is the first to earn the award in cross country, he joins nine other Warriors who have earned the title in their respective sports.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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