After the end of the winter sports championships, Seaforth High School tops the 2A standings for the 45th annual Wells Fargo State Cup competitions with 347.5 points, per the updated standings released by the NCHSAA Thursday.
The Wells Fargo State Cup is presented jointly by the NCHSAA and Wells Fargo, and it is awarded to the high schools that accomplish the best overall interscholastic athletic performance in their respective classifications. Points are determined by a school’s finish in state championship events in all sports based on the following system: 50 points for first place, 45 for second, 40 for third, 35 for fourth, 30 for fifth, 25 for sixth, 20 for seventh and 15 for eighth. Five points are awarded for each sanctioned sport in which a school makes the playoffs.
Seaforth is the only Chatham County school ranked in the top 10 for any classification, and its score is 110 more points than 2A’s second place holder NCSSM Durham (237.5). That is the second-largest point differential between first and second place schools across the four classifications.
Throughout the 2023-24 academic year so far, Seaforth has claimed seven state championships and made deep playoff runs in both individual and team competition. In the fall, Jack Anstrom defended his 2022 cross country state title, and the boys’ team finished second in the state championship race. The girls earned a fifth place finish in cross country, and the volleyball and girls’ tennis teams both made it to the fourth round of their respective playoff brackets.
Anstrom followed up in the winter with a 3,200 meter run state title in indoor track. Will Cuicchi also won his second straight state championship for the 1,000 meter run in the same sport. In swimming, Sydney Burleigh won state for the girls 100 yard butterfly while the girls’ team finished sixth and the boys’ team finished third at the state meet.
Wrestling claimed three state champions, including individual winners Layne Armstrong and Josh Miller and the individual team title won by the high finishes from other wrestlers on the team.
In girls’ basketball, Seaforth advanced to the final four for the second time in the team’s short history.
Seaforth has yet to win the Wells Fargo State Cup, finishing third in the award’s final standings for the 2022-23 academic year.