Raiders and Cougars qualify for state cross country at region meet

by Jessica Walker
Contributing Writer
The Whitehorse Raiders and Monument Valley Cougars joined region foes Monticello, Green River, and Pinnacle on October 19 to compete in the Region 23 Championships at Monument Valley High.
With solid performances at the meet, the Raiders and Cougars qualified their respective boys and girls teams for the 1A State Championship and boasted several top individual performances.
Whitehorse
One of the best girls teams to come out of Whitehorse High School in recent history, the female athletes ran a fantastic race to earn a second-place team finish.
The team, consisting almost entirely of underclassmen, has enormous potential for growth and shows several promising athletes.
An impressive three athletes placed in the top ten. Heidi Clark, Lamiya Benally, and Hannah Clark secured fifth, sixth, and ninth.
Shantel Begay was close behind with an 11th-place finish. Begay was followed by Harmony Thomas in 14th and Meagan Morgan, the lone upperclassman, in 18th. Hope Palmer rounded out the team’s race in 23rd.
Elam Etsitty led the Whitehorse boys to fourth place with a ninth-place finish. Etsitty was followed by Ethan Begay in 10th. Etsitty and Begay lead the team and have tremendous natural ability.
Just behind Begay was Robryan Tapaha in 19th followed by Riley Benallie in 25th. Lyrell Primeaux, Brayden John, and Phoenix Chee round out the team with 27th-, 28th-, and 36th-place finishes.
Monument Valley
Monument Valley girls and boys teams combined to earn third-place team finishes. Josiah Gipe and Isaiah Singer led the boys in 12th and 13th overall. Keshawn Atene came in next in 18th.
Atene was followed by Doreon Chee and Tramon Jake in 20th and 21st. Rounding out the Cougar boys are Tyden Teeasyatoh in 33rd and Tyrik Benally in 37th.
The first four athletes on the girls team are seniors running in the final region race. Lillianna Fatt ran a stellar race to place fourth.
Earlynda Bedone and Caitlyn Yazzie followed, with Bedonie placing 13th and 15th. Cassandra Desswood and Yanabah Smith came next to place 20th and 21st. Karrie Daniels rounded out the team in 24th place.
The Whitehorse and Monument Valley girls and boys are all headed to Rose Park, UT to join fellow San Juan County harriers at the 1A Utah State Cross Country Championship.
The races are scheduled for October 25, too late for the press deadline. We will have results in the November 2 San Juan Record.