Special to the HT
RANGELY | The Rangely Panthers competed in the 2A Region 5 cross-country meet on Thursday, Oct. 23, in Delta at Confluence Park. This crucial regional event determined which individuals and teams would advance to the State Meet. To qualify, runners needed to place in the top 15 individually, or their team had to finish as one of the top four teams.
Girls’ Performance:
The girls were up first, and Taya Wren, the favorite to win, delivered a dominant performance. The returning state champion took off fast and never looked back, winning the race with an impressive time of 18:45. The next closest competitor finished 58 seconds behind her.
Kira Jo (KJ) also secured an individual spot at State. She battled for all 3.1 miles with four other girls for a qualifying position. Knowing only one of them would miss the cut, KJ dug deep in the final 100 meters, managing to out-kick an opponent to claim 15th place with a time of 21:39.
Wren and Benson will represent the Panthers at the State Meet.
Unfortunately, the rest of the girls’ team just missed advancing as a unit, scoring 5th overall. Other runners included:
Faith Prieto: 26:04
Courtney Casto: 27:21
Addison Thayn: 28:35
Haiden Garcia: 28:35
Boys’ Team Advances
The boys’ team, who have competed consistently well all season, knew what was required and successfully took care of business, placing 2nd overall as a team and securing their spot at the state championships.
The Panthers had three runners finish in the top 15:
Kyler Fouts: 4th place (18:17)
Jay Valdez: 6th place (18:19)
Tavan Morgan: 14th place (18:48)
The rest of the scoring runners worked together to secure the team’s standing:
Titus Friedrich: 29th (20:06)
Alec Gillard: 32nd (20:34)
Gage Nielsen: 34th (20:38)
Antonio Prieto: 35th (20:44)
Coach’s Corner
Coach Scoggins praised the team’s effort, saying, “The athletes have worked hard all year long, it is fun to see the hard work pay off. Jay and Gage have been a great example of how hard work pays off and how not to stop working. They will be missed next year, and I am just thankful that I will have them in track and field in the spring.”
State Meet Details
The State Meet will be held at the Norris Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs. The girls’ race will begin at 9:40 a.m., and the boys’ race will follow at 11 a.m.
Taya Wren, a favorite to win, crushed the regional competition and is headed to state. MATT SCOGGINS PHOTO
