SPECIAL TO THE HT
RANGELY | The Rangely Panther Cross Country team closed out their regular season last Friday at the Whistle Pig Invite, held at Loudy Simpson Park in Craig, Colorado. While the course was flat, the heavy cut grass made for a slower race than previous years when the meet was run on the Yampa Valley Golf Course.
Running first, the Panther boys delivered a strong collective performance to secure third place overall in the team standings.
Leading the charge for Rangely was Jay Valdez, who finished 8th overall with a time of 18:12. Kyler Fouts followed closely behind, securing 13th place with a time of 18:37.
Further strong efforts came from Titus Friedrich, who posted a great race to take 29th in 19:59. Gage Nielsen also had a standout day, setting a new Personal Record (PR) of 20:49. Rounding out the team’s top five, Antonio Prieto finished with a time of 21:16.
Coach Scoggins was optimistic about the boys’ progress. “The boys are running well. They’ve worked hard and made some great improvements, I look forward to seeing what they do at the regional meet,” he said.
On the girls’ side, Taya Wren put on a dominant display, leading the race from start to finish to claim first place overall with a blistering time of 19:09.
KJ Benson achieved her goal of a top-15 finish, securing 13th place with a time of 23:05. Faith Prieto showed continued improvement, crossing the line in 24:37, while Kylee Caldwell set a new personal record with a time of 26:04. Teammates Courtney Casto and Haiden Garcia worked together throughout the course, finishing side-by-side with identical times of 29:13.
The Panthers now turn their focus to the 2A Regional 5 Cross Country Meet this Thursday in Delta. The regional determines State Championship qualifiers. The girls race is set for 12 p.m., followed by the boys race at 1 p.m.
To qualify for the State Championship meet, athletes must finish in the top 15 individually, or their team must place among the top four overall.
