Don Ketchum
Former Staff Writer, AZPreps365.com

Cross-country courses seeing more and more traffic

September 7, 2011 by Don Ketchum, AZPreps365


Arizona’s cross country athletes appear to be running all over the place.

On Saturday (Sept. 10), there are a trio of meets from which to choose in the northwest Valley and northern Arizona.

They are the Adobe Invitational at the Victory Lane Sports Complex in Glendale, a part of the Adobe Dam Region Park on north 43rd Ave. Girls race is at 9 a.m., boys at 9:30.

Also on the schedule is the 34th Ray Wherley Invitational at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott. The event begins at 10:50 a.m.

Instead of all participants running together, they will be broken down into flights for both boys and girls. The top seven runners on each team will be divided like this: Nos. 7 and 6 in one flight, nos. 5 and 4 in a second flight, nos. 3 and 2 in a third flight, and the No. 1 runners in a flight of their own.

The top eight finishers will receive awards, as will the top two teams.

The third Saturday meet will be in the Native American community of Chinle, at the Chinle Flea Market. It is called the Chinle Canyon de Chelly Cross Country Invitational. Girls will run at 11 a.m., boys at 11:30.

Also, teams from Page and Bullhead City Mohave will run in the Larry Burgess Invitational in Boulder City, Nev.

Jumbo does it again

Chinle star runner Rolonda Jumbo set a 5K record in winning the Peaks Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 3) at Buffalo Park in Flagstaff. Her time was 19:29. Michael Wagner of Glendale Mountain Ridge emerged victorious in the boys division at 17:26.2.

Chinle captured the team titles in both divisions.

The top 10 finishers, from arizonatrack.com:

Boys – Michael Wagner, Glendale Mountain Ridge, 17:26.2; Ryan Wesson, Phoenix Sandra Day O’Connor, 17:34.3; Mathew Murray, Tuba City, 17:38.8; Johnathan Yazzie, Chinle, 17:39.0; Michael Russell, Page, 17:41.2; Searle Tracy, Chinle, 17:46.4; Damon Sweetland, Sandra Day O’Connor, 17:55.4; Shawn Tsinnijinnie, Tuba City, 18:05.6; McCray Huma, Keams Canyon Hopi, 18:07.0; Domonic Sinquah, Hopi, 18:08.7.

Girls – Rolonda Jumbo, Chinle, 19:29.0; Tatianna Gillick, Flagstaff, 20:43.3; Deriann Yazzie, Chinle, 21:53.4; Nicole Douglas, Page, 22:14.7; Jayde Secody, Page, 22:23.7; Taylor De Laveaga, Gilbert Perry, 22:26.8; Anjelica Bedonie, Chinle, 22:28.1; Rachel Johnston, Gilbert Mesquite, 22:30.8; Brittney Curley, Chinle, 22:31.9; Kailee Birdingroun, Tuba City, 22:35.3.

Team results:

Boys – Chinle 77, Tuba City 84, Page 86, Keams Canyon Hopi 99, Phoenix Sandra Day O’Connor 99, Glendale Mountain Ridge 152, Gilbert Perry 181, Mesa Skyline 246, Prescott Valley Bradshaw Mountain 247, Flagstaff 250.

Girls – Chinle 34, Page 69, Flagstaff 97, Gilbert Mesquite 121, Hopi 133, Tuba City 146, Sandra Day O’Connor 177, Perry 185, Fort Defiance Window Rock 193, Ganado 255.

Do you have information about an upcoming meet and would like the results posted on AIA365.com, or do you have a runner or team you would like to see profiled? Please contact Don Ketchum at dketchum@AIA365.com.