Do not let their 2A classification fool you. The Mancos High School Bluejays' cross-country team is for real.
Competing against several larger schools at the Lloyd's Lake Classic in Monticello on Sept. 6, Mancos runners held their own, posting two top-10 individual finishes, several other standout performances and solid team results.
Pacing the Bluejays on the girls' side was freshman Emma Most, who, running in only her second high school meet, finished 10th overall with a time of 24:10.
After Most were Hannah Skinner and Kristin Adams, whose times of 24:30 and 24:41 placed them 12th and 14th respectively.
Also running well for the girls' team were Dara Sanderson, Jessalyn Bay-Voit, Kia Baikie and Maya Bonde. Sanderson finished 15th overall (24:43), Bay-Voit finished 22nd (25:36), Baikie finished 23rd (25:48) and Bonde finished 32nd (28:38).
As a team, the Bluejays' girls' team placed third behind Monticello and Montezuma-Cortez, leaving head coach Brady Archer pleased.
"We have such a good group of girls who can easily be led by anyone each week," wrote Archer. "They run well together and I know they will continue to get better with each race."
On the boys' side, the Bluejays were led by Ro Paschal who finished the course in 17:48, a time that turned out to be good enough for second overall.
Following Paschal was Justin Burton, whose time of 18:58 was good enough for 11th place.
Rounding out the Bluejays' varsity finishers on the boys' side were Asa Kearns, Vincent Grego, Zane Goodell and Anthony Reiners. Kearns finished 17th overall (20:04), Grego finished 29th (22:26), Goodell finished 30th (22:51) and Reiners finished 35th (25:06).
Overall, the Bluejays' boys' team finished in third place behind Monticello and San Juan.
"We were missing our regular number four runner, so it was nice to see all of the guys step up and run well against really good competition," wrote Archer. "Most of our guys ran better times here this year than they did last year."
Hoping to improve their times, the Bluejays will next compete in the Southwest XC Challenge, which is scheduled for Sept. 14 in Bayfield.
