Keiarra Martin leads the way at Loyds Lake Classic

Whitehorse sophomore Keiarra Martin powered her way to a first-place finish at the Loyds Lake Classic Cross Country Race, August 30 in Monticello.
Martin was the only girl to finish the 3.1-mile course in under 20 minutes, with a time of 19:57. It was five seconds better than her 2023 time in the race.
The Lady Raiders finished third as a team, with senior Heidi Clark (13th), junior Hannah Clark (14th), and senior Lamiya Benally (16th) contributing to the team score.
The Monticello girls raced to a second-place team finish, led by senior Ayla Carling’s 21:45. Senior Lilli Burton took eighth, freshman Allie Carling was tenth, and freshman Olivia Plemons came home 22nd for the Lady Bucks.
Senior Marah Long, the third-place finisher at the state meet last year, did not race. She is expected to be a significant contributor for Monticello this season.
Monument Valley freshman Summer Atene raced for the Cougars.
In the boys varsity race, Monticello was fourth, led by a sixth place finish by senior Kaden Pehrson. Junior Kooper Nielson (ninth), freshman Eli Carling (13th), and senior Aaron Gillette (20th) also contributed to the Buckaroo score.
Charlie Welch, Alejandro Austin and McKay Nielson also ran for the Buckaroos.
In total, 234 athletes ran in the annual race on a perfect day at Loyds Lake. The races included junior varsity and junior high events.