San Juan boys finish second, girls get fifth

by Jessica Walker
Contributing Writer
It isn’t often the San Juan High School cross country team has the chance to compete only 20 minutes from home, but this past Friday, September 1 that rarity was a reality at the Loyds Lake Classic in Monticello.
As an added bonus, they were afforded an opportunity to compete against local rivals as well as region rivals like North Sevier. The course is beautiful.
Runners cross the Loyds Lake dam and circle around the reservoir, which allows spectators a unique view of the race progression in several places. The course, although stunning, is not easy to conquer.
Edward Lyman, the top runner on the boys team, started the race in fifth but quickly began to overtake the competition.
By the end of the race he crossed the finish line in second place with a blistering time of 16:36, almost two minutes faster than his 2022 time on the course and only ten seconds behind the leader from Grand Junction Central High School.
Two more Broncos broke the top 15 to earn individual medals: Abe Lyman grabbed tenth place overall and Ryan McCullough got 12th.
Following McCullough were three runners in quick succession: Rosendo Martine in 16th, Platte Lyman in 17th, and Austin Pincock in 18th. The trio finished within one second of each other. Toby Ward was the final Bronco boy across the line in 25th.
Brittany Jensen led the charge for the San Juan girls team. With a massive personal best of over a minute, she placed 12th overall. The effort was an incredible glimpse of the speed the freshman is capable of.
Jensen finished just five seconds ahead of Sincere Nez, who has been a consistent leader on the girls team this season. Nez finished 14th, only seconds off of her career best time.
Brinley Jones trailed Nez by only a few places, finishing 18th and besting her previous career best by over 20 seconds.
Next to come in for the Lady Broncos was Ada Lyman in 27th. A dual-sport athlete, Lyman beat her previous career best by almost a minute.
Leah Johnson, Rose Kartchner, and Sierra Black rounded out the girls finishers in 33rd, 36th, and 38th respectively.
In the junior varsity race Logan Keith finished fifth, Jack Kartchner got sixth, and Kyle Begay earned a seventh-place finish for the boys. Harmony Oshley represented the girls well, finishing seventh and earning individual medals.
The boys team’s effort earned them a second-place overall finish, only six points behind event champion Grand Junction Central. The girls team finished in fifth place.
This week will be a busy one with lots of travel for the Broncos. They’re headed to Redmond, UT for the North Sevier Invitational on Wednesday, September 6. They’ll compete in the Tiger Invitational in Grand Junction, CO on Saturday, September 9.