2025 Fall Sports All-Stars: Bloomfield dominates all-star team in football

By Quentin Jodie
Navajo Times

WINDOW ROCK – The last item of business to close out the 2025 fall sports season is the release of the Times’ All-Stars for football, volleyball, and soccer.

The announcement is long overdue, but the master list was inadvertently deleted, so it had to be reworked.

In football, Page senior Joseph Benally put up some gaudy numbers as the Sand Devils’ quarterback. Benally finished third overall in the 3A Conference in total offense with 2,439 yards. He finished behind Valley Christian’s Austin Schuder (3,007) and Round Valley’s Kage Finch (2,824).

“The 3A Conference is stacked, there’s a lot of talent in there,” Benally said when asked what it meant to be among the top quarterbacks in the state.

Benally made 24 touchdown passes for the 2025 season as he was tabbed the Times’ Player of the Year. He shares that honor with Bloomfield senior quarterback Manuel “Peanut” Chavarria.

Chavarria led the Bobcats to back-to-back state titles by completing 11-of-20 passes for 324 yards as Bloomfield won the 4A championship game by a 58-27 count.

For the season, the Bloomfield QB scored 27 touchdowns as a dual threat. He passed for 3,577 yards on 160-of-255 completions and 13 TDs while rushing for 662 yards and 14 TDs.

“He’s special,” Bloomfield coach Mike Kovacs said of his QB. “He’s been in our program for years, and he waited his turn patiently, and he had such a great season. He’s going to be hard to replace.”

Defensively, Thoreau’s Jordan Calladitto and Holbrook’s Devin Ambrose were named the players of the year.

Calladitto finished the season with 69 tackles (35 solo and 34 assisted), which is 10th best in the state at the 3A level. The Thoreau outside linebacker earned first-team in both offense and defense.

Ambrose, meanwhile, finished the season with 13 sacks, 28 hurries, and 63 tackles in nine games played. His sack numbers rank among the state’s best in 2A as he shared the leaderboard with three other players.

Hózhó Academy’s Cyle Balok and Whitehorse’s Chuck Woodhouse led their teams to deep runs in their respective playoffs as the two were selected as coach of the year.

Under Balok, Hózhó reached the 2A state semifinals as the Wolves were eliminated by top-ranked and eventual state champ Texico in a 47-7 contest. Hózhó finished the season at 9-3 overall, which includes a 5-0 mark in District 1-2A.

In Utah’s 8-man football, Whitehorse also reached the state semifinals as the Raiders had their season cut short by the top-seeded Rich Rebels by a 50-8 count. Rich won the state 8-man state crown as Whitehorse finished the year at 6-3 overall, which includes a 5-2 mark in region play.

Volleyball

In volleyball, Monument Valley’s Tehya Yazzie and Shiprock’s Nicolette Howard had productive outings for the 2025 season.

Yazzie had a hitting percentage of .279 as she put away 398 kills, which is second best in the 3A Conference. The MV middle hitter also finished the season with 72 total blocks which in ninth best in her division.

She was named the MVP for the Page Sand Devils Tournament, and she was selected as the 3A North Region Player of the Year. She also made the Second Team, 3A Conference.

Howard, meanwhile, was named to the New Mexico Class 4A All-State Team as a libero, which is Shiprock’s first all-stater in 20 years.

For her senior campaign, the Shiprock defensive specialist racked up 645 digs, which ranks her first in the state regardless of classification. With her dig numbers, she set a new single season school record as she averaged 7.6 assists for each set played.

For coach of the year, Monument Valley veteran Rennell Gilmore mentored her team to a 29-11 finish, which includes a first-place finish in the 3A North.

The Mustangs reached the 3A Conference state quarterfinals as they were swept by Gilbert Christian.

In New Mexico, longtime coach Char Chapman guided her team to an 18-8 finish, which includes a district championship. The Lady Lynx went 1-2 during the New Mexico Class 2A playoff.

Soccer

In girls soccer, La Cueva senior Kadyn Begay was the Lady Bears’ biggest threat on the soccer field. Begay, who was tabbed player of the year, tallied 22 goals, 18 assists and 62 points for La Cueva as the Bears reached the Class 5A state semifinals, losing to archrival Eldorado by a 1-0 count.

Begay average 1.1 goals and 0.9 assists per game as La Cueva finished the season at 17-5 overall under legendary coach Amber Ashcraft.

“Kadyn was an amazing player for us last year,” Ashcraft said. “She had some really good seniors around her and so she helped those seniors have massive success last year.

“And so, this year, with her being a senior the success has kind of gone to her,” she added. “She played just as well last year. This year she’s been able to finish.”

For boys soccer, Miyamura senior Jaxson Jones earned the Times’ POY. Jones logged in 1,510 minutes of the soccer pitch and led the team with 23 goals, 14 assists and 60 points.

His 60-point total ranked him sixth in total points at the 4A level. His postseason accolades include being named the district’s co-player of the year.

Miyamura’s Russ Jamison earn the coach of the year in soccer as he coached the Lady Patriots to an 18-4-1 record, which included a quarterfinal appearance in the Class 4A playoffs.

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