Page boys capture third straight state title: Chinle’s Janessa Segay wins individual crown
Navajo Times | Quentin Jodie
Chinle's Janess Segay breaks the tape at the finish line as the senior harrier captured the Arizona Division III girls state crown. Segay hit a new PR on the state meet course with a time of 18:49.2.
PHOENIX
The Page boys cross-country team raced with a purpose on Saturday morning to win its third consecutive Division III state crown.
In the girls Division III championships, Chinle senior Janessa Segay fulfilled a lifelong dream of becoming a state champion by winning the 5K race in 18:49.2 at the Cave Creek Golf Course in Phoenix.
“It feels really, really good because ever since my third-grade year of running I always knew that I wanted to be a state champ,” Segay said. “For my senior year, since it’s my last year, I know I wanted that title, so I worked really hard throughout the season for it.”
Not only did Segay win the state title, but the Chinle harrier also hit a new PR on the state meet course, besting last year by 1:37.
In the boys team title race, the Sand Devils scored 101 points and beat American Leadership Academy-Queen Creek for the first time this season.
Navajo Times | Quentin Jodie
The Page Sand Devils pose for a photo after winning its third consecutive Division III state championship on Saturday. The Sand Devils have now won 19 state titles.
“It shows everybody that we’re consistent,” Page junior Symond Martin said when asked about the latest state crown. “We’re always fast, we always have good runners and, like, we’re showing up for our team and our school.”
Martin led Page with a second-place finish as the Sand Devils placed five runners in the top 40. Sophomore Nyall Prather made the podium with Martin with a 20th-place finish. Other scoring members included Maximus Reid (22nd), Jaiden Jordan (24th), and Desmond Goldtooth (40th).
Page now has 20 state crowns, but they had to earn this one as AIA-Queen Creek finished five points back behind the Sand Devils with 105 points. The Patriots were led by fifth- and eighth-place finishes from Dominic Hason and David Soria.
“They’ve been beating us the whole year,” Page coach Tim Martin said. “Of course, they had the faster times, and they’re hungry and they’re all seniors. But, you know, we’re hungry every year.”
The Page coach felt the latest team title came down to its third, fourth, and fifth runners.
“The boys did what they had to do,” Tim Martin said. “Obviously, (the Patriots) had those guys up front, and we just packed our third, fourth, and fifth runner.
“They’ll ran great, especially our No. 5 runner (Goldtooth),” he added. “Our No. 5 runner outkicked (ALA-Queen Creek’s) fourth and fifth guy.”
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