Navajo Prep’s Elijah England goes 2-for-2 at 3A state meet, sets new 800 state record

ALBUQUERQUE

Navajo Prep junior Elijah England delivered some of his best stuff on Friday at the New Mexico Class 3A State Track & Field Championships.

England broke the state record in the 800 by completing the two-lap race in 1:53.52, as he lowered his PR by 3.6 seconds. The previous state record holder was 1:54.46, which was set in 2021 by Sandia Prep’s Kaden Helmka.

Later in the day, England defended his 3200-meter state crown when he led a quartet of Navajo Prep runners with a blistering time of 9:30.30, which is also a new PR.

“I’m really grateful for the times that I had, and running a good PR race,” England said. “I think all the training and all the hard work I put in throughout the season finally paid off and it showed today.”

Headed by England, the Eagles nearly swept the two-mile race as they took the top four spots. Navajo Prep had five runners entered with sophomore Darington Ramone taking second at 9:52.74 followed by junior Kenai Begay (9:58.52) and sophomore Tyler Begay (10:13.63). With a time of 10:34.05, junior Deaken Begay placed seventh overall, as he missed the podium by one spot.

“We’re just keeping the Navajo Prep distance running alive,” England said of their near sweep.

Of the four, England, Ramone and Kenai Begay established new PRs in the eight-lap race by 0.89-, 18.69- and 7.69 seconds, respectively.

“Honestly, I didn’t think that I was going to place in the top two,” Ramone said. “I knew my teammates ran better than me because throughout the season they kept outkicking me. It was my first year racing here and I just needed to keep that mindset of staying strong until the end.”

The five Navajo Prep runners are entered in today’s 1600-meter race with England being the heavy favorite with a seed time of 4:18.66.

With those top finishes in the 3200, Navajo Prep earned 19 of its 29 points as the Eagles lead the team standings after Day 1 of the state meet with 29 points. Santa Fe St. Michael’s comes in next at 24.50 points.

In Class 1A, Tsé Yi Gai junior Taysen Begay captured the school’s first state crown by winning the 3200, as he bested 16 other runners with a winning time of 10:50.02.

Taysen, who sat in the middle of pack for the first couple of laps, took control of the eight-lap race with 800 meters to go en route to state crown.

“I really worked hard for this,” Taysen said. “Last year, I barely made the podium in the mile and this year I won the 3200, so this means a lot to me.”

Begay is looking to add the 1600 crown to his cache as he is seeded No. 1 at 4:54.28.

In Class 2A, Laguna Acoma senior Tagoya Pedro won his fourth consecutive state title in the 800-meter race. Pedro led from start to finish and won in 1:58.18 while state runner-up Ezequiel Nevarez of Mesa Vista clocked in at 1:59.33.

“The race there was more tactical,” Pedro said. “I thought people were gonna take it out fast, but they pushed the brake, so I was forced to take the reins pretty much from the start.”

During the race, Pedro said he kept his composure and with 400 meters to go he went for it.

“I’m definitely in PR shape, but it wasn’t a good time, you know, to my standards,” he said. “That’s championship running for you. Sometimes it’s tactical, and I’m not too worried about. I’m just happy that I got the win.”

In today’s finals, the LA runner is looking to win the 1600-meter race.

In the 2A girls 800 race, Native American Community Academy junior Rylee Edaakie won gold with a winning time of 2:28.59.

“I was like sitting third after the first lap and the girls that were in front of me wouldn’t let me pass,” Edaakie said. “I just stayed there until they opened a gap for me and in the last 100 (meters) I just sprinted in and won.

“You know, I never expected to do the 800 because I thought I wasn’t good enough, but this year I just pushed myself and I got first.”

Edaakie also added a second-place finish in the 3200, as she clocked in at 12:19.03.

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