Whitehorse senior sets new PR at state

WINDOW ROCK

Whitehorse senior Weston Manygoats had two track seasons washed away due to the global pandemic.

That inspired him to make the most of his final year as the long-distance runner earned three qualifications for the Utah 1A state track meet last week.

Of his three events, Manygoats set a new personal best in the 3200-meter run, placing third overall with a time of 10:32.50.

He later added a seventh-place finish in 1600, running a 4:53.94. Those top finishes earned him a podium appearance during the state meet held at the Clarence F. Robison Track & Field Stadium on Provo, Utah’s Brigham Young University campus.

“I’m happy with what I did, but I wish I could have done a little better with my 800s,” Manygoats said. “I missed it by a few spots for another medal.”

In the two-lap race, he finished 12th with a time of 2:14.85.

“I think that might have been another PR,” he said.

Manygoats said he ran at a comfortable pace in the two-mile race as he beat his previous best by over eight seconds.

“I just ran my own race, at my own pace,” he said.

Going into the state meet, he was seeded 15th for the state meet as the Utah High School Activities Association took his Region 23 race as his qualifying mark.

“I did really bad there,” Manygoats said of his 12:05.79 mark on May 11 at Monticello High School. “It was windy, and it was cold there.”

Nonetheless, the Whitehorse runner knew that he could do better at the state meet.

“I think it’s just the nice cool weather,” Manygoats said. “It’s not hot up there, and, yeah, we ran on a nice, cloudy day.”

In addition to his track exploits, Manygoats also earned a third-place medal in last fall’s 1A state cross-country meet.

“He’s an outstanding young man,” Whitehorse interim AD Frank Begay Jr. said of Manygoats. “I have a background in athletics, and just meeting him and observing him, he really stood out this year.”

So far this season, Manygoats said he’s had two schools contact him to run collegiately, but he will accept the Merit Scholarship at the University of Utah in the fall.

That scholarship covers roughly $6,000, and he will be studying bioengineering.

“That will help him continue to seek his academic dreams and commitment,” Begay said. “We’re just very happy for him, and he’s worked very hard to get where he needs to be as an individual, whether it’s academic, whether it’s chores, or whether it’s on the field or the course.

“He’s a very determined young man who works very hard to get where he is,” he added. “He has that drive to continue to pursue whatever it is he’s going to challenge himself after he graduates in a couple of days.”

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