Three-peat for Chavez; Miller tops boys

Although cross country is a team effort, individual runners were also put on the spotlight and awarded for being the fastest in their divisions—with Andrei Kaithlyn Chavez still the fastest in the high school girls division for a three-peat, while freshman Michael Miller topped the boys division after the PSS/NMA All Schools Cross Country 2023-2024 championships at the Saipan Country Club last Saturday.

Second to Chavezs’ 21:17 was Kagman High School’s Pia Ngewakl who clocked in at 25:31; and third place went to Agape Christian School’s Mary Zhu with a time of 30:20.

Miller’s teammate Takeru Jim came in second to his 17:59 with a time of 18:24; and third was Mount Carmel School’s Victor Nash Santos with a time of 18:26.

Chavez, a junior at Saipan International School, has topped the HS girls division all three years of her high school career.

She said she felt happy and humbled that she was able to win and defend her title. “I definitely had a hard time finishing the course because my legs were tight and hurting. It was a hard, slippery, and hilly course. I would say it’s definitely one of the hardest courses because of the hills and it wasn’t a flat course so I was able to push myself mentally and physically,” she said of the Saipan Vegas Country Club championship course.

“I was leading the whole time so I just told myself to slowly beat the boys in front of me and get a good time. I was able to beat like three boys in front of me and I had a faster time this year,” she said. “I would say I’m more matured and a better runner this season. This season I was more motivated and dedicated to win and push myself.”

When asked if she will defend her title again next season and make it a four-peat, she said, “Hopefully I can get the four-peat next season because it’s my senior year, but it’s definitely going to take more hard work and dedication to achieve the goal.”

She then thanked her coaches, teammates, and family, “for always pushing me and supporting me throughout the whole season.”

Dr. Ron Snyder, SIS coach and headmaster, said of Chavez’s performance, “As a newly returned All-Island Athlete at the Asia Pacific Invitational and the current 800m NMI record-holder, I would say she has an excellent chance of finishing high school with four cross country championship gold medals on her wall. She is an incredible athlete, dedicated to her teams and possessing a killer competitive streak that drives her forward.” he added, “Kaithlyn has also developed incredibly as a team leader. She sets an example for her younger teammates and is a great captain along with senior Jack Lindon.”

For Miller, a Marianas High School freshman, who was exhausted after the race and could barely speak, said that the course wasn’t easy but that he liked it. “I love the competition. Just the idea of pushing to get first place—I like that,” he said.

“This whole competition was a nice experience and I feel like going to Guam opened my eyes.” he said. Both he and Chavez, along with 13 other high school runners, competed in the Asia Pacific Cross Country Championships in Guam last Oct. 20-21. He and Chavez were All-Island Athletes—the first time the CNMI had two in one year.

The 14-year-old Miller said with that experience there, he was “able to see the level of what the other countries are on… It’s a really competitive environment there so it really opened my eyes and I want to bring that same environment to Saipan.” He then thanked his parents, his coaches, and his teammates for their support.

His coach, Gabi Race, said this of his performance, “Michael is an amazing all-around athlete and we expected he would place at the top based on his times from middle school races. If he continues to train hard over the next few years, I think it’s possible that he could break the CNMI record for the men’s 5K.”

In the U12 elementary school boys division, Francisco Moses from Tinian Elementary School was first with a time of 5:50; Grace Christian Elementary School’s Beau Bauer was a few seconds behind with 5:54; and Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School’s Orion Garde was third with 5:59.

Twelve-year-old Moses said after the championships, that the course was “easy,” but the toughest part for him was the hills. He then thanked his coaches for accepting him into their cross country team.

LoVel Spaeth from Brilliant Star School topped the U12 ES girls division with a time of 5:52’ second was SIS’ Isla Grant at 6:20; and third was SIS’ Neveah Arriola also at 6:20.

Nine-year-old Spaeth said, “it felt really nice and I really liked the course that we did.” In the whole season, she said her favorite course was the Banzai Cliff course.

For U9 ES boys, SIS’ Gabriel Walsh was the fastest with a time of 5:58; SIS’ Ezra West was second at 6:06; and TES’ Miran Tamang clocked in third at 6:16.

Kaylen Taflinger of SIS was first in the U9 ES girls division with a time of 6:11; SIS’ Olivia Walsh was second with 6:59; and third was BSS’ Claire Fehrenbacker at 7:05.

The middle school girls division was dominated by all SIS runners. First place was Adalee Taflinger at 10:23; Eliza Culp was second with a time of 12:01; and third was Faith Arriola at 12:12.

The MS boys division first place was Agape Christian School’s Raffy Cai at 9:02; second was ACS’ Daniel Yang with a time of 9:21; and third was Francisco M. Sablan Middle School’s Frank Lumanlan who clocked in at 9:44.

Snyder then thanked the season’s student runners. “Cross country really brings out the best in people and I have been overwhelmed with how strong and dedicated our young athletes have been.” He also thanked their parents and coaches “for enabling them to participate in the best sport (at least in my opinion).”

He added, “The team from Run Saipan has given freely of its time to help our events come off smoothly and they deserve a resounding thank you. They also hosted one of our races and so deserve our gratitude along with [Northern Marianas Athletics], SIS, and KHS for hosting meets this year. Finally, a huge thank you to the NMA and PSS Athletics for giving up a lot of pre-dawn time to make the season successful. Without their support and organizational resources, cross country wouldn’t be able to support the hundreds of athletes we host every year.”