ACS wins 2 divisions; SIS, DMS, GES, BSS golden too

It was a bittersweet moment as all qualified cross-country runners were up bright and early to take on the last early morning course of the PSS/NMA All Schools Cross-Country 2024-2025—the championship showdown at the Saipan Vegas Country Club last Saturday morning.

Runners from Saipan, Tinian, and Rota converged for the chance at the podium in team and individual standings—with another season of expected sweeps, but with some upsets too. At the end of the race that was met with a drizzle of rain, team scores weren’t tallied completely and no official times were calculated yet, but individual awards were presented.

Cross-country is like golf in that the lowest score wins.

For the high school boys division in the 3-mile, two laps around the greens, Agape Christian School Torchbearers bagged the gold with 20 points. They swept all four qualifiers and wrapped it up with the championship first place finish.

Silver was Saipan International School Geckos with 36 points, while Marianas High School Dolphins was bronze at 40 points.

For the high school girls division, the Lady Torchbearers took the gold home with 14 points. They went 2-for-4 in the qualifiers and solidified the gold in the championships with their first place finish.

Silver went to the Lady Geckos at 33 points, while the Lady Dolphins were bronze at 42 points.

In the middle school girls division in the 2-mile, two-lap course, the Lady Geckos took it all the way home with a sweep of all the qualifiers and the gold medal finish in the championships. They wrapped it up with 14 points, while Hopwood Middle School Hilitais took the silver with 31. Bronze was Dandan Middle School Tottots at 61 points.

For the middle school boys division, the Tottots won gold with 24 points. They went 3-for-4 in the qualifiers and finished strong with their gold finish. Silver was SIS at 41, and bronze was Chacha Ocean View Middle School Lancherus at 62.

For the youngest runners in their 1-mile, one-lap course, Brilliant Star School girls started the season strong and ended it stronger with a gold in the championships. They garnered 27 points, while silver was SIS at 60. Mount Carmel School settled for bronze with 63 points.

In the boys division, it was an upset as Garapan Elementary School Mallards put on their best running shoes to grab the gold from BSS who swept all four qualifiers. The Mallards had 47 points, while BSS had 66. Bronze was San Vicente Elementary School Canaries with 69.

Dr. Ron Snyder, SIS headmaster and coach and meet director, said that the turnout this season was amazing. “We saw an all-time high of student athletes and many, many fans from the school communities. Beyond that, the performance has seen incredible improvement. We have five athletes running sub-19 and [Victor] Nash Santos is close to breaking the 18-minute mark.” With that, he said it’s an improvement in times over the years.

He added, “Congratulations to all of the student athletes we had this year. I am pretty sure we have set records for most participants. And also to everyone who set a PR during the season.”

He then said, “I would like to thank PSS Athletics, [Northern Marianas Athletics], Run Saipan, Saipan International School, and the Independent Schools Association for hosting two meets, the many student volunteers who have supported us, and the start line team of Jacoby Winkfield, Chad Taflinger, and Nick Brennfleck. Without the support of all of this outstanding team, none of this would have been possible. Finally, I would like to congratulate all of the coaches and athletes on a very successful season. Great job everyone!”

Results of the individual awards will be posted in the next issues of Saipan Tribune.