SCS, MHS continue run in All Schools
Saipan Community School and Marianas High School completed another successful run in the third leg of the Northern Marianas Athletics All Schools Cross-Country Series held at the American Memorial Park last Saturday.
SCS swept the boys U12 race with Elnathan Wong crossing the finish line first with a time of 17:43. His schoolmates, Nael Lim and Kento Akimaru, came in at second and third with times of 19:26 and 19:34, respectively. Runners in the U12 and U14 divisions raced in a 4.5-kilometer course.
In the girls U12, Shirley Qian also of SCS timed in at 25:11 to beat Hopwood Junior High School’s Dohyen Kwon (28:03).
Another SCS bet, Kui Lee, (18:42) finished ahead of Hopwood’s Carmelino Garcia (20:37) in the boys U14, while Hopwood’s Mikayla Lopez (19:14) surpassed teammate Rumina Litulimar (25:29) in another head-to-head U14 race.
In he U18 division race that featured a grueling 9-km course, Beouch Ngirchongor outsprinted MHS teammates Michael Mancao and Charles Bautista in a neck-and-neck finish. Ngirchongor posted 33:59 to sneak past Mancao’s 33:59.5 and Bautista’s even 34:00. Eleven runners competed in the field.
Chris Obaldo also of MHS breezed past six runners in the girls with an impressive time of 43:57. She finished almost five minutes ahead of runner-up Clarisse Cayabyab (48:46), while third placer Lourdes Seman (51:17) fended off a late surge down the homestretch by Francine Sablan (51:18). MHS made up the entire U18 girls field.
Meanwhile, NMA also held races in the U8 and U10 divisions (3-km course).
In the boys U8 division, Kagman Elementary School’s Koen Kabiriel bested a field of five with a time of 8:04, ahead of Saipan Community School’s Jason (8:045) and Jon Paul Sablan (8:05).
Whispering Palms School’s Logan Mister topped a boys U10 field, clocking in at 7:00. SCS’s Ken Sogg (7:48) and Grace Christian Academy’s Haruya Eda (7:59) finished second and third. Lone U10 girls competitor, Garapan Elementary School’s Joshalyn Flores, finished the course in 9:13.
Next up for NMA is the All Schools cross-country championship set for Dec. 3 with the venue to be announced later.
