DANDAN Middle School and Saipan International School took home gold medals thanks to their athletes, Jacob Encabo and Faith Arriola, who displayed stellar performances in the middle school category of the PSS All School Cross Country SY24-25 championship races at the Saipan Vegas Country Club on Saturday morning.
Over the years, Dandan Middle School has emerged as one of the biggest threats in the sport of running, a reputation it continues to uphold as Jacob Encabo clinched first place overall in the boys division with a time of 13:09.
“It feels good and amazing to win first place,” said Encabo, who started running two years ago. His first sport was basketball, but with the encouragement of coaches Jeri Mae Tudela and Simon Necesito, he joined cross country and is grateful for their guidance.
Cross country events were held at different locations throughout the five rounds of the recently concluded season, but for Encabo, the Saipan Vegas Country Club was the best course to compete in because of its hills, which made the race more fun.
Coming in second place was his schoolmate Yuxi Lu who clocked 13:48 while Agape Christian School’s Lucas Yang came in third at 14:38.
Girls division
In the girls division, Faith Arriola of Saipan International School, a cross country powerhouse, claimed first place overall with a finish time of 15:17.
Arriola, an eighth grader, said she was grateful for winning first place, but added that running “is very tiring.”
Asked about her overall performance, she said, “For most of the qualifying runs, I did not do very good.” However, the championship round was her best time overall. “I would like to thank my mother who pushed me the hardest,” she said.
In second place was schoolmate Neveah Arriola, who clocked 15:59 while Hopwood Middle School’s Kristen Sierra finished third at 16:30.
The top 3 finishers in the middle sc1hool division of the PSS All School Cross Country SY24-25 pose with their medals during the awards ceremony at the Saipan Vegas Country Club on Saturday.
SIS’ Faith Arriola pushes towards the finish line during the middle school division championships of the PSS All School Cross Country SY24-25 at the Saipan Vegas Country Club on Saturday.
DMS’ Jacob Encabo looks on as he closes in on the finish line during the middle school division championships of the PSS All School Cross Country SY24-25 at the Saipan Vegas Country Club on Saturday.
