The boys and girls middle school division runners take off during the finale of the PSS-NMA All School Cross Country Series SY23-24 on Saturday at the Saipan Country Club of Saipan Vegas.
SAIPAN International School and Agape Christian School continue to rule the running scene as they claimed most of the titles in the team aspect of the PSS-NMA All School Cross Country Series SY23-24 during the finale held at the Saipan Country Club in Saipan Vegas on Saturday.
Saipan International School dominated the elementary school category as well as the middle school girls division claiming a total of three first-place titles.
In the elementary school category, the speed of the SIS girls was unmatched.
SIS led the overall team standings with a total of 14 points while Brilliant Star School came in second with a total of 43 points and Mount Carmel School in third with 65 points.
Although Brilliant Star School’s LoVel Spaeth was the first to cross the finish line with a time of 5:52, four SIS runners followed after. Kaylen Taflinger came in second with a time of 6:11 followed by Isla Grant and Naveah Arriola sharing a time of 6:20.
SIS also clinched first place in the boys division by a hair with a total of 33 points, slipping past Tinian with 37 points and San Vicente Elementary School with 44 points.
Tinian’s placement was aided by first-place finisher Francisco Moses who clocked in a time 5:50 followed by Grace Christian Academy’s Beau Bauer with a time of 5:54, and SIS’ Gabriel Walsh in third timed at 5:58.
SIS’ girls also dominated the girls middle school division by a long mile as they held a total of 10 points. Saipan Community School followed behind with a total of 44 points and ACS with 45 points.
SIS filled the top three list with Adalee Taflinger in first with a time of 10:23 followed by Eliza Culp timed at 12:01, and Faith Arriola timed at 12:12.
Agape Christian School also shared the spotlight as they claimed two titles.
Their first title was in the boys middle school division where they collected a total of 18 points while SIS followed far behind with a total of 58 points and HOP with 61.
ACS was aided by their top two finishers, Ziheng Cai and Shenshi Yang, who finished with a time of 9:02 and 9:21, respectively. Francisco M. Sablan Middle School’s Farnk Lumanlan came in third with a time of 9:44.
ACS also bagged the girls high school division title with a total of 16 points, beating SIS with 22, and Marianas High School with 43 points.
SIS’ Kaithlyn Chavez finished first with a time of 21:17 while ACS’ Ruisihi Zhu and Miaozhuo Wang followed behind with a time of 25:02 and 25:08, respectively.
Marianas High School also made it to the podium as they claimed the boys high school division with a total of 18 points while ACS took second with 25 points and Tinian with 68 points.
MHS’ Michael Miller was the first to cross the finish line with a time of 17:59 followed by schoolmate Takeru Jim timed at 18:31, and MCS’ Victor Santos in third timed at 18:36.
Largest event that NMA and PSS Athletics has hosted.
Throughout the years, the number of participants has grown and this year, SIS coach and event organizer Dr. Ron Snyder was more than happy about the overall success of the cross-country series. “Turnout for the XC series continues to impress me as a coach and organizer. There are hundreds of athletes competing in this series, making it the largest event that NMA and PSS Athletics hosts.” said Snyder. Unfortunately, they have limited the amount of participation in the championship to one team per school in each division. “But still, there were 271 runners competing. Some of the earlier meets had larger numbers but coaches had to choose their top six boys and girls to represent their school in the championship. But the thing about that…271 is the number we have when we limit participation. I count that a huge success for the development of fitness in our youth.” He added.
