October 2023

Full Results Glendale, Ariz. – The Coconino Community College women’s cross country team placed 3rd at the 2023 Region 1 championships with 65 points and 3 individuals earning All-Region honors. CCC’s Amber Woody, Breana Biggambler, and Sierra Manygoats all earned third team All-Region honors as they led the comets to a 3rd place team finish overall. Woody was the Comets top women in 13th place, followed closely by Biggambler in 14th, and Manygoats in 15th. Woody crossed the finish line in a 5k time of 21:50, Biggambler and Manygoats followed in 22:07 and 22:13 respectively. Talya Yazzie and Ryanna Begay rounded out the scoring runners for CCC in 19th and 21st place. Janelle Stone finished in 22nd place. “I’m happy our women were able to come away from today with a podium finish and 3 individuals earning All-Region”, said Head Coach Craig Hunt when asked about the team’s performance. Coach Hunt went on to emphasize that the teams focus hasn’t been on the Regional Championships, but rather the National Championships on November 11th. “As a whole we showed up and performed today, but I know many of our athletes were running on tired legs after a hard week of training. All season we’ve had our focus be on the National Championships so whether we won or lost today we weren’t going to lose sight of our main goal. I’m confident that both our men’s and women’s team will perform their best once we taper down their training and have a little more rest in their legs”, stated Coach Hunt. The comets will compete next at the 2023 NJCAA Cross Country National Championships on November 11th at John Hunt Park in Huntsville, Alabama.

Full Results Riverside, Calif. – Coconino Community College’s Breana Biggambler established a fierce 6k school record of 23:20 at the Highlander Invitational hosted by University of California Riverside, as the team took on their biggest competition yet this season. The comets hit the road and competed at the Highlander Invitational in Riverside, California, where they met a competitive field with over 20 teams consisting of NCAA division I , division II, division III, NAIA, and NJCAA teams. Not only did they take on steep competition but they raced the 6k distance, a distance typically run at the NCAA level, compared to usual 5k distance run at the NJCAA level. Biggambler finished in 136th place with a strong time of 23:20 (6:15 per mile pace). She was followed by teammate Amber Woody in 25:25, and Sierra Manygoats in 25:48. Ryanna Begay and Janelle Stone were CCC’s 4th and 5th runners in times of 29:54 and 30:26 respectively. Here’s what Head Coach Craig Hunt had to say about the race, “We came out to Riverside to get out of our comfort zone and challenge ourselves. A race this size, with over 20 teams and 200 individuals, is just what we needed to help simulate our national championships and gain more experience in tough races, and I believe we did exactly that. Performance wise we had 2 school records set, one on the men’s side and another on the women’s side, so hopefully the athletes are leaving with some extra confidence.” Both the Men’s and Women’s cross country teams will compete next at the NJCAA Region 1 Championships at Heroes Regional Park in Glendale, Arizona on October 28th, hosted by Glendale Community College.