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Dolores runner Phillip Hufman wins Bayfield Invitational

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Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018 2:03 PM
Jonas Nanaeto, right, leads the Wolverines at the start of Saturday’s Bayfield Invitational. The boys took second in the team standings, behind Pagosa Springs.
James Chenowith crosses the line for Bayfield on Saturday at the Bayfield Cross Country Invitational.
Ethan Cook, right, and Michael Everett finish in 30th and 31st place at the Bayfield Invitational.
Elco Garcia comes in second at the BHS Invitational with a time of 19:31.48 for his home team.
Royce Hinojosa is a freshman running for the Wolverines, taking 29th place with 23:43.73 on Saturday.
Brianna Henderson of Ignacio High School, right, comes in at the Bayfield Invitational with at time of 28:47.05, followed by Jayden Brunson, who completed the race in 28:50.67.
The new Ignacio High School girls corss country team and Coach Marisa Duffy, right, relax after the Bayfield Invitational.
Olivia Keitz is the top finisher for the Bayfield girls, completing the steep, 5K course in 27:29.33 for 33rd place.
Zeb Shields finishes in 20:45.11 to take sixth place overall at the Bayfield Invitational, his top finish this year for the Wolverines.
The Bayfield cross country team relaxes before the start of the Bayfield Invitational on Saturday.

The Pine Valley Church/Dove Ranch course was seemingly designed to make distance runners hit walls like a house renovation project on “This Old House” on PBS.

Those who managed to break through quickest and complete the job were the fortunate ones, and Bayfield’s Elco Garcia, Jr., finished just a few steps off the pace – as the Wolverine boys did collectively – in surviving the 2018 Bayfield Invitational this past Saturday, Sept. 15.

Trailing only 2A Dolores senior Phillip Hufman to the finish line, Garcia finished second place overall in 19 minutes, 31.48 seconds. Hufman clocked 19:19.17 while fellow Bear senior Brennan Hite (19:36.22) came in third.

Freshman Land Lambert (19:48.68) of the 4A Durango JV took fourth and 3A Pagosa Springs senior Nate Lewis (20:12.92) fifth, helping the Pirates post a winning five-man low score of 49 points, clipping 3A BHS’ 53.

Joining Garcia in the top 10 for Bayfield was sophomore Zeb Shields, who came in eighth with his 20:45.11. Junior Jonas Nanaeto was a near-miss 11th in 21:12.15, and junior Rylan Ross earned 14th with his 21:45.58 effort. In the race’s score-5 format, sophomore James Chenowith took 27th overall, clocked 23:32.60, and qualified BHS for title contention.

Also running the true cross-country course, freshman Royce Hinojosa (23:40.73), sophomore Ethan Cook (23:54.70) and freshman Michael Everett (23:55.59) placed 29th, 30th, and 31st, respectively, while sophomore Xander Hovenstine (24:12.86) finished 33rd and freshman Liam Smith (24:54.55) 36th.

Winning the girls’ feature was the Durango JV’s Tea Forrest, first across the line in 23 minutes, 18.31 seconds. And led by the freshman, the Demons boasted four of the top five times and won the team title with a meet-low 20 points. 5A Grand Junction sophomore Mandy Moran (23:20.83) placed second.

Senior Olivia Keitz finished first for BHS, taking 33rd overall in 27:29.33, and freshman Eli Ion was 10 places behind in 29:26.52. Freshman Paige Porter took 46th in 30:03.41, and classmate Emaliah Sawyer survived the rugged route in 31:10.81, finishing 51st.

Nanaeto leads IHS girlsAlso in the Invitational’s mix was first-year 2A program Ignacio, and the Bobcat quartet actually posted the best individual result of either Pine River Valley girls’ team.

Freshman Avaleena Nanaeto finished 21st in 26 minutes, 15.07 seconds, with junior Brianna Henderson (28:47.05) following next in 39th. Sophomore Jayden Brunson was right on her heels, placing 40th in 28:50.67, and classmate Vanessa Gonzales kept IHS’ pack relatively tight with her 42nd-place 29:13.47.

In addition to featuring a tough course with several uphill climbs, the Bayfield Invitational also had an abundance of school and community support for the local teams. The Marching Wolverines played for the crowd and performed the National Anthem. The BHS dance and cheer teams also showed up to support the runners, while a community race after the school competitions attracted a dozen runners, in spite of the climbing heat in the late morning.

2018 BAYFIELD INVITATIONAL BOYS’ TEAM STANDINGS (top 5 of 5): 1.Pagosa Springs 49, 2.BAYFIELD 53, 3.Durango JV 75, 4.Grand Junction 79, 5.Mancos 80.

2018 BAYFIELD INVITATIONAL GIRLS’ TEAM STANDINGS (top 3 of 3): 1.Durango JV 20, 2.Grand Junction 42, 3.Pagosa Springs 82.

4 Images

Phillip Hufman of Dolores runs toward the finish line and a first-place finish on Sept. 15. Fellow Bear Brennan Hite (19:36.22) came in third.
Girls from all three local cross-country teams ­– Ignacio, Bayfield and Durango – jostle for position at the start of the Bayfield Cross Country Invitational on Saturday.
Elco Garcia comes in second at the BHS Invitational with a time of 19:31.48 for his team.
The new Ignacio High School girls cross country team and Coach Marisa Duffy, right, relax after the Bayfield Invitational.
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