Photo –
Back row – l-r – Coach Kyle Masterson, Aldo Zavala-Flores, Andy Setser, Brayan Flores-Gomez, Ethan Coyhis, Alejandro Salazar, Dante Ritter, Joshua Dean, Jordan Sierra, Micah Stanton, Thomas Termote, Conner Dosmann
Front row – l-r – Coach Lauren Masterson, Chaunelle Penn, Ashley Lagat, Sheilah Cheruiyot, Ashlee Ferrari, Jayceen Booth, Sharon Jesang
ALAMOSA, Colo. – The Trinidad State Trojans hosted the 2020 Region 9 Championships in Alamosa at Cattails Golf Course. With all other NJCAA sports being postponed this semester, cross country was the only region title up for grabs.
The men took to the course first for the 8K. The race broke apart quickly with Trojans Micah Stanton and Thomas Termote separating from the rest of the pack. Stanton dominated the field the last three miles, winning the region title in 26:26.1. Termote closed in an impressive second place running a personal best of 27:02.4. Andy Setser, the third Trojan runner, raced wisely by moving past a host of runners throughout the race. Setser moved from sixth to third to help the Trojans have the first three runners across the line. Ethan Coyhis, a middle-distance specialist, rose to the occasion and finished sixth for TSJC. The Trojans scoring five would round out with Conner Dosmann in seventh. The Trojans scored 17 points to secure their third Region 9 Championship in a row. Colorado Mountain College would finish second with 38 points. Coach Lauren Masterson commented on the performance, "Our men did a great job taking control of the race from the onset. Micah and Thomas did a great job, as expected. I was especially proud of Andy (Setser) and Ethan (Coyhis) stepping up and solidifying a big win for our team".
Following the men's victory, the Trojan ladies got off to a hot start on the sunny Cattails Golf Course. The race was also quick to separate with four Trojans out front from the gun. Three Trojans, Sheilah Cheruiyot, Ashley Lagat, and Sharon Jesang worked together for the first half of the race before Jesang made a bid for the individual Championship. She would win the Region IX title in a time of 19:46.6. Following shortly after Jesang were Lagat and Cheruiyot who finished second and third in the region, respectively. Ashlee Ferrari improved her placing from last year by two spots, finishing fourth to earn her first All-Region award. To round out the team scoring Chaunelle Penn finished in ninth place in a time of 27:57 followed by fellow teammate Jayceen Booth in tenth place. The Trojans scored 19 points followed by Colorado Mountain College with 37 points. "The ladies had a dominating performance," said Coach Masterson. "From the very start our ladies got to the front and never relented. You can't pick a performance of the day. We had great races top to bottom from these ladies."
Coach Lauren Masterson took home both the men's and women's "Coach of the Year" awards, giving her six in five seasons at the helm of the Trojan Cross Country programs. The Trojans will head to the NJCAA National Championships next. Those Championships will take place in Fort Dodge, Iowa on November 14.
Meet Results - https://www.tfrrs.org/results/xc/17454/2020_NJCAA_Region_9_XC_Championships#117693
Men's Photos - https://trinidadstate.prestosports.com/sports/mxc/2020-21/photos/0001/index
Women's Photos - https://trinidadstate.prestosports.com/sports/wxc/2020-21/photos/0001/index
