The Allen Community College cross country squad began its season Friday at the King’s Sandwich Classic with promising results.
The Red Devils women, who kicked off the event by winning the 4k race as a team, were paced by Kaitlyn Shoemaker. The freshman from Easton won first overall with a final time of 15:46.76, which was about 19 seconds faster than the race’s second-place finisher from Saint Mary’s University.
Taylor Jameson (16:18.70) and Kristina Silvers (16:22.36) helped seal the victory for Allen by earning third and fifth place finishes overall, respectively.
Vicky Ibarra (16:40.39) and Nichole Moreland (19:15.38) rounded out the women’s team, finishing ninth and 34th overall.
Although Allen has just five runners, all of whom are freshmen, the Red Devils finished with a total team time of 1:24:23.59, which was more than a minute-and-a-half faster than Dodge City Community College, the race’s second-place team. With four of its five runners finishing within the top-10 as well, Allen compiled the lowest point total in the event with a 39.
Pratt CC, McPherson College and Garden City CC rounded out the women’s 4k.
The men competed in a 5k, which was won by Saint Mary’s University with a total score of 28. Allen wasn’t too far behind with a 34.
Ben Najman (15:52.78) was Allen’s top runner by finishing in second behind Saint Mary’s Christian Graham, who paced the rest of the runners with a 15:48.93 time. Pedro Montoya (15:55.69), Ricardo Banuelos (15:59.38) and Obed Quintana (16:34.46) all earned top-ten finishes for the Red Devils.
Although coach Vince DeGrado’s squad placed three more runners in the top 20, it wasn’t enough to topple Saint Mary’s, which finished only about 17 seconds ahead of Allen as a team.
DeGrado will take his squad to Memphis, Tenn., next week to compete in the Brooks Memphis Twilight Classic for the team’s second race in the young season.
Allen Red Devils run strong in season opener
