NMJC WXC Wins Region V and WJCAC Championships

The NMJC women's cross country team won the 5k Region V Championship and WJCAC Championship for the second straight year on Saturday, Oct. 28 at Harry McAdams Park.

The T-Birds finished in first place with 18 points, El Paso CC came in second place with 56 points, and North Central Texas College placed third with 69 points. 

Damaris Chewon won her fourth race of the season and third straight race in a row Saturday morning with a time of 17:59.40. The sophomore's finish earned the Kapsabet, Kenya native All-Region and All-Conference honors. Chewon's victory is the first individual Region V title for her as she finished runner-up last year with a time of 18:29.80.

"Damaris is running great right now," women's cross country head coach Jeff Becker said. "Her fitness is well ahead of where she was last year at this time. Her time of 17:59.40 is her second-fastest cross country time and the fastest time she has run on our course."

Jayne Elvin finished runner-up for the third straight race coming across the line in 18:58.00. Elvin has remained consistent in her last three races with all finishes within a second of each other. The freshman's finish earned the Corringham, Stanford-Le-Hope, UK native All-Region and All-Conference honors.

Vanessa Gallegos came in third place for the fourth straight race with a career-best time of 19:07.00. The sophomore's finish was 8.5 seconds faster than her previous-best time she set Oct. 6 of this year and earned the Lovington, NM native All-Region and All-Conference honors. Gallegos came in 11th place last season in the Region V Championship with a time of 19:59.60.

"All three (Damaris Chewon, Jayne Elvin, and Vanessa Gallegos) are ready for nationals," Becker said. "The last four meets they have run by themselves with first, second, and third place finishes. It will be exciting to see what they do when they get pushed in two weeks at nationals."

Carolyne Kimaiyo ran a season-best 19:22.20 to finish in sixth place in the Region V Championship. The sophomore's finish earned the Iten, Kenya native All-Region and All-Conference honors. Kimaiyo placed fourth with a career-best time of 19:14.10 in last season's Region V Championship.

Lisanne Schapendonk competed well after taking a race off to rest. The freshman was the fifth runner for the T-Birds and finished in eighth place with a career-best time of 19:28.20. The Cuijk, Netherlands native earned All-Region and All-Conference honors with her finish on Saturday.

Freshman Jody Ann Mitchell came across the finish line in 20:15.40 to place 13th. The freshman ran a career-best time on Saturday morning and was 8.63 seconds faster than her race on Oct. 13.

Morgan Waltmire placed 18th overall at the Region V Championship. The sophomore's time of 20:55.20 is her best finish at regionals as she was out with injury during the race in 2022. Freshmen Tyfane Martins, Francesca Alvarado, and Daphne Kausz did not race on Saturday.

The Thunderbird cross country teams made history Saturday morning with their Region V and WJCAC Championship wins. This was the first time in school history both the men and women have swept the championships in the same season.

"It is not easy to win the region and conference," Becker said. "This is one of the hardest regions in the NJCAA. We have been building and working hard for years in order to win with both teams. I am proud of them for accomplishing this very challenging task."

The work is not finished for the women's cross country team. The T-Birds head to nationals to compete in the NJCAA Cross Country Championships at 10:30 a.m. CDT on Saturday, Nov. 11 in Huntsville, Ala., at John Hunt Park. The women will also compete in the Half Marathon at 9 a.m. CDT on Tuesday, Nov. 14 at John Hunt Park.

"This is the best overall performance I have seen at the regional meet for the ladies," Becker said. "Our team is ready for nationals."