Heading into the 2019 season, Mingus’ girls cross country team was best described as young. The Marauders lineup was composed mostly of underclassmen. Heading into the 2020 season, the best word to describe the Mingus girls would be ambitious.
Coming off of a ninth place finish in state last fall, the Marauders have laid out a goal to win the state championship this season.
“I think on a great day that they have the capability of doing that,” coach Dave Moncibaez said. “They really showed true heart last year going top nine. They were ninth in the state coming out of a heck of a competitive region. I actually think they have a shot of doing it and they believe they can, too.”
“We’re going to try to all get under 20 minutes,” sophomore Makena Bliss said. “We have to try our hardest in every practice.”
While there’s reason to believe that 2020 can bring great things, the current Mingus core also gives the program hope for the future. Bliss is one of several sophomores in the lineup, joining classmates Maisie Babcock, Nina Willoughby and Safiya Sweeney. That quartet, along with twin juniors Claire and Aubrey Peterson, gives the Marauders an experienced yet still youthful group of runners.
The boys team also comes into the year with big hopes. A season ago, they narrowly missed qualifying for state. This year, the boys are shooting to take that extra step and qualify.
“We’re hoping to make it to state this year,” junior Isaac Reynolds said. “We got really close last year and missed it by like a minute. We’re hoping to improve on that.”
The boys also have a strong returning nucleus that includes Reynolds, senior Jehiah Rogers, sophomores Cesar Diaz and Keenan Brekke as well as junior Retief Tapija.
Coach Moncibaez actually believes that the boys have a chance to not only qualify for state but finish in the top three. One of the key reasons is the team’s consistency. At sectionals last season, the time between the best and fifth-best Mingus runners was only 35 seconds.
“That’s pretty remarkable,” Moncibaez said. “If they can run the same way this year, just faster, they’ve got a chance.”
Of course, this year has offered a number of challenges — with the schedule being the chief among them. The Marauders have arranged for one on one meets against both Coconino and Prescott High Schools. Eventually Moncibaez hopes to have eight meets on the schedule with sectionals and state being the ninth and tenth, respectively.
Also, there was only a limited track and field season last spring and with summer practices being all but wiped out, Mingus is a little behind schedule. Fortunately for the Marauders, their struggles put them on even footing with their competitors, as other schools throughout the state face the same obstacles.
Additionally, since Mingus has yet to return to in person learning, Moncibaez has not been able to recruit more athletes. As such, while both the boys and girls have a solid core, the overall numbers are down.
Despite the challenges, both the coach and the team’s runners are happy the practices are going and excited to get the season underway.
“I’m just excited to get these kids out here and going,” Moncibaez said.
“I honestly didn’t think there was going to be a season,” Bliss said. “It’s been rough so far but it’s been worth it. I like cross country better than track. I’m glad to be back.”
