By and large, the Sedona Red Rock High School cross country team is filled with young runners who are not only new to the team, but new to the sport. Cheyenne Javey stands out as an exception.
Javey is a senior and in her third year with the Scorpions cross country team. Veteran leadership is often important to teammates, especially on young teams. Javey is certainly not an exception to that rule. That said, her veteran influence has been felt by more than just her teammates.
Javey has also been a big help to coach Ben Scamihorn, who’s in his first year coaching the Scorpions and is brand new to the area.
“Cheyenne is kind of my unnamed assistant coach,” he said, “She’s one of the few people on the team who’s ran cross country in the past. She’s not only been a leader on the team but also helped me with things. I don’t know all of the running trails in the area. I don’t know certain things. She’s been super helpful with all of that — and she’s a good runner.”
Given how young and generally inexperienced the team is, the Scorpions have done better than what could have realistically been expected of them at the start of the school year. Javey has had a big hand in that. While she dealt with both injury and illness early in the season, Javey has been one of the team’s top runners. She’s also been a big influence on her teammates — both on the trails and away from them.
“As a captain, she really pushes us to try and do our best,“ senior Ariana Parra- Landaverde added. “She’s a really big role model to everyone on the team, including me, as a first year cross country runner. I always try to keep up with her to push myself. If we have problems as a team, she can always help us figure them out.”
Javey’s ability to solve problems will serve her well with what she wants to do after high school. Following graduation in the spring, Javey hopes to attend Northern Arizona University and study both psychology and design.
“I’m always told that I’m really good with advice and helping people,” Javey said. “I was told I’m a good listener. And I like to help people. That’s what got me into psychology. In design, I just like organizing stuff.”
In the more immediate future, Javey has her eyes on qualifying for state, which would be new to her, though not entirely. Javey has qualified for state before, just never in cross country. She also runs for the SRRHS track and field team, running sprints and distance races, alike. In cross country, though, she’s still looking for her first trip to state. Noting Javey’s strong work ethic and determination, Scamihorn feels that qualifying for state is not only possible, but realistic.
“I definitely think she can be one of our state qualifiers, which is exciting,” the coach said. “If I tell her to do something, I know she’s going to do it. She’s also going to encourage her teammates to do it. She’s probably the hardest working kid on the team. Hard work in cross country is going to get you places. It’s going to get her places.”
Michael Dixon can be reached at 282-7795 ext 131 or email to mdixon@larsonnewspapers.com
