Mary Beattie, the founder of the track and field program at Sedona Red Rock High School, had to rebuild West Sedona School when she took over as head coach in 2013.

Three years later, she has her biggest turnout ever, 21 boys and 19 girls, heading into her opening meet Wednesday, March 23, in Prescott.

The week after Wednesday, March 30, West Sedona and head coach Diane Schumacher’s 15 Coyotes will compete in 15 events against each other the rest of their final spring schedule before Big Park faces possible closure.

“If it is our last season, we’ll have fun with it, roll with it and do the best we can,” Beattie said. “It’s quite sad. We’ve come so far …. We’ll have a better idea next week as to the direction we’ll be going.”

Beattie faces the loss of at least her 28 returners from last season. That includes her son, Dylan, an eighth-grader, a high jumper and 100-meter hurdler who is also “amazing” in the 800-meter dash, she said.

“He doesn’t want to go any higher than that,” she said. “He doesn’t want to challenge himself to the mile.”

It also includes her daughter, Emma, a long jumper and 4×100 relay runner who is “probably going to be my top hurdler” this season as a sixth-grader, Beattie added.

“We have a lot of sixth-graders this year,” she said. “We have a group of eight to 10 girls who have done basketball and volleyball together and are now doing track together.”

Including long-distance runner Nyah Valdez and another long jumper and relay runner, Stephanie Medel, who Beattie said will attempt the hurdles for the first time this spring.

“She’s a really good long distance runner, even though she doesn’t enjoy it,” Beattie said. “Nyah does amazingly well at the mile. She’s very scared and nervous, but I need to count on her for that. Long-distance runners, I don’t have as many of.”

The boys team is similarly experience-heavy. Eighth-grade basketball players Manny Jaimes, Jonathan Galaz and Luis Moya are “fast” and “picking up technique really well” in the transition, Beattie said.

Xavier Stimple is “probably going to be one of my top finishers,” Beattie added, along with seventh-grader Horacio Bermudez.

In fact, Beattie’s lone returner could be “tiny” fifth-grade sprinter Caroline Wendell, who looks to join eighth-grader Lizbeth Corral-Diaz in the 100- and 200-meter dash as well as the 4×100 relay this spring.

Wendell will also attempt field events like the shot put and discus, along with eighth-graders Carolina Lopez and Danni Arenas, in her third year with the Wildcats.

For the schedule of all West Sedona and Big Park Community School track meets, please see the Friday, March 18, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.