Over the course of the 2014 fall season, Mancos High School's prep sports teams produced several memorable performances.
So too did several individuals, who, thanks to performances on and off the field, cemented their legacies for years to come.
Below is a recap of the fall sports season in Mancos.
Cross-country set high standard
From mid-August until the end of October, the boys and girls cross-country teams set the standard for success in their community.
Led by Ro Paschal, Simon Kearns and Nic Archuleta, the boys team won five regular season meet titles, captured the Class 2A Region 4 Championship and finished second in state.
Paschal won four regular season meet titles, set two meet records, finished second at Regionals and seventh at state.
"(The cross-country season) was definitely my favorite experience that I've had in high school thus far," said Paschal. "It was just great to be part of it this year."
While the Mancos girls team was plagued by injuries, Emma Most, Hannah Skinner and Jessalyn Bay-Voit made the best of a tough situation and improved over the course of the year.
Most finished 32nd at state, and Skinner finished 54th.
"We had kind of a rough season this year, so I'm hoping we can all improve together as a team and do awesome next year," said Most.
Volleyball qualified for regionals
Overall, the 2014 volleyball season was a successful one for the Mancos volleyball team, which qualified for Regionals for the first time since 2011.
Highlighting the Mancos season was the team's 6-1 start, which included wins over Dolores and Nucla.
While Mancos faded during the second half of the season, the Bluejays finished third in the Class 2A District 3 Tournament.
"(The 2014 season) was the best I've ever coached," said Mancos head coach Brittney Lang. "We had a bunch of good people on and off the court."
Football team rebuilt
In terms of wins and losses, the 2014 season was not a good one for the Mancos football team, which finished 2-7.
The season did have some positives however, including the emergence of sophomore quarterback Axel Bonde and the consistent improvement of the team's offensive and defensive lines.
A 78-38 win over Sierra Grande and a 44-6 victory over Newcomb also provided bright spots in what was an otherwise difficult season.
"We're going to look toward next year and hopefully be a lot better," said Bluejays associate head coach Josh Gardner. "We fixed a lot of problems this year. Now we just need to develop that culture where we expect to win."
