Carbon High School (CHS) athletes have been working hard this season and the efforts have paid off in a big way. During the Nov. 2 Carbon County Commission meeting, more than one recognition was in order for these accomplishments.
The first was for Carbon High senior Bode Salas, a long-time member of the boys’ golf team. Salas stated that they only lost one player from the previous year and coming in, they had some young guys that were looking to improve.
According to Salas, they played really well as a team at state and he was happy to see that. To Salas, it almost felt like they won because they played so well on the second day. Coach Robbie Etzel echoed these sentiments, saying that it has been nice to have the players help give him direction as it was his first time coaching on the high school level.
Coach Etzel also said that it will be tough for him to not have the four seniors that are graduating return to the team, but he knows that there are a lot of kids that are stepping up.
Commissioner Tony Martines explained that Salas was added to the record book again for another category. In the 74 years that the records have been kept, Salas is one of 17 young athletes that are listed twice. Martines wished to congratulate the coach, the team and Salas for what he has accomplished. He presented Coach Etzel with a certificate for being an outstanding coach.
Salas was then presented two certificates. One of the certificates was for the state championship and the other one was to commemorate being the 2020 and 2022 3A golf champion.
Next, the Carbon High School girls’ cross country team was highlighted for its recent accomplishment in being named state champions. They earned the title for the first time in school history.
The girls were in attendance and took a moment to introduce themselves before Ambree Jones, a senior, detailed the tournament. She stated that last year, the team ended in second and was pretty close to winning.
With that in mind, they knew going into the season that they had the chance at winning state. Through the summer, they worked as a team and pushed through the hard workouts. Jones said they won the first race as well as a couple of other meets.
Region was stressful for them as the team that was the most competitive is in their region. However, they ended up beating them by three points.
Going into state, their coach informed them that they were ready and had put in the work. Jones explained that they lined up, tried not to let their nerves take over and ran a tight pack, resulting in the win.
Rozlyn Stowe, a Carbon High freshman, was also highlighted as she has accomplished much throughout the season, including taking home the individual state championship in the 3A girls’ race. Commissioner Martines congratulated the runners and their coach before wishing them success in the future.
“Congratulations, that’s quite an accomplishment,” said Commissioner Casey Hopes.
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- Photos courtesy of Kellie Payne
