By Raymundo Frasquillo
MORENCI – It took her a while, but she figured it out when it could still do her some good. It involved her will to succeed, reach a goal, and realize the dream of being the best at something of her choosing.
Just as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz learned, diminutive Morenci Class of 2021 grad Kayla O’Connell found the answer lies within. No, she didn’t just close her eyes, click her heels three times, and say “there’s no place like home.”
In third place and within eyesight of the finish line during the 2020 state cross country meet, O’Connell checked her gauge only to find herself nearly running on empty, made up her mind she wasn’t going to finish in the spot she occupied, willed herself into a higher gear, and methodically surpassed the front runners with the remaining fumes during the final 100 meters. She ended as the Arizona Division III state champion with an ear-to-ear smile filling her face, as well as those of her supporters.
Afterward, O’Connell looked for the second- and third-place finishers, intending to thank them for having pushed her, but they were nowhere to be found. She returned with her father to Morenci in time for the accomplishment to be lauded during the evening home football game.
Her personal bests for cross country were 19:14.70 (Oct. 24, 2020) in the 5,000; and for track 1:11.05 (March 17, 2018) in the 400; 2:32.09 (March 13, 2020) in the 800; 5:30.96 (May 1, 2021) in the 1600; and 11:52.43 (March 21, 2021) in the 3200. Times for the 5K, 1600, and 3200 remain as school records.
O’Connell is running the streets of Morenci once again, this time helping build a program and developing runners for her alma mater as a Morenci School District faculty member. She completed requirements for a college degree during the 2025 Fall term, after running year-round for cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track as an Aggie in the Land of Enchantment for Division I New Mexico State University on scholarship.
Her collegiate personal best times are for eight different distances: the mile from 5:39.87 (Jan. 22, 2022) for 31 of 38 to 5:19.29 (Feb. 10-11, 2023) or down over 20 seconds for 19 of 30, both in Albuquerque (NM); the 3,000 steeplechase from not finishing (March 18-19, 2022) to 11:59.10 (March 24-25, 2023) for 5-12, both at Tucson; the 5K from 20:08.70 (Sept. 18, 2021) for 28 of 45, down nearly two minutes to 18:30.80 (August 31, 2024) for 17 of 81, both at Las Cruces (NM) to 17:21.97 (May 16-18, 2025) for 14 of 29 at Murfreesboro (TN); the 1,500 from 5:04.88 (April 7, 2022) for 10-20 in Albuquerque (NM), down over a minute and a half to 4:51.94 (March 22-23, 2024) for 18 of 45 in Tucson; the 10,000 with 36:47.79 (April 12-13, 2024) for 10 of 25 in LaVerne (CA) during her initial run; the 6K from 23:39.40 (Oct. 1, 2021) for 33-40 in Tucson to 21:21.50 (Oct. 18, 2024) for 130 of 394 in College Station (TX) or down nearly two minutes; the 3,000 from 11:22.26 (Jan. 14-15, 2022) for 9-12 in Lubbock (TX) to 10:17.22 (Feb. 28-March 1, 2025) for 23-32 in Lynchburg (VA) or down nearly a minute, and the 5,000 from 18:42.21 (March 24-26, 2022) for 11-14 at San Diego (CA) to 17:21.97 (May 16-18, 2025) for 14-29 in Murfreesboro, TN or down over a minute 21.
She also made three consecutive appearances in the NCAA Mountain Regional, going from 23:00.20 in 2021 to 22:43.10 in 2023 to 22:15.50 in 2024 for the 6K.
O’Connell was named one of 89 New Mexico State student-athletes to receive the Conference USA Commissioner’s Academic Medal for having a grade point average of 3.75 or better for the 2024-25 school year. She was also listed as one of 13 NMSU student-athletes for cross country on the CUSA Commissioner’s Honor Roll for both the 2024-25 and 2023-24 school years for having a grade point average of 3.00 or better.
Her running allowed travel for meets to places she felt would more than likely not visit in California, Nevada, New Mexico, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
She briefly mentioned watching carefully what you eat and drink, working hard in the off-season, weight room sessions, and encouragement by her coaches as part of the secret to her success. “The weight room really helped me.”
During the past seven years, with the most important supporters at their sides, 17 other Wildcats have also formally signed national letters of intent while still in high school and used their athletic prowess to attain a higher education. The next level signees include five each for softball and wrestling, four for football, two for volleyball, and one each for basketball and baseball.
The signees are Candace Forgach-Aguilar (2021, Notre Dame of Maryland volleyball/softball; Brendon Enriquez (2022, WNMU football), Juliauna Forgach-Aguilar (2022, Lewis and Clark State College volleyball), and Cody Torres (2022, Menlo College wrestling); Devanie Medina (2023 Ottawa University softball); Donovan Vozza (2024, Western New Mexico University football), John Provencio (2024, Adams State University wrestling), Noah Torres (2024, Adams State University wrestling), and Breck Williams (2024, Adams State University wrestling), Alizabeth Aguilar (2024, Kansas Weslyan softball), and Kay’Leigh Blair (2024, Western Nebraska Community College softball); Christopher Lopez (2025, Concordia Moorehead College football), Noah Chavez (2025, Hastings College basketball), Christopher Carbajal (2025 Parks University baseball), and Camryn Woodall (2025, Culver-Stockton softball); Isaiah Cook (2026, Hartnell College football) and Merrick Williams (2026, Adams State University wrestling).
2021: Candace Forgach-Aguilar earned 2020 2A East Region First Team as a setter in volleyball along with 2021 2A East All-Region First Team as a senior and 2019 all-region honorable mention as a sophomore outfielder in softball.
2022: Enriquez was a 2A All-Conference First Team linebacker and 2A San Pedro All-Region First Team linebacker in 2021 as a senior, a 2A San Pedro All-Region Second Team defensive utility/flex player in 2020 as a junior, and was named 2A Black All-Region Honorable Mention in 2019 as a sophomore; Juliauna Forgach-Aguilar was selected 2A East All-Region First Team and the Offensive Player of the Year as a sophomore, junior and senior hitter/middle blocker in 2019, 2020, and 2021, respectively, as well as All-Conference Honorable Mention in 2019 and Second Team in 2021; and Cody Torres a 2-time section champion (7-1, 2 pins) and 2-time state champion (16-3, 10 pins).
2023: Medina was All-Region Second Team as a junior in 2021 and All-Region First Team and All-Conference Second Team as a senior in 2022.
2024: Vozza received 3A All-Conference Honorable Mention and was a 3A South All-Region First Team defensive lineman in 2023 as a senior, a 2A Salt All-Region First Team defensive lineman in 2022 as a junior, and was named 2A San Pedro All-Region Honorable Mention defensive lineman in 2021 as a freshman; Provencio was a 3-time section champion (9-0, 6 pins) and 3-time state champion (17-1, 9 pins); Noah Torres a 2-time section champion (8-1, 7 pins) and 3-time state champion (16-1, 10 pins); Breck Williams a 3-time section champion (8-0, 7 pins) and 3-time state champion (15-1, 13 pins); Aguilar was All-Region Second Team as a sophomore in 2022, All-Region First Team as a junior in 2023, and All-Region First Team along with Region Offensive Player of the Year and All-Conference First Team as a senior in 2024; and Blair was All-Region Honorable Mention as a sophomore, All-Region Second Team as a sophomore, and All-Region First Team as a senior;
2025: Lopez was a 3A South All-Region offensive utility/flex player and a Second Team punt returner in 2024 as a senior; Chavez was named 2A All-Conference Second Team and 2A East All-Region Second Team in 2024 as a junior, and was the 2A South All-Region Defensive Player of the Year in 2025 as a senior; Carbajal received 2A South All-region Honorable Mention as a senior in 2025 and as a junior in 2024; and Woodall was a 2A East All-Region Second Team pitcher as a freshman in 2022, a 2A East All-Region First Team pitcher as a sophomore in 2023, a 2A East All-Region pitcher and Region Player of the Year along with All-Conference First Team as a junior in 2024, and a 2A South All-Region First Team along with the Region Defensive Player of the Year and All-Conference First Team as a senior in 2025; and
2026: Cook was a 2A All-Conference (All-State) offensive lineman as well as 2A East All-Region First Team offensive lineman and Second Team defensive lineman in 2025 as a senior, 3A All-Conference Honorable Mention and a 3A South All-Region First Team offensive lineman in 2024 as a junior, and a 3A South All-Region Second Team defensive lineman in 2023 as a sophomore; and Merrick Williams was a 3-time section champion (10-1, 8 pins) and finished third thrice (16-5, 13 pins) as a Wildcat.
