EAGLE BUTTE — Jayden Taken Alive is Cheyenne-Eagle Butte’s latest cross-country star. 

The Cheyenne-Eagle Butte High School distance ace joins an elite group of accomplished Braves’ cross-country runners, including past state champs like Joe Four Bear, Pat Red Dog, Jeff Turning Heart, Kiko Mendoza and Dysan Lends His Horse. 

Taken Alive, a region and three-time Lakota Nation Invitational champ, is now the next Brave to represent CEB on the state’s cross-country scene. 

“Cheyenne-Eagle Butte is a predominantly basketball school,” Taken Alive said. “So it feels nice to represent another sport for the school, and to get the Cheyenne-Eagle Butte name out there.”

Long-time cross-country coach Shannon Jewett said Taken Alive is comparable to other former CEB elite distance runners, and not just for his actions on the course. Jewett said Taken Alive checks the boxes like practice habits, leadership skills and competitive drive that make him a top-tier runner.  

“It’s always nice to have kids that lead like that,” Jewett said. “When they lead by example they run well and they are good. But they don’t have that attitude about things. They come to practice and work, and that’s how all of our top guys have been here.”

Cheyenne-Eagle Butte's Jayden Taken Alive competes in the Region 4A cross-country meet on Oct. 16 in Oacoma. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

As CEB’s lone senior, Taken Alive has naturally taken on a leadership role. While some athletes lead vocally, the soft-spoken Taken Alive leads by his actions on and off the cross-country course. 

“I don’t really try to lead people,” Taken Alive said. “I do whatever feels right for me, and people just follow.”

On the cross-country course, Taken Alive has had plenty of followers this season. Taken Alive has notched three top-10 finishes, including three first-place finishes in 2025. 

Two of Taken Alive’s highlights this season were winning the Region 4A and Lakota Nation Invitational meets. It was Taken Alive’s third LNI championship, a feat he’s especially proud of. 

“I take a lot of pride in it,” Taken Alive said. “It’s not easy running against kids from Wyoming, Nebraska and other Native schools. It was fun running against other Native boys, too.”

And he won this year’s title in memorable fashion. One of Taken Alive’s shoe laces came untied midway through the race, and his shoe fell off with about 150 meters left. But he still won the race at Hart Ranch in Rapid City, albeit in some pain.

“It hurt, I am not going to lie,” Taken Alive laughed. “Running on the gravel and a bunch of rocks, I just had to run through it and finish the best I could.”

Taken Alive outlasted his younger brother, Jackson, for the LNI championship. The Taken Alive brothers have regularly been the top-two CEB runners this season, while also pushing each other to be better. 

“He pushes me a lot, and I push him a lot, too,” Jayden said. “We both work together and try to be the best we can both be.”

The brothers have helped the Braves rack up some team hardware this season. The Cheyenne-Eagle Butte boys cross-country team has won the Region 4A and LNI championships this season, with Demetrius Sanchez-Gonzalez, Xavier Sanchez-Gonzalez, Liam Norris and Gage Bald Eagle also contributing to the team. 

The Braves will now gear up for the Class A state cross-country meet on Oct. 25 in Huron. 

“I am looking forward to it,” Jayden Taken Alive said. “I think we can do pretty well as a team. We always stick together a lot in the race and I feel like we can do pretty good just by doing that.”

Jewett echoed Taken Alive’s sentiments about the Braves potentially performing well at the state meet.

“When you win the region you can say well we are top five,” Jewett said. “But I think we might be a little better than that. I wouldn’t be surprised if we knock some doors off of things. But I would like to see them get some state hardware and I think we are capable.”

Jewett said Taken Alive is also capable of running at the next level. Taken Alive, who also participates in basketball and track and field, would like to compete collegiately. 

However, he’s currently focused on his final cross-country race as a Cheyenne-Eagle Butte Brave.

“I am just trying to run the best I can, and do the best I can do,” Taken Alive said about the state meet. “I want to try to do the best of my capabilities, let it all out there with it being my last race for high school cross country.”