For many teams this was their finalnormal regular season week. The Texas Relays are coming up this weekend whichmeans many teams will be sending split squads to different places while othersare taking the week off to prepare for district meets that start next week. Ifthe regular season is any preview for championship season this could be one forthe record books in San Antonio.
The Best Thing I Saw
Iattended the Northeast Invitational at Heroes Stadium this past week and sawsome outstanding performances like Elizabeth Leachman running a 2:10.74 in the800m for Boerne Champion and Reagan's Sam Abati clearing 17-0 in the pole vaultfor the fourth time this year. However, the best thing I saw this week wassomething that I did not actually see with my own eyes, but since I was in thestadium I will count it. Clemens junior Joshua Jacksonhas been long jumping inthe high 21's and low 22's this year until Thursday when he uncorked a 24-1.5leap! For reference, the San Antonio area had zero 24-foot long jumpers lastyear and it is over a foot longer than anyone else in the city this year.
Mano y Mano
NISDhosted an outstanding meet last week called the Alamo Relays and it featuredthe top two boys in the 100m and 200m this year, Tate Taylor of Harlan and Nick Ross. In each case Taylor came out on top running 10.77 in the 100mand 21.07 in the 200m while Ross was right behind in 10.90 in the 100m and21.52 in the 200m. It was Taylor's fastest time of the season in the 200m. Thetwo runners should get used to running against each other because they are ranked1-2 in the Region in both events and will go head-to-head at the district, areaand regional levels before they could both qualify for the State meet.
That's Why It's Called Track ANDField
Thereare many athletes who are outstanding in multiple track or multiple fieldevents, but there are a few that are truly stars on the track and in the field.The names that pop into my head are Dilley's Dorian Aranda, Ty Webb ofChurchill, Joshua Jackson of Clemens, Camden Derricoatte of Stockdale, Isabella Dagrosa and Mackenzie Dagrosa of Reagan, Iyanna Webb of Harlan, Shyniece Davis of Jay, Taylor Nunezof Randolph, Nyima Williamson of Veterans Memorial, and Daisha Shular ofSeguin to name a few. I am sure I have missed some people but each of these hasat least one outstanding track and one outstanding field event they contributeto their teams every week. For an unknown reason, it seems like there are moregirls pulling double-duty this year than boys, but I am sure that is somethingthat goes back and forth each year.
Keeping a Low Profile
Brandeissenior Hayden Scotthas not raced nearly as many races as he did last year, butit appears he is rounding into form for a great finish to the season. He hasrun the 800m more than any previous year and posted a personal record time of1:55.64 at the Smithson Valley Ranger Relays at the start of March. Since then,he has dropped a solid time of 4:17.91 in the 1600m at the Texas DistanceFestival and then he ran a 9:21.78 in the 3200m this week at the Alamo Relayswhich was the second fastest 2-mile time of his career. It will be interestingto see what events he runs at the District meet this year.
Sprint Relays
Itwas a really good weekend for sprint relays in Texas with the Humble Atascocitaboys breaking the national high school record in the 4x100m relay but they werenot the only ones running fast. Around the San Antonio area the Seguin boys4x100m team of Kayden Holz, Nik Henry, Ocean Moreno and Elliott Weavernearly broke 41seconds with a time of 41.08 while Brennan set a new school record with a timeof 41.66. In the 4x200m, the Wagner boys ran 1:27.74 at the Candy Tanner Relaysand Seguin ran 1:27.79 at the Matador Relays. The two teams will see a lot ofeach other since they are both in District 26-5A. The Reagan girls continue tohold the top spot in the area in both the 4x100m and 4x200m with times of 47.04and 1:38.84, respectively. They won both events this weekend at the NortheastInvitational. Smithson Valley's girls are #2 in the 4x100m with a top time of47.56 while the Harlan girls ran a season best in the 4x200m this week of 1:40.70putting them #2 in the area.
School Records
Inthis section, I want to highlight the new school records that were set duringthe week. I need coaches to please let me know when you have a new record set.Either email me at shanemeling@gmail.comor message at me @ShaneMeling on X (Twitter).
Fredericksburg Girls, DMR, 12:46.77(Ann Claire Cop, Ava Stuewe, Rilyn Grona, Taylor Grona)
Fredericksburg Girls, 4x800m,9:52.91 (Madalyn Kovar, Rilyn Grona, Ann Claire Cop, Taylor Grona)
Arlen Hanle, Wimberley, 3200m,9:53.97
Maddie Reagan, Davenport, 3200m,11:37.44
Joshua Jackson, Clemens, Long Jump,24-1.5
Aubrey Fallon, Davenport, Shot Put,32-0
Gianni Evans-Williams, Davenport,Triple Jump, 44-8.5
Brennan Boys, 4x100m, 41.66(Clifton McBride, Micai Thompson, Devin Gills, Omar Finney-Harding)
Justice Boston, Steele, Long Jump,18-9.5
Giselle Gonzalez, Providence, 800m,2:22.46
Elijah Hernandez, Sotomayor, 400m,47.96
Ja'Dan Keiler, Taft, 300mH, 38.05
Kinlee Lawlis, Bandera, 200m, 24.95
Around the City
ThePieper boys won the Wimberley Texan Relays behind a great performance fromhurdler Isaiah Champagne. He won the 110mH in 15.85 and the 300mH in 40.68. TheWarriors are very deep in the triple jump this year and went 1-2 behind Kahdyn Freeman(43-9) and Rashard Dunbar (43-6). Wimberley's Arlen Hanle had his bestmeet of the year taking the 3200m in a school record time of 9:53.97 and thenhe won the 1600m in 4:33.86.
TheWimberley girls were able to hold serve in their own meet getting anotherstrong performance from Baylee Gold who won the 100mH and triple jump. Laney Hennesseegave them a gold medal in the long jump with a mark of 18-3. CanyonLake's Cadence Patterson has been great all year and it was no different onThursday as she won the 800m (2:18.87) and 1600m (5:04.64) while her teammateAyren Lightfoot ran well in the 400m (57.74) and 200m (25.58). Pieper'sCaroline Peterson won the high jump again with a clearance of 5-6. The CanyonLake and Wimberley 4x400m relay teams had a showdown with the Hawks winning in4:02.91 while Wimberley finished in 4:03.72.
Fredericksburgswept both the boys and girls titles at the Charlie Dobbs Antler Relays. The3200m ended up being a great race on the boys side with Antonian freshman John Bolandwinning in 9:51.13 but Antonian's Todd Worth (9:53.67), Davenport's Eli Bliss(9:54.38), Boerne's Carsten Bain (9:54.64) and Aaron Garcia(9:55.33) of Boernewere all close behind him. Uvalde's Jack Collinsran well in both the 800m(1:57.42) and 1600m (4:29.45). Antonian closed out the meet with a 3:24.40 inthe 4x400. In the field events, Blanco's Reggie Johnsonthrew 50-2 in the shotput and 155-3 in the discus.
TheFredericksburg girls received strong performances from Ann Claire Cop and theirtwo throwers, Madison Wrightand Reese Sagebiel. Cop won the 3200m in 11:30.52and then the 1600m in 5:18.32. Wright won the shot put with a toss of 39-7 and wassecond with a throw of 104-3 in the discus. Sagebiel switched places with hertaking second in the shot put (36-9) and first in the discus (119-10). Uvalde'sAnaleigha Najera ran a strong 100m winning in 12.67.
Judsonhosted their Candy Tanner relays on Thursday and it produced some excellentresults. Jakob Gilbreth of New Braunfels posted an unusual double by winningthe 100m in 10.72 and the 400m in 49.18. Wagner's Donavan Lang led his team'ssprinting crew with a victory in the 200m in 21.84, part of a 1-2-3 finish forhis squad. Wagner also won the 4x100m in 42.21 and the 4x200m in 1:27.74. Taft mighthave the top two hurdlers in the area this year. Malik Whitewon the 110mH in14.43 and ran a great time of 38.40 in the 300mH, but he could not beat teammateJa'Dan Keiler who ran 38.05 to set a new school record. Keiler was also secondin the 110mH with a time of 14.75. Judson's Josiah Harris was no slouch in the300's clocking a time of 39.02.
NyimaWilliamson of Veterans Memorial had another great performance at the CandyTanner Relays winning the long jump with a leap of 18-9.75 and running a 25.34in the 200m. Taft freshman Daniela Shelfo was a double winner in the 400m(58.81) and 800m (2:22.08). Paige Beeghley of New Braunfels has been veryconsistent this year in the pole vault even though I have not written muchabout her, but she cleared 11-0 to take the victory.
Atthe Poth Pirate Relays it was Goliad taking both team titles, but there werestill many quality performances from local athletes. Dilley's Dorian Aranda continuedhis multi-event success winning the 100m (10.79), 200m (22.18), long jump (22-7)and triple jump (44-4.5). San Antonio Christian's Adrian Rule ran two niceraces winning the 1600m in 4:24.94 and the 3200m in 9:40.21. Finally, the Poththrowing duo of Larson Dziuk and Aiden Reedpicked up big points. Dziuk threwthe discus 157-4 while Reed went 155-11 and 50-3.75 in the shot put.
Brooklyn Albertled the Poth girls by taking three gold medals in the 800m (2:19.83),1600m (5:11.84) and 3200m (11:14.00). Falls City's Cayla Albers appears to begearing up for her championship season with a solid day throwing 127-10 in thediscus and 37-3.5 in the shot put. The Falls City relay teams have been on fireall year and it was no different on Thursday as they took second in the 4x100m(49.87), first in the 4x200m (1:44.52) and first in the 4x400m (4:05.48). Kenley Wiatrekand Keandra Johnson run on all three relays while Camber Pipes andChloe Cavalier are on two of the teams.
TheRandolph Ro-Hawks Relays were cut short due to weather so they did not have the1600m, 4x400m or any field events posted in their final results. However,Jaeden Servantez of Sam Houston won the 100m and 200m for the boys and Aiden Martinezof Great Hearts Monte Vista ran excellent times in the 110mH (14.93)and 300mH (40.27). Randolph's Sophia Bendet ran the fastest 800m time in thearea this year with a 2:10.43 while Taylor Nunez crossed the line in the 200min 24.17. Marion's Maggie Luna had a strong day running 12.80 in the 100m and26.49 in the 200m.
Atthe Alamo Relays the Brennan boys edged out Harlan by four points to take theteam title. I have already mentioned some of the great performances by TateTaylor, Nick Ross and Hayden Scott at the meet. Sotomayor's Elijah Hernandezlowered his own school record in the 400m with a time of 47.96. Brennan's Zac Miller has been running well all season and it was no different on Saturdaywith times of 4:23.62 in the 1600m and 9:34.33 in the 3200m. Javyn Dolton ofBrennan separated himself as the top triple jumper in the area with a bound of46-8.5 and then he added a win in the long jump with a mark of 21-4. Johnson'sThomas Bucks has been easily the #2 pole vaulter in the area this year andcleared 15-6.
TheJohnson girls have been putting together a strong season this year and they wonthe Alamo Relays with 125 points while Harlan was second with 109. Harlan'sIyanna Webb was the big scorer in the meet with gold medals in the 100mH(15.16), long jump (19-6) and triple jump (41-10) while adding a silver in the300mH (45.75). The 100m, 200m and 400m all featured close races with some ofthe best runners in the area. Harlan's Toryn Taylor won the 100m in 12.23 whileKalia Abernathy of Stevens was second in 12.31. In the 200m, it was Madisun Sparksof Johnson winning in 25.39 while her teammate, Jordan Peters, wassecond in 25.47. The 400m saw two of the three best girls in the entire city goat it with London Graham of Brandeis winning in 55.96 and Brennan's Caila Lyonscoming across in 56.31. Lyons also won the 800m in 2:16.87.
Seguin'sMatador Relays featured a tie for the top team in the boys division withDripping Springs and Steele each accumulating 143 points. The Seguin sprinterswere quite impressive with Nik Henry winning the 100m in 10.67, Ocean Morenowon the 200m in 21.78 and they swept the 4x100m and 4x200m relays posting supertimes of 41.08 and 1:27.79. Noah Fernandezof Central Catholic pulled off atough double winning the 400m and 800m, including a nice time of 1:57.46 in thehalf-mile. The discus proved to be a great event with Michael Estradaof SanAntonio Patriots winning with a throw of 170-9 while Abdon Mata of Steele went159-9.5 and Nick Hughes of Central Catholic reached 155-1.75. Estrada also wonthe shot put with a throw of 58-6.75.
TheJudson girls won the Matador Relays by four points over Steele in what mighthave been a preview of the District 27-6A meet in a week. Lockhart had a pairof athletes run well in Rakaia Walker and Jade Selmon. Walker ran 12.17 in the100m finals in addition to her 11.98 in the prelims and 25.02 in the 200m whileSelmon broke 15 seconds in the 100mH with a time of 14.99. Steele appears to beloaded in the jumps with Justice Boston and Anaiya Wood. Boston went 18-9.5 inthe long jump and 39-5.75 in the triple jump and Wood also went 39-1.5 in thetriple jump. Mikayla Kidney of the San Antonio Patriots ran 12.70 in the 100mprelims and then won the discus with a throw of 119-4.
Therewere a couple other meets that local teams traveled to this past week as well.Southwest's Mayra Medina won the 800m (2:23.28) and was second in the 400m(1:01.97) at the Chatter Allen Relays in Corpus Christi. At the Charles AustinRelays in San Marcos Smithson Valley's Mia Perezwon the 800m (2:15.77) and1600m (5:10.38) while Ella Pickron cleared 12-0 in the pole vault. Cannen Kyleof New Braunfels Christian Academy threw the shot put 52-3.5 and Kinlee Lawlissof Bandera lowered her own school record in the 200m with a time of 24.95.
Looking Forward
Thebig meet this weekend is the Texas Relays where many of the top local athleteswill be competing. For those looking for meets closer to home Clemens and SAISDare hosting meets on Wednesday while New Braunfels, Randolph and NISD haveThursday meets. The District meet schedule begins next Tuesday with District29-6A at Gustafson while the majority of the district meets are on Wednesdayand Thursday of next week.
Senior Signings
Iwould like to keep a running tally of all the track and field and cross countrysignings so please contact me if you notice someone is missing.
Ella Pickron, Smithson Valley, Colorado State
Erin Martin, Boerne Champion, West Texas A&M
Isabella Dagrosa, Reagan, Vanderbilt
Mackenzie Dagrosa, Reagan, Vanderbilt
Hayden Brace, Boerne Champion, USMA
Marcelo Parra, TMI, Princeton
Franco Parra, TMI, Princeton
Araceli Ford, O'Connor, UIW
Anthony Zapata, Southwest Legacy, UIW
Sam Abati, Reagan, Texas
Ann Claire Cop, Fredericksburg, Houston
Maddie Reagan, Davenport, TCU
Iyanna Webb, Harlan, Baylor
Hayden Scott, Brandeis, Texas
Joseph Lopez, Sotomayor, A&M-Corpus Christi
Ashley Stratton, Harlan, Angelo State
Jazmyn Singh, Smithson Valley, Princeton
Nathan Marcovitch, Johnson, Baldwin-Wallace
Talitha Brown, Clemens, Dallas Baptist
Alejandro Rosales, Churchill, UT-Tyler
Avery Brawner, Alamo Heights, Hofstra
Eli Perez, Floresville, Seattle University
Alyssa Quinones, Floresville, Abilene Christian
Cadence Patterson, Canyon Lake, Houston
Alma Lazo-Cazares, O'Connor, USMA
