Guillen, Lopez capture individual titles at BISD meet
The varsity races were completed barely in time before a downpour brought an early end to Saturday’s annual Brownsville ISD Cross Country Meet at Hanna.
David Guillen of Los Fresnos captured first place in the boys race over a 3.1-mile course in 15 minutes, 31 seconds, while Brenda Lopez of San Benito was the girls champion over a 2-mile course in 12:13.
"I liked the course here at Hanna just because it was muddy (from a previous rain)," said Guillen, who won an individual meet title for the fourth time this season. "It makes it fun to run in it.
"I wish it could have been better (time-wise)," he added. "I just ran this race to win. The last mile I picked it up. I wasn’t all that satisfied with my time, but I’m not too worried about it because when it comes to the competition that really matters (at the district, regional and state meets), I believe that I’ll be able to perform (better)."
Added teammate Juan Cardenas, who finished fourth in 16:06 and is returning from a knee injury, "We were good competitors, and I thought it went well. I felt good about my race, but it wasn’t the best race I’ve ever had. I felt I could have done better because I’m coming off an injury."
For the boys individually, Armando Fierro of Port Isabel and Jose Martinez of Weslaco East finished second and third, respectively, in 15:36 and 15:39. Finishing second and third in the girls race were Saira Gonzalez of Hanna in 12:34 and Christina Rivera of Rivera in 12:37.
La Joya Palmview captured the boys team championship with 66 points compared to 106 points for runner-up Hanna and 134 points for third-place Weslaco East. Palmview was led by top-20 finishers Jose Jaime in fifth (16:08), Alex Leal in 11th (16:42), Chris Marmolejo in 13th (16:44) and Jonathan Hernandez in 16th (16:47).
Hanna edged Los Fresnos for the girls team title with 58 points compared to 60 for the Lady Falcons. PSJA High was third with 109 points.
"It was a little bit of a surprise, but I know that Los Fresnos didn’t have a complete team at this meet," Hanna coach Jaime Vasquez said. "I was proud of our girls by how tight they ran together. We have been talking about that, and they’re doing it. Having six girls finish in the top 20 is pretty impressive. They’ve been working really hard, so it was nice to see them win the meet."
Finishers in the top 20 for the Hanna girls besides Gonzalez at second place were Elizabeth Rodriguez in eighth (13:02), Sandra Mendoza in 15th (13:16), Marina Sanchez in 16th (13:17), Erika Ortiz in 17th (13:19) and Ashley Taylor in 20th (13:29).
The next race for Rio Grande Valley runners will be Saturday’s Meet of Champions in Donna.
Roy Hess writes for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him via e-mail at rhess@brownsvilleherald.com.
Brownsville ISD Cross Country Meet
At Brownsville Hanna
Saturday's results
Varsity girls (2 miles)
Team standings (top 5)
1. Brownsville Hanna, 58 points; 2. Los Fresnos, 60; 3. PSJA High, 109; 4. San Benito, 112; 5. Brownsville Rivera, 146.
Varsity individual girls results
1. Brenda Lopez, San Benito; 12 minutes, 13 seconds; 2. Saira Gonzalez, Hanna, 12:34; 3. Christina Rivera, Rivera; 4. Keyla Rodriguez, Rivera, 12:38; 5. Jocelyne Alvarez, Los Fresnos, 13:46; 6. Audry Urbis, Los Fresnos, 12:46; 7. Elvia Valdez, Weslaco High, 12:48; 8. Elizabeth Rodriguez, Hanna, 13:02; 9. Angie Garza, Los Fresnos, 13:03; 10. Karisma Hernandez, PSJA North, 13:08; 11. Angela Galano, Weslaco High, 13:10; 12. Chanel Ebanks, Los Fresnos, 13:11; 13. Ashley Villarreal, Brownsville Veterans Memorial, 13:12; 14. Jessica Reyna, Brownsville Porter, 13:13; 15. Sandra Mendoza, Hanna, 13:16; 16. Marina Sanchez, Hanna, 13:17; 17. Erika Ortiz, Hanna, 13:19; 18. Silvia Salivar, PSJA High, 13:23; 19. Kayla Gallardo, PSJA High, 13:28; 20. Ashley Taylor, Hanna, 13:29.
Varsity boys (3.1 miles)
Team standings (top 5)
1. La Joya Palmview, 66 points; 2. Hanna, 106; 3. Weslaco East, 134; 4. Edinburg Economedes, 147; 5. Brownsville Pace, 182.
Varsity individual boys results
1. David Guillen, Los Fresnos, 15:31; 2. Armando Fierro, Port Isabel, 15:36; 3. Joe Martinez, Weslaco East, 15:39; 4. Juan Cardenas, Los Fresnos, 16:06; 5. Jose Jaime, LJ Palmview, 16:08; 6. Marco Mejia, Brownsville Veterans, 16:10; 7. Rafael Duenes, San Benito, 16:16; 8. Ezequiel Calleros, Hanna, 16:17; 9. Juan Uribe, Hanna, 16:34; 10. Esteban Garcia, Pace, 16:41; 11. Alex Leal, LJ Palmview, 16:42; 12. Jose Gonzalez, Economedes, 16:43; 13. Chris Marmolejo, LJ Palmview, 16:44; 14. Albert Herrera, Weslaco East, 16:45; 15. Ricardo Maldonado, PSJA North, 16:46; 16. Jonathan Hernandez, LJ Palmview, 16:47; 17. Luis Sandoval, Hanna, 16:48; 18. Andrew Leal, Weslaco High, 16:49; 19. Miguel Cruz, Los Fresnos, 16:50; 20. Charlie Gonzalez, Pace, 16:51.
