Lady Lions Cross-Country team splits meets
LISD
The Lockhart Lady Lions Cross-Country team ran in all directions with the Junior Varsity team traveling to Seguin last Thursday, while the Varsity team traveled to Corpus Christi to compete at the Texas A&M Pre-Regional Islander Splash on Saturday.
In the Varsity competition at Corpus, the Lady Lions competed in the Large School Division which is composed of 6A and 5A schools and finished 19th out of 48 teams entered. Freshman Reina Del Castillo led the squad once again and finished 8th overall with a time of 21:21 over the 3.1-mile course that fielded slightly over 300 runners at the gun. Sophomore Adriana Rodriguez followed with a 58th place finish and an overall time of 23:05 seconds. Seniors Christy Gonzalez (24:15) and Amyrss Flores (26:04) gave the Lady Lions a nice 3, 4 punch as they battled the main pack. Gonzalez finished in 106th, while Flores finished in 173rd. Junior Mayra Varillas (27:03/205th) finished as the key fifth runner for the Lady Lions., while junior Emma Forester (27:48/225th) and freshman Clarissa Martinez-Olvera (30:25/257th) finished as pushers. Senior Jazmine Reyes-Trejo also competed but did not finish.
“My goal today was getting our ladies and gaining some real race experience against some big time schools”, said LHS Head Girls Coach Reuben Ortiz. “My seniors have not been able to race in this type of atmosphere since their freshman year due to Covid restrictions the last two years. So, this was new to the rest of the team. They all made a few strategy mistakes early but adjusted quickly and came back strong. Finishing in the top 20 teamwise in this type of meet and division shows our girls can hang with the best in the 6A and 5A division.”
In the JV competition at Seguin, sophomore Jessica Silva led the squad to a 3rd place team finish in the 5A-6A JV division. Silva in only her second meet of the season, pushed late to overtake a group and finished 11th overall with a time of 26:10 over the 3.1-mile course. Junior Ryleigh Lindsey followed closely behind Silva and finished 13th overall with a time of 26:45. Junior Ashley Ramirez (29:13/20th) used a late kick to finish in Top 20 medals honors. Sophomore Kara Sunukjian (30:26/23rd) and senior Diana Albino-Lara (30:55/26th) were the key 4th and 5th runners for the Lady Lions, with sophomores Hadley Moorhead (32:05/29th) and Jayla Goodwin (32:25/31st) being pushers for the team. Freshman Ilina Gauna also competed but did not finish.
“These ladies ran their first 5k of the season and some their first race of the season”, Ortiz said. “I’m pumped on how they handled it and competed. Some ran this as a workout, so their time does not reflect their ability, and I also pulled Gauna out. It’s part of the growing process to be ready for District. They did great.”
Next week the Lady Lions will travel to nearby Gonzales to compete at the Gonzales Cross Country Invitational.
