XC: Tenaha runners shine at opening meet
Springs Invitational on Saturday included (from left) Damian Reese,
Edgar Flores and Ricky Corpus. (Photo courtesy Tenaha ISD)
The Tenaha cross country teams started the 2011 season off strong as both teams finished in the top two at the Apple Springs Invitational Saturday.
The Tigers, paced by Ricky Corpus, placed second overall at the event, while Sabrina Koller topped all Lady Tiger runners as she led the THS girls to a first-place finish. Both teams ran in the junior varsity division.
The Tigers started slow, but came on strong as they ran well as a group as their second-place showing indicated.
Sisk reported that at the start of the 5K race, the Tenaha team was last for the first quarter-mile. But because they exhibited patience, pacing and persistence, that proved to be the difference as Tenaha posted three top 10 finishers, passing at least 50 other runners to take one of the top spots.
Corpus led the Class 1A Tigers with a sixth-place finish, with Edgar Flores coming in ninth and Damian Reese grabbing the 10th spot.
THS freshman Leon Aguillar came in 27th and Rafael Loredo was right behind in the 28th spot. Other runners for Tenaha were Eddie Marroquin, Jamie Mendoza, Alex Horton and Joshua Dorsey.
Class 3A Central claimed top honors overall, while Diboll, another Class 3A school, placed third.
“Overall I am pleased with the results of our first meet," said Sisk later. "Both teams posted initial running times that are not far from where we want to be."
Tenaha cross country coach Lauri Sisk said all of the Lady Tiger runners consistently ran in the middle of the pack and competed well with their first-place finish.
In addition to Koller, who placed 30th overall at the competition, other members of the Tenaha girls' squad included Cheyene Koller, Itziana Martinez, Itzel Martinez, Marissa Cooper and Alaina Jones.
The teams are now focusing their attention on their next meet, the Brooks Lumberjack Invitational, hosted by SFA on Saturday, Sept. 17.