A year ago, Isacc Placencia had to stay home while his good friend from Coronado traveled to Round Rock for the UIL Cross Country State Championships.

This time around, he and Donovan Torres can make the trip together.
Torres, the Mustangs’ talented junior, secured his second consecutive trip to the state meet by finishing fifth in Saturday’s Region I-5A race at Mae Simmons Park. Placencia, a senior from Lubbock High, took ninth place to become the school’s first state qualifier since at least 2000.

“It feels pretty good. I’m excited,” said Placencia, whose time of 15 minutes, 47.39 seconds was his best on the 3-mile course in East Lubbock. “This is one of the things that I wanted to try and do, and I finally set my goal and did it.”

His performance on Saturday caught the attention of coaches from
South Plains College and Wayland Baptist, who made brief recruiting pitches to Placencia shortly after the race, but it came as no surprise to Lubbock High coach Gery Joy. He said Placencia is “a lot stronger now” than he was at last year’s regional meet, when he finished way back in the pack.

“We really felt like he could make it, and he did,” Joy said. “He was ready.”

Placencia said his yearlong battles with Torres helped put him in position to succeed. Torres finished 10th at last year’s state meet and posted one of the fastest times in the nation this year at Round Rock’s Old Settlers Park, the site of next weekend’s state competition, and he’s finished ahead of Placencia in every race.

“He’s a good runner, and he helped me push myself so I could get faster,” Placencia said. “If I was (ahead of Torres), I don’t think I would do as good.”

According to Coronado head coach Tim Torres, Donovan Torres wasn’t as thrilled with his performance. He finished one place better at last year’s regional meet, and his time of 15:37.37 on Saturday was more than 20 seconds slower than his winning time at the District 2-5A meet on Oct. 29.

“At least we’ve got another week to run,” said Tim Torres, who is not related to Donovan. “We’re happy about that.”

Several other runners from the South Plains also punched their tickets to the state meet. Levelland’s Leeann Cardona finished 10th in the Class 3A girls race, snagging the last individual berth, while Muleshoe’s Sterling Lepard, Littlefield’s Joseph Rivas and Slaton’s Matthew Rodriquez were among the top 10 in the Class 2A boys event.

In Class 1A, Crosbyton’s Meghan Bass finished second in the girls race for the second year in a row. Sundown’s Frank Hernandez took third in the boys race, while New Home’s Sterling Ford finished seventh.

“He’s worked hard,” Sundown coach Paul Darden said of Hernandez, “and he deserves the trip.”

Darden was disappointed that the rest of his top-ranked boys team, which finished fourth to narrowly miss a berth to Round Rock, won’t have a chance to defend its back-to-back state championships. But the top-ranked Sundown girls, who also won state last year, will get that opportunity.

The Roughettes finished third in the team standings, securing their 12th consecutive trip to the state meet.

“I just can’t explain how great it is going to state,” said Sundown senior April Villarreal, who finished among the top 10 individuals along with her younger sister, Maggy. “I love going every year. It’s a great experience.”

Two other area teams, the Plains boys and Shallowater girls, also qualified for state. But their moods after the race were starkly contrasting.

Before he saw the results, Plains head coach Ken Barbour wasn’t even sure if his second-ranked Cowboys had finished among the top three in the 1A boys race. And lead runner Jonathon Lira, a senior who was the defending regional champion, was upset with himself for finishing fifth.

As it turned out, the Cowboys edged Boys Ranch for the regional title.

“I guess for anybody else, it would be a good day,” said Lira, whose team is shooting for its first state championship since 2004. “But for us, we’re holding our standards higher. It’s definitely on at state.”

The unranked Shallowater girls, meanwhile, were elated to finish second behind Spearman in 2A. The Fillies had barely missed a trip to state each of the last two years, finishing fourth at the regional competition.

“We are so excited,” said Shallowater coach T’Linda Taylor, who got season-best times from each of her runners. “They ran as hard as they could, and they weren’t going to let anything stop them this time.”

Now the Fillies, who got a fourth-place individual finish from Kenzi
Callaway, will try to capture their second state championship.
Shallowater won it all in 2006, its last appearance in Round Rock.

“We’re going to give it a shot,” Taylor said. “If you’re down there, you might as well try to get you a medal.”

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REGION I CROSS COUNTRY MEET
at Mae Simmons Park
Saturday’s Results
(Top three teams, top 10 individuals advance to UIL state meet)

CLASS 5A
Girls
Team standings: 1. Southlake Carroll, 39; 2. Coppell, 72; 3. Flower Mound, 80; 4. Plano West, 145; 5. El Paso Eastwood, 188; 6. Grapevine, 222; 7. Keller, 231; 8. Odessa Permian, 251; 9. Burleson, 270; 10. Monterey, 297; 11. Justin Northwest, 307; 12. Abilene, 311; 13. El Paso El Dorado, 357; 14. North Richland Hills Birdville, 395; 15. Coronado, 422; 16. Mansfield, 428; 17. El Paso Americas, 432; 18. Allen, 459; 19. Arlington Martin, 507; 20. McKinney Boyd, 516; 21. Arlington Houston, 544; 22. Cedar Hill, 652; 23. Grand Prairie, 663; 24. Irving MacArthur, 698.

Top individuals: 1. Rachel Johnson, Plano, 11:04.19; 2. Alyssa Nielson, Colleyville Heritage, 11:14.85; 3. Kim Kirby, Coppell, 11:20.83; 4. Ashley Flores, Haltom, 11:27.56; 5. Jessica Harper, Southlake Carroll, 11:33.15; 6. Natalie Coday, Lewisville Hebron, 11:44.61; 7. Connor Ward, Flower Mound, 11:45.07; 8. Katy Canavin, Flower Mound Marcus, 11:52.77; 9. Sarah Roe, Carroll, 11:55.36; 10. Alex Vigil, Flower Mound, 11:56.70.

Boys

Team standings: 1. Flower Mound, 80; 2. Flower Mound Marcus, 86; 3. Keller Central, 129; 4. McKinney Boyd, 143; 5. El Paso Montwood, 199; 6. Justin Northwest, 211; 7. Lewisville Hebron, 218; 8. Plano West, 257; 9. El Paso Socorro, 264; 10. Tascosa, 271; 11. Keller, 303; 12. Arlington Lamar, 315; 13. Grand Prairie, 317; 14. Mansfield, 330; 15. Plano East, 339; 16. Arlington Martin, 360; 17. El Paso Eastwood, 370; 18. Odessa, 442; 19. Coronado, 463; 20. Burleson, 574; 21. North Richland Hills Richland, 597; 22. Cedar Hill, 657; 23. Duncanville, 668;
24. Haltom, 706.

Top individuals: 1. Craig Lutz, Flower Mound Marcus, 14:37.01; 2. Connor Adams, Flower Mound, 15:16.41; 3. Nathan Parker, Keller Central, 15:20.46; 4. Neal Smith, Southlake Carroll, 15:26.05; 5. Donovan Torres, Coronado, 15:37.37; 6. Jeff Arnier, Arlington Lamar, 15:42.64; 7. Juan Sanchez, Plano, 15:44.01; 8. John Valentine, Arlington Martin, 15:45.21; 9. Isacc Placencia, Lubbock High, 15:47.39; 10. Jonathan Wyatt, Flower Mound, 15:48.65.

CLASS 4A
Girls
Team standings: 1. Fort Worth Boswell, 62; 2. Hereford, 84; 3. Canyon, 91; 4. El Paso Jefferson, 150; 5. Randall, 200; 6. El Paso Chapin, 236; 7. Crowley, 271; 8. Clint Horizon, 277; 9. El Paso Del Valle, 289; 10. The Colony, 297; 11. North Richland Hills Birdville, 325; 12. Fort Worth Southwest, 333; 13. Frenship, 335; 14. Mansfield Timberview, 342; 15. Fort Worth Arlington Heights, 352; 16. Denton Guyer, 411; 17. White Settlement Brewer, 424; 18. El Paso Irvin, 470; 19. Wichita Falls Rider, 471; 20. Canutillo, 473; 21. Mansfield Legacy, 527; 22. Plainview, 550; 23. San Angelo Lake View, 600; 24. Fort Worth South Hills, 610.
Top individuals: 1. Maggie Escobar, Fort Worth Boswell, 11:21.87; 2. Alyssa Diaz, Hereford, 11:26.21; 3. Arin Rice, Canyon, 11:52.55; 4. Caitlin Gilmore, Canyon, 11:53.46; 5. Karlee Kleiber, Randall, 11:53.57; 6. Kristyn Williams, Mansfield Timberview, 11:55.40; 7. Theresa Torres, El Paso Jefferson, 11:59.03; 8. Kaitlyn Williams, Timberview, 11:59.22; 9. Sonia Vasquez, Clint Horizon, 11:59.90; 10. Cassandra Rosas, Boswell, 12:04.03.

Boys

Team standings: 1. El Paso Jefferson, 52; 2. El Paso Austin, 128; 3. Clint Horizon, 149; 4. El Paso Burges, 155; 5. Canyon, 157; 6. Mansfield Legacy, 174; 7. El Paso Del Valle, 186; 8. Fort Worth Boswell, 220; 9. Hereford, 228; 10. Denton Guyer, 252; 11. North Richland Hills Birdville, 311; 12. Arlington Seguin, 337; 13. Azle, 345; 14. Crowley, 379; 15. Denton, 390; 16. Dumas, 398; 17. Little Elm, 411; 18. San Angelo Lake View, 468; 19. Fort Worth North Side, 509; 20. Frenship, 527; 21. Fort Worth Southwest, 542; 22. Plainview, 569; 23. Clint Mountain View, 601; 24. Fort Worth Arlington Heights, 626.

Top individuals: 1. Isaac Spencer, El Paso Austin, 15:25.31; 2. Joel Flores, El Paso Jefferson, 15:34.23; 3. Ramon Garcia, EP Austin, 15:49.94; 4. Adrian Anaya, Clint Horizon, 15:50.80; 5. Will Welling, Canyon, 15:55.46; 6. Eli Hernandez, EP Jefferson, 15:56.90; 7. Alejandro Acuna, EP Jefferson, 15:59.00; 8. Chuy Alegria, Fort Worth Boswell, 16:04.42; 9. Kristian Alegado, El Paso Burges, 16:04.45; 10. Aaron Castro, Hereford, 16:05.48.

CLASS 3A
Girls
Team standings: 1. Clint, 42; 2. Decatur, 80; 3. Leander Rouse, 125; 4. Austin Vandegrift, 140; 5. Liberty Hill, 201; 6. Iowa Park, 217; 7. Burkburnett, 230; 8. Levelland, 234; 9. Perryton, 269; 10. Monahans, 282; 11. Dalhart, 295; 12. Breckenridge, 306; 13. West, 310; 14. Abilene Wylie, 330; 15. Snyder, 332; 16. China Spring, 377; 17. Fabens, 405; 18. Fort Stockton, 431; 19. Gatesville, 468; 20. Andrews, 512; 21. Seminole, 640.

Top individuals: 1. Hanna Galloway, Decatur, 11:59.28; 2. Cashlee Rayas, Clint, 12:02.10; 3. Susie Kemper, Liberty Hill, 12:04.59; 4. Heather Delgado, Clint, 12:13.08; 5. Bethany Hale, Iowa Park, 12:13.40; 6. Sarah Rayas, Clint, 12:13.97; 7. Zuleima Palomo, Decatur, 12:15.52; 8. Alena Spescia, Perryton, 12:19.65; 9. Gretta Smith, Austin Vandegrift, 12:20.17; 10. Leeann Cardona, Levelland, 12:23.89.

Boys

Team standings: 1. Borger, 111; 2. Burkburnett, 116; 3. Tornillo, 126; 4. Perryton, 143; 5. Austin Vandegrift, 144; 6. Decatur, 168; 7. Clint, 177; 8. Liberty Hill, 236; 9. Abilene Wylie, 242; 10. Fabens, 253; 11. Gatesville, 266; 12. Llano, 286; 13. Andrews, 294; 14. Dalhart, 304; 15. Whitney, 390; 16. Graham, 437; 17. Monahans, 471; 18. Glen Rose, 503; 19. Brownwood, 521; 20. Vernon, 601.

Top individuals: 1. Reid Strong, Abilene Wylie, 15:51.29; 2. J.R. Hardy, Austin Vandegrift, 16:13.09; 3. Eric Forrister, Llano, 16:15.46; 4. Christian Mendoza, Burkburnett, 16:19.91; 5. Marcos Vallejo, Llano, 16:26.53; 6. Robert Morales, Fabens, 16:28.55; 7. Brandon Keys, Vandegrift, 16:35.67; 8. Logan Neighbor, Burnet, 16:35.86; 9. Jovanny Mercado, Perryton, 16:36.14; 10. Jose Meza, Fabens, 16:36.97.

CLASS 2A
Girls
Team standings: 1. Spearman, 68; 2. Shallowater, 154; 3. Ballinger, 175; 4. Brady, 179; 5. Panhandle, 183; 6. Holliday, 203; 7. Sonora, 209; 8. Wall, 216; 9. Tuscola Jim Ned, 236; 10. Comanche, 247; 11. Bushland, 287; 12. Ozona, 328; 13. Idalou, 361; 14. Alpine, 371; 15. Bangs, 386; 16. Roosevelt, 401; 17. Cisco, 448; 18. Anson, 475; 19. Floydada, 517; 20. Bowie, 543; 21. Olney, 552; 22. Clyde, 557; 23. Tulia, 604; 24. Muleshoe, 655.

Top individuals: 1. Tylo Farrar, Spearman, 12:02.09; 2. Savannah Day, Tuscola Jim Ned, 12:05.43; 3. Taylor Neal, Brady, 12:05.59; 4. Kenzi Callaway, Shallowater, 12:16.38; 5. Sara Cuba, Holliday, 12:19.56; 6. Rashae Skillern, Alpine, 12:21.70; 7. Alyssa Fields, Alpine, 12:24.64; 8. Sutten Garnett, Spearman, 12:24.64; 9. Morgan Lewis, Holliday, 12:27.43; 10. Sarah Crawford, Jim Ned, 12:28.55.

Boys

Team standings: 1. Wall, 65; 2. Sonora, 83; 3. Kermit, 86; 4. Shallowater, 139; 5. Bushland, 221; 6. Nocona, 235; 7. Tuscola Jim Ned, 241; 8. Muleshoe, 244; 9. Alpine, 272; 10. Dimmitt, 344; 11. Bowie, 349; 12. Slaton, 354; 13. Highland Park, 393; 14. Hawley, 396; 15. Wichita Falls City View, 404; 16. Littlefield, 412; 17. Dublin, 450; 18. Tulia, 450; 19. Coahoma, 451; 20. San Saba, 458; 21. Brady, 480; 22. Panhandle, 502; 23. Eastland, 517.

Top individuals: 1. Charles Bale, Kermit, 16:27.39; 2. Sterling Lepard, Muleshoe, 16:31.02; 3. Joseph Rivas, Littlefield, 16:34.46; 4. Quinlin McGregor, Highland Park, 16:36.67; 5. Zach Daniel, Crane, 16:36.90; 6. Matthew Rodriquez, Slaton, 16:46.14; 7. Nelson Justiss, Bowie, 16:48.00; 8. Nick Escalante, Crane, 16:48.06; 9. Sean Motl, Wall, 16:50.82; 10. Robert Chavez, Sonora, 16:51.76.

CLASS 1A
Girls
Team standings: 1. Gruver, 67; 2. Sunray, 77; 3. Sundown, 104; 4. Crosbyton, 127; 5. Wheeler, 133; 6. Bovina, 139; 7. Sudan, 185; 8. Vega, 320; 9. Wellington, 330; 10. Grady, 345; 11. Whiteface, 363; 12. Stanton, 390; 13. Hartley, 393; 14. Wink, 408; 15. Sands, 415; 16. Sanderson, 426; 17. Rankin, 428; 18. Meadow, 436; 19. Comstock, 450; 20. McCamey, 469; 21. O’Donnell, 483; 22. Petersburg, 539; 23. Groom, 582.

Top individuals: 1. Taylor Sparks, Wheeler, 11:52.15; 2. Meghan Bass, Crosbyton, 12:00.17; 3. Melissa Velazco, Shamrock, 12:14.97; 4. Haley Sparks, Wheeler, 12:29.09; 5. Angela Vasquez, Sunray, 12:30.80; 6. Katie Gibson, Gruver, 12:31.50; 7. Amanda McCoy, Comstock, 12:33.58; 8. April Villarreal, Sundown, 12:35.73; 9. Shelley Gibson, Gruver, 12:42.24; 10. Maggy Villarreal, Sundown, 12:45.06.

Boys

Team standings: 1. Plains, 68; 2. Boys Ranch, 76; 3. Sanderson, 77; 4. Sundown, 105; 5. Sunray, 166; 6. Forsan, 188; 7. Grady, 197; 8. Gruver, 209; 9. Comstock, 294; 10. New Home, 329; 11. Borden County, 331; 12. Hartley, 337; 13. Bovina, 369; 14. Whiteface, 377; 15. Lockney, 427; 16. Fort Davis, 465; 17. Stanton, 468; 18. Sudan, 470; 19. Marfa, 480; 20. Follett, 494; 21. Hart, 513; 22. Channing, 558; 23. Petersburg, 616; 24. Lazbuddie, 635.

Top individuals: 1. Travis Roberts, Sanderson, 16:24.97; 2. Taylor Roberts, Sanderson, 16:48.33; 3. Frank Hernandez, Sundown, 16:55.68; 4. Swasey Brown, Boys Ranch, 16:58.66; 5. Jonathon Lira, Plains, 16:59.74; 6. Zach Lechner, Sunray, 17:05.58; 7. Sterling Ford, New Home, 17:11.82; 8. Carl Hulen, Boys Ranch, 17:13.57; 9. Cody White, Hartley, 17:13.92; 10. Jaxon Bean, Plains, 17:14.61.