By CONSTANCIO MARTINEZ, JR.
Special to the PRESS
On Friday, Aug. 16, the Port Isabel Cross Country [CC] teams competed at the McAllen Bulldogs Invitational 2024.
Head Boys CC coach, Cris Ortiz, was pleased with his team’s performance.
“The Port Isabel Boys’ Cross-Country Team has shown remarkable progress and determination. Their recent performance at the McAllen Invitational was commendable, with several runners achieving top 20
finishes in the race,” said Ortiz. “The competitive environment, including strong teams and top runners from the Valley, serves as motivation after returning from summer vacation.”
The boy’s division, “5000 Meter Run Finals” saw 226 runners from 23 schools. The variety of schools ranged from the 6A ranks down to the 2A ranks. Although the meet featured mostly RGV teams, there was also
a handful of Laredo schools competing.
Port Isabel’s senior, Cleveland Smith came in third place with a time of 17:48.0 minutes, just 19 seconds short of first place finisher, Oli Balderas out of Laredo Nixon.
Other top 12 finishers included, PI’s sophomore, Jorge Garcia who finished in tenth place with a time of 18:23.70 and PI’s senior, Christian Smith, who came in 11th place with a time of 18:33.30.
Other PI boys competing were, Mikel Sosa (101st, 21:00.0), Julio Cortez (117th, 21:24.50), Oscar Arona (120th, 21:26.40), Joaquin Rodriguez (126th, 21:35.60), and David Olmos (186th, 24:43.10).
The PI Boys team finished in eighth place overall in the team standings with 210 points. The top three order of finish were, #1 Eagle Pass with 40 points, #2 Rio Grande City with 80 points, and #3 Sharyland Pioneer
with 179 points.
Ortiz praised the seniors on the team for their “leadership and continuity” and the underclassmen for their continued “growth” in the program.
The girl’s division, “Two Mile Run Finals” saw 219 runners from 24 schools competing and featured most of the same schools as the boy’s division Port Isabel’s freshman, Nicole Sanchez, came in with an impressive third place finish with a time of 12:41.10, just 33 seconds short of the first place finisher, Annette Soria out of Mission Veterans Memorial.
The next PI athlete to come in was fellow freshman, Layla Mata who came in 22nd with a time of 13:39.20 minutes. Other PI girls competing were, Isabella Betancourt (60th, 14:22.40), Jazera Garcia (114th,
15.17.50), Lizbeth Perez (118th, 15.23.60) and Madilynn Zamarron (145th, 15:59.50).
The PI girls team finished in tenth place overall in the team standings with 245 points earned. The top three order of finish were, #1 Edcouch-Elsa with 92 points, #2 McAllen with 128 points and #3 Laredo Nixon
with 172 points.
The next CC meet, the RGV Classic CC Invitational, will take place Aug. 31st in Edinburg, TX.
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