Cross Country’s District 2-4A can be summed up in two words and that is Los Alamos.
The Hilltoppers and Lady Hilltoppers were all business when they traveled to the new-look Northern New Mexico Challenge Oct. 12 at the Santa Fe Municipal Recreation Complex as both teams finished in first place well above the field.
The meet is annually held at the San Ildefonso Pueblo but had to be moved and pushed a day ahead to Friday after a Pueblo closure.
It didn’t matter where the schools in attendance had to run, the results would have probably been the same.
The entire Lady Hilltopper team finished within the top 13 spots, including six out of the top seven, only broken apart by Taos High School’s freshman Alyx Mastor, who finished in second place.
“Los Alamos will be first and Taos will be second (to finish in District 2-4A),” Pojoaque head coach Allan Lockridge said about the girls teams. “Taos didn’t have their full team today, but that one girl broke up that perfect score for Los Alamos and you hate to see it, but we did fine and we had our top runner out.”
The Pojoaque girls finished fifth overall (174) and were without Amerie Onesalt, who Lockridge said will also miss the Rio Rancho Jamboree Saturday because of knee pain. Still, the Elkettes who did run impressed the head coach, including Michaela Martinez (23rd, 22:28.63), Mia Vigil (23:03.17) and Alicia Sanchez (38th, 24:09.45).
“They told her (Onesalt) that she can’t do anything for two weeks,” Lockridge said. “It’s OK because I need her at the end, but Michaela had a great run and Mia had a great run but our next girl stepped up, Alicia. She has that ability, but she hasn’t always been doing it. Every once in a while she shows it and she showed it today.”
For the boys race, it was a familiar scene for any parent or fan stationed near the finish line: nothing but green and gold uniforms were the first to appear from the pack.
Rafael Sanchez (1st, 16:44.31), Steven Strevell (2nd, 16.44.65) and Duncan Fuehne (3rd, 16.44.91) all miraculously finished within the same second to carry the Hilltoppers.
Next to break through just past the 3-mile mark of the 3.1-mile course was a familiar face in Pojoaque’s John Hall (finished in second place two weeks earlier at the Capital City Invite, also at the Municipal Recreation Complex ) who finished in 16:58.95 to lead the second-place Elks (88).
“Well, today I felt really good and strong,” Hall said. “Felt smooth, like a totally different runner. But as far as for LA (Los Alamos), they are a good team, they got away from me toward the end, but the team really stepped up big and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without them.”
Their full team results after Hall were Santiago Romero (8th, 17:51.50); Joseph Gutierrez (21st, 18:45.99); Sebastian Rubio (27th, 19:00.62); Zac Hall (28th, 19:04.31) and Ricky Sandoval (69th, 21:23.63).
Moving forward into the last few weeks of the season Lockridge is prepared to run the best he’s got and will also rely on some eighth-graders to help field the girls team.
“Some of those young kids will move up and we’ll need him,” he said. “The next two weeks we will be putting the seven best (out there) that I know are best. None of this (I’m a) senior and you let them run, I did that today.”
McCurdy Charter School and Coronado were also present at the meet, while Mesa Vista High School backed out after the change of date and location, said head coach Raymond Chavez.
Coronado head coach Glenn Callaway — who also double duties as the volleyball coach — has slowly been building his team after starting the first few meets with just one runner, but things are coming along for the Leopard boys, who might just end up making the state meet in Callaway’s eyes.
“We may make it by default,” he said. “I got a good group of middle-schoolers who finished eighth out of 12 teams last week in the middle school race at the John Grimley. They were intimidated, but it was good for them. I’m going to be moving a lot of them up here and it may help us and I told them, ‘I want you guys to experience this (state).’”
For Classes 1A/2A, the top six teams from each district at the district meet make the state tournament. Only the top three teams from districts in 3A-5A will advance, which should leave both the Pojoaque girls and boys in good standing to qualify if they continue to run in the fashion they have lately.
Pojoaque, Mesa Vista, McCurdy, Coronado, Dulce, and Española Valley High School will all compete at the Rio Rancho Jamboree this Saturday at Rio Rancho High School, which is also the site of the state meet Nov. 10.
Boys team results: Los Alamos (26), Pojoaque (88), Taos (145), Santa Fe Indian School (146), ATC (159), St. Michael’s (165) and Santa Fe High School (178).
Girls team results: Los Alamos (19), ATC (90), St. Michael’s (94), Santa Fe (171), Pojoaque (174) and Peñasco (200).