The Española Valley boys cross country team gave the Los Alamos Hilltoppers a run for their money Oct. 30 at the District 2AAAA cross country meet in Bernalillo.
In the end, the Hilltoppers’ depth and a dominating performance by senior Kyle Pittman kept Los Alamos on top of the district. The Sundevils took second with 40 points, while the Hilltoppers scored a near-perfect 18 points to take first.
Pittman won the race with a time of 15:38, but the real race was materializing almost a minute behind Pittman, where Española’s Derrick Martinez battled Los Alamos’ Ian Pulliam and Daniel Roybal for second place.
“I’ve been wanting him to get out in front a little bit faster,” Española coach Lawrence Naranjo said. “He’s come alive at the right time.”
Martinez, Pulliam and Roybal all crossed the finish line in 16:37 in a photo finish. Pulliam edged Martinez for second place while Martinez beat Roybal for third place.
Sundevil runner Luis Alvarado finished eighth with a time of 17:23 to earn all-district honors, which go to the first 10 finishers. Freshman Darren Martinez was 11th, followed by Rudy Salazar III in 12th and Estevan Trujillo in fifth to complete the scoring for Española.
Both teams qualified for state, as did Taos, which was third with 62 points. The Class AAAA state meet is scheduled for Saturday in Rio Rancho.
Lady Sundevils
Last season, Española’s Gabrielle Fresquez was the only Lady Sundevil to compete at the Class AAAA state cross country meet.
But this season she will have company.
The Lady Sundevils finished third behind Los Alamos and Bernalillo Oct. 30 at the District 2AAAA meet in Bernalillo to qualify for the state meet. The Sundevils scored 72 points, while Bernalillo had 48 and Los Alamos a perfect score of 15, sweeping the top five spots. The Hilltoppers’ Holly Walker finished in first place with a time of 19:29.
Fresquez finished 10th in 20:42 and would have qualified as an individual again. Teammates Mariquita Talache, Francesska Serrano, Erika Salazar and Jackie Avitia were 13th, 14th, 17th and 18th, respectively for the Sundevils.
“I’m very pleased the way they all (boys and girls) performed,” Naranjo said.