A cool, fall morning created the perfect atmosphere as Mount Pleasant High School hosted its annual Titus County Fair XC Invitational last Saturday morning. The boys’ varsity won its second meet of the season defending their home turf and sweeping the podium in the process. The JV girls and boys also won first in their division with the junior high girls finishing 12th and junior high boys finishing 4th.

 

Daniel Robles ran one of his best races of the season taking the meet title with a speedy 16:17.6. Gilberth Landaverde was a close second posting a 16:20.8 and Geovanni Calderon rounded out the top three with a 16:26.7. Christopher Escobar secured a top ten finish in 6th place with a 16:58.1 while Jacob Botello finished in the top twenty in 17th place posting an 18:11.7. Other finishers were Esteban Trejo (26th, 19:28.4) and Sahir Ramirez (27th, 19:43.8).

 

The JV girls were led by Abigail Retana’s third place finish and time of 13:59. Isabel Gonzales followed her closely finishing fourth with a time of 14:10.2. Araceli Landaverde and Haylee Martinez finished 6th and 9th, respectively, posting quality times of 14:28.9 and 14:39.9. Briana Gonzales rounded out the top ten finishing at 14:44.9. Other finishers were Arlette De Jesus (14th, 15:04.3), Karen Hernandez (15th, 15:04.4), Virginia Landaverde (16th, 15:11.5), Noemi Rios (31st, 16:01.9), Kylie Humber (39th, 16:32.7), Cynthia Ramirez (40th, 16:33.5), Giselle Delgado (42nd, 16:51.3), Yesenia Benitez (51st, 17:53.8), Audrey Mendoza (52nd, 18:00.6), and Monserrat Rivero (57th, 20:24.6).

 

The JV boys kept pace with the varsity taking home the team title. They were led by Johnathan Sandate’s first place finish at 17:37.9. Aiden Botello took third place at 18:11.6 and Juan Retana finished sixth at 18:43.3. David Buendia finished just inside the top ten in eighth place with a 18:54.9. Other finishers were Oscar Otero (20th, 20:04), Andrew Gonzalez (34th, 21:07.1), Jose Trejo (43rd, 21:48.5), Jesus Santiago (48th, 22:03.8), Skylar Guereca (62nd, 23:16.6), Edgar Morales (72nd, 24:07.1), Gabriel Garza (84th, 27:00.2), and Noah Trimm (87th, 28:14.4).

 

The junior high teams performed well in their fourth and final tune up before district in a couple of weeks. The girls were led by Alexia Hawkins who finished in 8th place at 13:20.6 and Marybeth Snyder’s 24th place finish and time of 14:16.4. Dominique Gil finished in 35th at 14:47.8 while Jennifer Luna finished 78th at 16:04.8. Other Lady Tiger finishers were Ryleigh Mendez (100th, 16:39.1), Aniyah Asagba (148th, 17:57.2), Diana Ramirez (190th, 20:33.1), and Deleismy Martinez (213th, 24:22). The boys’ team was paced by Antonio De La Torre’s fifth place finish and time of 11:29.1. Enrique Marrufo also finished in the top ten at eighth with a time of 11:53.3. Other Tiger finishers were Charlie Hernandez (37th, 13:02.3), Conley Johnson (74th, 13:43.2), Josiah Flores (75th, 13:44.2), Christian Vargas (99th, 14:18.3), Isaac Hernandez (136th, 15:14.4), and Nery Contreras (182nd, 16:49.6).

 

The Varsity and JV teams will have one more opportunity to improve their times before district in a couple of weeks. Both teams will compete at Lindale this weekend October 7. The district meet will be held on October 14 at Hallsville. The junior high will compete in their district meet on October 9, also at Hallsville.

 

By Drew Barkley
Photos by John Whitten

Titus County Fair Invitational

Photo 1 – Daniel Robles sprints to the finish and takes first place.
Photo 2 – The champion boys team poses with their medals. Pictured L-R: Geovanni Calderon, Gilberth Landaverde, Christopher Escobar, Daniel Robles, Jacob Botello, Esteban Trejo
Photo 3 – The Lady Tigers get a great jump.