AUSTIN — What began as a case of deja vu turned into a historic victory for Valery Tobias.
While the Edinburg IDEA Quest sophomore settled for silver at the state track meet a season ago after an ill-timed kick near race’s end, Friday saw Tobias demonstrate maturity and poise to win gold in the Class 3A girls 800-meter run with a time of 2 minutes, 16.86 seconds.
The win marks the first time an IDEA athlete has won a state title in UIL competition. There are 25 IDEA schools in the state, but only the IDEA Quest Trail Blazers and Brownsville IDEA Frontier compete in UIL. So small is the athletic budget for Quest, the track team practices at UTRGV or simply runs laps around the school.
“This win is so big,” Tobias said. “I can’t believe it. Those are the only words I have right now. This is so big for me. And not only myself, but for my school.”
Tobias ran a steady pace throughout the two-lap event, kicking into a faster stride in the final 200 meters to clip second place by .57 seconds. After crossing the finish line, Tobias looked into the stands of Mike A. Myers Stadium at coach Robbie Cruz before covering her face to hide tears of joy.
Tobias’ victory caps a sophomore season that has seen inconsistent performances, standing in contrast to her more steady freshman year. Despite the up and downs, she finishes with the second-fastest time among Valley girls to run the 800.
“When I crossed the line, I didn’t know what to feel,” Tobias said. “It was just super amazing. This is such an accomplishment for all that I’ve been through, and it’s amazing to know that all of your hard work pays off. My season in track paid off.”
Tobias avoided a mishap during the start of the second lap. While running in a cluster of opponents, her feet became tangled with other athletes, nearly causing her to trip. From there, Tobias moved to the outside lane to set up her final push.
Though the race featured ebbs and flows and concluded in nail-biting fashion, Cruz watched with confidence.
“I always feel comfortable when I see her run,” Cruz said. “But she had to expect the unexpected. We’ve really been stressing that in practices, and she was mentally prepared for anything. I think just seeing her keep up in the front of the pack, we knew she was going to pull it out in the end. It was just a matter of when she was going to pull it out.”