By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
DONNA — Rene Loera has pleaded with Martin Baez, time and again, to reduce his workload.
By the time he leaves his job at Whataburger at 3 a.m., the La Joya Juarez-Lincoln senior gets only a couple hours rest between the car ride home and a quick nap before his cross country meets. Baez not only gets by with this arrangement, he thrives in it.
On Saturday, Baez won the Donna ISD Invitational at Donna North, clocking in at 16:10.9 after running the 3k on three hours sleep.
“He likes the challenge, as far as I could see,” his coach, Loera, said. “He says he doesn’t want to break routine. And if it’s working, I’m not going to mess with it.”
So far this year, Baez has won two meets, including the Tune Up Invitational, hosted by McAllen Rowe in August. A four-year letterman, Baez has shouldered a big load this season. In addition to his night shift, he is also the only senior on a seven-man squad that placed first Saturday in the team standings.
Last year, Baez was arguably Juarez-Lincoln’s third-best runner. But since the team graduated six seniors, Baez has taken on a bigger load, both on and off the field.
“It’s kind of stressful,” Baez admits. “But when it comes to the races, that’s where I get my energy from.
“It makes it kind of hard (having to work), but you get used to it.”
As the leader of the team, Baez has a larger role in leading practices. The added responsibilities — coupled with his eighth-place finish at the Javelina Cross Country meet at Kingsville, which included powerhouse Southlake Carroll — have enhanced Baez’s motivation and confidence.
“Yeah, I’m tired and everything, but I do it for my team,” he said. “I don’t want to let them down. We work hard everyday. So to lose a race, I don’t want that. That’s what pushes me to go harder.”
Last season, the Huskies won the District 30-6A meet en route to regionals. This year, Loera says he feels good about his team’s chances, especially as the host for the event.
Also on Saturday, Weslaco High’s Stephanie Sauceda (19:13.69) recorded a personal-best in the 3K event, notching first place in the girls division. With teammate Gloria Martinez in the runner-up spot, the Lady Wildcats placed first as a team.
“It was a good boost,” Weslaco coach Pablo Almaguer said. “Just having one of those girls is a big plus for our team. We stress team first. And as long as one of those girls are there, it gives everybody a boost in confidence.”
Last year, it was Martinez who was the team’s top finisher, with Sauceda right behind for Weslaco. The two continue to spark the Lady Wildcats, who are eyeing a district title after finishing fourth last season. Sauceda broke the 20-minute mark for the first time, an encouraging sign for the program.
Almaguer said Sauceda is ahead of where she was last year, when she went to regionals. She’s won San Benito Invitational and Edinburg Invitational, so far, in addition to Saturday’s first-place finish.
“It’s just all the hard work she’s put in this year,” he said. “For her, she’s so focused on the district meet. We’re just in a tough district, and today was just another practice to get ready for district.”
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DONNA ISD Invitational
At Donna North
Saturday’s Results
Boys
Team Results — 1, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 40 points; 2, Donna North, 58; 3, Donna High, 72; 4, PSJA High, 78; 5, Weslaco High, 104; 6, Edinburg Economedes, 170; 7, Brownsville Pace, 231; 8, McAllen Rowe, 247; 9, Roma, 257; 10, PSJA Southwest, 299; 11, Valley View, 333.
Individual Results — 1, Martin Baez, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 16:10.9; 2, Mauricio Hernandez, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 16:14.5; 3, Francisco Morales, Donna High, 16:23.4; 4, Leonel Vazquez, Donna North, 16:27.7; 5, Alejandro Castillo, Donna High, 16:28.1; 6, Juan Manzano, Weslaco High, 16:28.9; 7, Ramiro Granados, PSJA High, 16:35.1; 8, Daniel La Cruz Flores, Donna North, 16:37.2; 9, Gabriel Magallan, Donna North, 16:43.4; 10, Evan Williams, McAllen Memorial, 16:46.3; 11, Jose Serna, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 16:49.7; 12, Trevor Williams, McAllen Memorial,16:53.8; 13, Pablo Carrera, Donna High, 16:58.4; 14, Diego Caballero, PSJA High, 17:00.9; 15, Manuel Castrejon, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 17:02.2; 16, Alfredo Huerta, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 17:06.5; 17, Juan Castillo, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 17:08.2; 18, Raul Vargas, PSJA High, 17:08.3; 19, Edgar Goytia, Donna North, 17:09.2; 20, Emilio Morado, Edinburg Economedes, 17:09.8.
Girls
Team Results — 1, Weslaco High, 34 points; 2, McAllen High, 60; 3, Sharyland Pioneer, 75; 4, PSJA North, 131; 5, Donna North, 168; 6, San Benito, 186; 7, Valley View, 189; 8, Edcouch-Elsa, 190; 9, McAllen Memorial, 215; 10, Brownsville Pace, 227; 11, Donna High, 260.
Individual Results — 1, Stephanie Sauceda, Weslaco High, 19:13.8; 2, Gloria martinez, Weslaco High, 19.32.8; 3, Paulina Maldonado, McAllen High, 19:48.6; 4, Aaliyah Garza, Weslaco High, 20:06.1; 5, Nadia Gutierrez, Sharyland Pioneer, 20:14.2; 6, Yanelly Garza, Sharyland Pioneer, 20:17.2; 7, Isha Guerra, McAllen High, 20:25.1; 8, Monica Hernandez, San Benito, 20:27.6; 9, Cariana Geurra, McAllen High, 20:29.3; 10, Ester Vargas, PSJA North, 20:32.2; 11, Alexandrian Canchola, McAllen High, 20:33.7; 12, Chacon Jennifer, Donna North, 20:37.6; 13, Yareli Tamez, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 20:39.9; 14, Esperanza Pedraza, Weslaco High, 20:41.8; 15, Natalia Nevarez, Mission High, 20:43.9; 16, Janet Figueroa, Weslaco High, 20:45.7; 17, Leslie Alvarado, Edcouch-Elsa, 20:49.9; 18, Natalia Del Angel, Valley View, 20:52.9; 19, Samantha Rivera, PSJA North, 20:56.9; 20, Nydia De La Garza, Sharyland Pioneer, 20:58.8.