By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — There was no shame in finishing second place at the District 31-6A cross country meet last year. Certainly not for Edinburg North’s Tristan Peña, who finished behind an accomplished senior as a freshman in 2014.
But the ambitious runner refused to let age or inexperience become a hindrance in his second go-around. Peña (15:58.0) consistently pushed the pace Saturday and created enough separation around the two-lap mark to beat the runner-up by nearly five seconds at Ebony Golf Course in Edinburg.
“It means a lot (because of last year’s outcome),” Peña said. “I’m young, but I didn’t want to use that as an excuse.”
Peña shattered last year’s time of 16:30.8, which fell behind then-Weslaco East senior Albert Herrera (16:17.7). On Saturday, Peña was one of three Edinburg North boys to finish in the top 10, securing their entry to the Region IV-6A meet Oct. 26 at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Teammate Aldo Nava, a junior, placed fifth (16:31.1) and freshman Andrew Nuñez (16:55.5) came in eighth.
The Cougars tallied 47 points, beating Weslaco East (73) and PSJA Memorial (77) comfortably. All three qualify to regionals as a team.
Edinburg North’s girls, led by first-place finisher Beth Ramos (18:54.2), also won. The Lady Cougars (41 points) ran by Weslaco High (66) and Edinburg High (88) with help from Bryana Rios (19.43.4), who placed third, and Pamela Hernandez (20:06.8), who finished eighth. Weslaco High’s Stephanie Sauceda (19:38.2) came in second place.
“I’m really proud of them,” Ramos said of her teammates. “We worked really hard throughout the season. This is what we worked for, and we finally got here. It feels good to win it, and hopefully we do well at regionals.”
Both Edinburg North teams battled injuries going into the meet. Peña said some of the boys had issues with their knees and calves the past two weeks. Josh Doria, in particular, was nursing a sprained leg. Normally the team’s No. 3 runner, Doria was fourth on Saturday and 13th overall (17:24.4).
On the girls side, Ramos has been hampered by nagging foot, hip and thigh problems all year. Saturday was no different.
“If it’s not one thing, it’s another,” Ramos said. “In the beginning (of the meet), I was stiff. I could feel it. But then when I started to warm up, it went away.”
The sophomore, who finished second in district last year, said she wasn’t too concerned with her place at Saturday’s meet. Her attention was centered on improving her time.
Though he had a similar goal in mind, Peña was 32 seconds shy of his P.R. The tall, thick grass at Ebony Golf Course provided a bit of a challenge for Peña, who was otherwise pleased with his breathing and distance over PSJA Memorial’s Cruz Gomez (16:03.2), the runner-up, and Edinburg High’s Rolando Ramon (16:08.6), who finished third.
Breaking several school records last year, Edinburg North boys coach Homer Martinez described Peña as “one of those special runners you get once in awhile.” His progression, including a 4:25-mile run, boosted expectations this season.
Martinez said Peña “wasn’t embarrassed” by last year’s outcome at district, but he was determined nonetheless “to get after it.” Now, the team’s looking to improve on an eighth-place finish at regionals in 2014.
“We’re really pleased with ourselves,” Martinez said. “Of course, we came in hoping to win, and that happened. Now, we have to come in Monday and get ready for regionals.”
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District 31-6A meet
at Ebony Golf Course, Edinburg
Boys
Team results — 1, Edinburg North, 47 points; 2, Weslaco East, 73; 3, PSJA Memorial, 77; 4, Edinburg High, 92; 5, PSJA North, 93; 6, Weslaco High, 131; Edinburg Economedes, 145.
Individual results — 1, Tristan Peña, Edinburg North, 15:58.0; 2, Cruz Gomez, PSJA Memorial, 16:03.2; 3, Rolando Ramon, Edinburg High, 16:08.6; 4, Jayven Cordova, Weslaco East, 16:19.6; 5, Aldo Nava, Edinburg North, 16:31.1; 6, Julian Gomez, PSJA North, 16:34.0; 7, Bryan Vela, Weslaco East, 16:34.2; 8, Andrew Nuñez, Edinburg North, 16:55.5; 9, Matthew Perez, Edinburg High, 16:58.9; 10, Luis Garza, PSJA Memorial, 17:01.0; 11, Juan Manzano, Weslaco High, 17:10.4; 12, Mario Ferrer, Edinburg Economedes, 17:23.7; 13, Joshua Doria, Edinburg North, 17:24.4; 14, Luis Aguirre, PSJA North, 17:30.5; 15, Emmanuel Soto, PSJA Memorial, 17:32.1; 16, Alfredo Valenzuela, Edinburg Economedes, 17:34.0; 17, Jose Coronado, Weslaco East, 17:35.7; 18, Josue Lara, Weslaco East, 17:36.6; 19, Julio Montemayor, Edinburg High, 17:36.7; 20, Joseph Paez, Edinburg North, 16:37.0.
Girls
Team results — 1, Edinburg North, 41 points; 2, Weslaco High, 66; 3, Edinburg High, 88; 4, PSJA North, 103; 5, Edinburg Economedes, 106; 6 PSJA Memorial, 117; 7, Weslaco East, 160.
Individual results — 1, Beth Ramos, Edinburg North, 18:54.2; 2, Stephanie Sauceda, Weslaco High, 19:38.2; 3, Bryana Rios, Edinburg North, 19:43.4; 4, Gloria Martinez, Weslaco High, 19:43.9; 5, Vianney Sanchez, Edinburg High, 19:50.3; 6, Mayra Bernando, Edinburg Economedes, 19:51.9; 7, Adriana Cruz, Edinburg High, 19:52.4; 8, Pamela Hernandez, Edinburg North, 20:06.8; 9, Aaliyah Garza, Weslaco High, 20:14.0; 10, Teresa Castillo, Edinburg Economedes, 20:20.7; 11, Samantha Rivera, PSJA North, 20:28.8; 12, Alexis Medina, Edinburg High, 20:29.1; 13, Lynnda Lozano, Edinburg North, 20:29.3; 14, Justeen Cantu, Weslaco East, 20:32.9; 15, Jackie Villasenor, PSJA North, 20:48.0; 16, Maleni Sanchez, Edinburg North, 20:55.0; 17, Kassandra Rodriguez, PSJA Memorial, 20:59.3; 18, Stephanie Martinez, PSJA Memorial, 21:00.7; 19, Violet Torres, PSJA Memorial, 21:02.1; 20, Megan Navarro, Edinburg North, 21:02.8