BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
PHARR — After the conclusion of the District 31-6A 100-meter hurdles final, Vela teammates Olivia Garcia and Gabriella Solis smiled at each other before embracing. The senior Garcia finished first with a new personal record of 15.91 seconds, while the sophomore Solis took second place with a 16.38 on Saturday at PSJA ISD Stadium.
“Oh my gosh! I didn’t even know I PR’d today,” Garcia said. “It felt amazing. It felt really smooth. It’s such an amazing feeling to end my senior year with a PR. It’s very humbling.”
Garcia’s run may have ended smoothly, but it did not begin that way out of lane four.
“Coming out of the blocks, I hit my ankle on them a little bit,” Garcia said. “But it wasn’t that noticeable. I recovered real quick, and it felt good. No matter what lane I would have come out of — I even appreciate lane eight — I still would have pushed myself and not focused on what is around me but on what’s in front of me.”
“We’re always competing against each other and pushing each other,” Solis said. “One meet she’ll win, and the other meet will be me, so we have each other to push ourselves.”
Vela coach Diana Romero feels fortunate to have two weapons like Garcia and Solis in her arsenal.
“First of all, I want to say that I’m very proud of my girls,” Romero said. “Their work ethic is amazing. There’s nothing more I could ask from them. After the prelims, (Solis) tried out for varsity cheerleader on the very same day. And Renee (Garcia): what a senior leader. She’s been the person that brings our team together. We are so blessed to have her. I can’t wait for her to run in the area meet and hopefully make it to regionals.”
RELAY UPSET
PSJA Southwest entered Saturday evening as the prohibitive favorite in the boys’ 800-meter relay final. The Javelinas recorded a 1:30.57 at the PSJA Tri-City Championship on March 9, good enough to be the fifth-highest relay mark in the Valley this season. In a surprise, the team from Edinburg Vela took the district title with a 1:31.27. PSJA North placed second with a 1:31.36, while the Javelinas finished third at 1:31.57.
“I think we had an excellent opportunity to do well in the 4-x-100 relay. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out that way, so the kids were extra motivated to do well in this relay,” Vela coach Hernan Figueroa said. “They felt like they had something to prove, and thank God they ran well.”
Two of Vela’s runners, juniors Brandon Guzman and Nicolas Enriquez, had just finished running the 400 relay, and Figueroa was worried they’d be gassed coming into the 800 relay.
“Somehow, they were able to put everything aside and focused on the race in front of them,” Figueroa said. “They’re very tough.”
Senior Adrian Cruz has been running with a cast on his left wrist after breaking it on the second leg of the 800 relay at the Meet of Champions two weeks ago. When Cruz stretched out to hand the baton off, he lost his balance. Cruz wasn’t going to let the injury keep him off the track.
“I just wanted to help the team out,” Cruz said. “Whether I had a broken wrist or not, I needed to step up.”
“I mean, I don’t run on my hands.”
ARCE ACES
The nerves came for Edinburg High senior Marissa Arce, but they weren’t enough to deter her. Arce won the district title in the 300 hurdles with a mark of 50.11.
“They (nerves) come out for every race, especially for this event, because it’s my first year doing the 300 hurdles,” Arce said. “I was really nervous. and it kinda showed towards the end.”
Arce began the year running distance races but switched to hurdles halfway through. She is still in the learning process.
“The hurdles are really difficult, especially the technique of it,” Arce said. “But I try to run fast between the hurdles to make up for the technique I don’t have.”
Arce’s performance confirms what Edinburg coach Alicia Ramirez knew all along about the senior.
“We knew she was an awesome athlete,” Ramirez said. “Marissa can do any event and can do whatever she wants to do if she puts her mind to it. We give her the credit for that and for being understanding and accepting toward competing in different events.”