NATHANIEL MATA | STAFF WRITER
McALLEN — With her team trailing heading into the final 200 meters of the 800 relay, McAllen High’s Westyn Henderson had to turn on the jets to catch La Joya Palmview’s Yoko Gomez down the homestretch for the gold, and she did.
The Bulldogs also caught the Lobos girls team in the overall standings, knocking off the perennial favorites on Thursday at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium.
“Our goal is to win district, and that’s just all I was thinking and all my team was thinking,” Henderson said. “They gave me a good start, and I just wanted to finish it for them. It’s a great feeling, because we’ve been working for this all year. All the hard practices and hours we put into it are paying off right now.”
McHi’s Aniah Chaleff-Reyna in the 100 hurdles and Anna Martinez in the 400 dash were individual winners who built on the team’s strong start in field events on Wednesday.
The Bulldogs claimed the win even with a disqualification in the 400 relay. McHi came from behind to win the race but was disqualified when anchor Sofia Soto threw the baton in frustration after the finish, possibly not realizing she had caught the leader.
On the boys side of the competition, McAllen Memorial held onto the lead despite a strong push from Mission.
“It feels amazing,” Sean Skaugen, 110 hurdles champion, said. “We weren’t projected to win this meet. I think we were supposed to come in third. But after the prelims, our coach told us anything could happen. The twins (Evan and Trevor Williams) went one-two in the mile and the two-mile — that’s a lot of points right there. And in the (110) hurdles, we earned like 22 points getting first, second and fourth.”
ROBLES DOES IT AGAIN
In four years, Brianna Robles hasn’t lost a district race. Four 1,600 golds, four 3,200 golds, and this year a win in the 800 run for good measure after a rules change that allows distance runners to compete in three events.
The Adams State University commit said even though her goals are bigger than district, getting the support and respect of her peers is still a special feeling.
“It feels good. I mean, I like being the one to chase, because people behind me push me to go faster,” Robles said. “One big difference from freshman year to now is the experience and the mentality that you build along the way. It’s a beautiful feeling, knowing most of my friends are from different schools. We’re competitors on the track, but off the track, we’re all friends, and that’s what I liked about it — the relationships I was able to build with people.”
Palmview sprinter Mariana Hernandez made it a double in the quickest races of the day with a 12.87-second time in the 100 and a 26.45 in the 200.
“It feels amazing again, just to know I consistently worked hard since last year and came out on top,” Hernandez said. “It just goes to show hard work really does pay off.”
In the 200, Hernandez was pushed by teammate Damaris Pecina, who finished in 26.57.
CORDOVA A GOLD STANDARD
Mission sprinter Alex Cordova was a triple gold medalist on Thursday. He ran the 200 dash in a 22.63, clocked a 49.49 in the 400 and held off the speedy Gunnar Henderson on the anchor lap of the 1,600 relay.
“He’s a super strong runner. He finishes strong every race,” Henderson said of his counterpart. “He’s great every race, and it’s always a fun time racing him, because I know I always get someone to push me. He has a great career ahead of him.”
Last season, Cordova finished fourth in 100 dash and second in 400 dash at the district meet. This season, however, he switched from the 100 to the 200, which tested his endurance as he had less recovery time between races.
“I thank God, I thank my mom, (and) I thank my coaches for helping out every day,” Cordova said. “It means a lot to me — running (and) competing against a lot of great people. I excel, because all my life, it’s been about winning. It’s all I try to do — be the best I can possibly be.”
Henderson, who held off Campbell Speights for 100 dash gold and Skaugen in the 300 hurdles, said his workouts are helping him peak at an important time, even as he runs races relatively close together.
“I was real pleased with my (300 hurdles) time today,” Henderson said of his 39.39 finish. “Workouts are kicking in, and it looks good so far.”
SURPRISE FINISH
McAllen Rowe’s boys pulled off an upset in the sprint relay. They ran in lane one, seeded without a time because they had to replace a leg of the race due to injury. Still, the Warriors used quick legs from Noe Ramirez, Jonas Ortiz, Angel Rodriguez and Adrian Salinas to beat the competitive field.
“It is a struggle, but it’s a mindset,” Salinas said after the win. “We knew we had it in us. We knew we could advance. Everyone has good runners, but we have confidence in ourselves and in our runners.”
Ortiz, the replacement who filled it for an injured runner, didn’t have much time to train with the track team because he plays baseball. Still, he finished third in the 100 dash and fifth in the discus throw.
The sophomore said his team wasn’t surprised with the win thanks to the work the group put in.
“I knew we were capable of doing it,” Ortiz said. “Being overlooked in this relay motivated us more to win this race. I knew (Salinas) had it in them. Everyone was surprised, but our relay team knew we can take it home.”