panther power
03-14-2005, 02:29 PM
Building a legacy
By Chris Gove
Odessa American
Ever since a Division II Boys team championship was introduced to the West Texas Relays in 1964, it has been distinguished by long runs of domination.
Go ahead and add Monahans High School to that list.
The Loboes scored heavily in sprinting events Saturday at Ratliff Stadium and claimed their third consecutive Division II team title with 92.5 points. Canyon was second with 84 while Fort Stockton (77) and Crane (76) weren’t far behind.
Seniors Richard Covington and Tyqually Fletcher won the 100 and 200 meters for the Loboes and also were members on the winning 800-meter relay that set a division record with a time of 1 minute, 31.63 seconds.
“We had an agreement that we were going to come over here and win it,” Fletcher said. “Hopefully next year’s team will do it again.”
Monahans’ three-year run mirrors that of many programs in the division, including a record five-year streak by Abilene Wylie from 1996-2001.
Slaton won four consecutive team championships from 1977-80 while Canyon (1992-94) and Crane (1970-72) were other teams to win three in a row.
“This was a close one,” Monahans boys coach Mitchell Woodard said. “The last two we’ve been able to go into the mile relay comfortably. We didn’t know the point totals really this time and we had to work for it.
“It’s mostly been us and Wylie the last few years and this year I think it was stronger.”
That was because Canyon was strong behind two relay victories and District 3-3A rival Fort Stockton won two more events Saturday in addition to Matt Garvin’s pole-vault victory Friday.
Fort Stockton’s J.J. Hickman (39.78) just edged out Crane’s Chad Aguilar (39.97) for the 300 hurdles title, while David Palma won the 1,600 with a strong kick over the last 100 meters.
Palma learned a lesson after getting beaten at the tape Friday in the 3,200.
“I didn’t want to leave anything to chance this time,” Palma said. “We have a small team and it was a goal to try to win the meet without a lot of people.”
Fort Stockton and Crane both did an admirable job, with a ton of second-place finishes each.
For Monahans, Covington’s victory in the 100 was his second of the meet after he took the triple jump on Friday. He also added a third-place finish in the long jump.
“It’s just a blessing that we got this,” Covington said of the team title. “We had a lot of people sick and injured and our (younger athletes) stepped it up a lot. It shows us where we stand so far and what we need to work on.”
Whatever the Loboes have been working on always seems effective these days at the West Texas Relays.
By Chris Gove
Odessa American
Ever since a Division II Boys team championship was introduced to the West Texas Relays in 1964, it has been distinguished by long runs of domination.
Go ahead and add Monahans High School to that list.
The Loboes scored heavily in sprinting events Saturday at Ratliff Stadium and claimed their third consecutive Division II team title with 92.5 points. Canyon was second with 84 while Fort Stockton (77) and Crane (76) weren’t far behind.
Seniors Richard Covington and Tyqually Fletcher won the 100 and 200 meters for the Loboes and also were members on the winning 800-meter relay that set a division record with a time of 1 minute, 31.63 seconds.
“We had an agreement that we were going to come over here and win it,” Fletcher said. “Hopefully next year’s team will do it again.”
Monahans’ three-year run mirrors that of many programs in the division, including a record five-year streak by Abilene Wylie from 1996-2001.
Slaton won four consecutive team championships from 1977-80 while Canyon (1992-94) and Crane (1970-72) were other teams to win three in a row.
“This was a close one,” Monahans boys coach Mitchell Woodard said. “The last two we’ve been able to go into the mile relay comfortably. We didn’t know the point totals really this time and we had to work for it.
“It’s mostly been us and Wylie the last few years and this year I think it was stronger.”
That was because Canyon was strong behind two relay victories and District 3-3A rival Fort Stockton won two more events Saturday in addition to Matt Garvin’s pole-vault victory Friday.
Fort Stockton’s J.J. Hickman (39.78) just edged out Crane’s Chad Aguilar (39.97) for the 300 hurdles title, while David Palma won the 1,600 with a strong kick over the last 100 meters.
Palma learned a lesson after getting beaten at the tape Friday in the 3,200.
“I didn’t want to leave anything to chance this time,” Palma said. “We have a small team and it was a goal to try to win the meet without a lot of people.”
Fort Stockton and Crane both did an admirable job, with a ton of second-place finishes each.
For Monahans, Covington’s victory in the 100 was his second of the meet after he took the triple jump on Friday. He also added a third-place finish in the long jump.
“It’s just a blessing that we got this,” Covington said of the team title. “We had a lot of people sick and injured and our (younger athletes) stepped it up a lot. It shows us where we stand so far and what we need to work on.”
Whatever the Loboes have been working on always seems effective these days at the West Texas Relays.