Gobbla2001
05-01-2005, 01:43 AM
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Cuero's Brandon James approaches the finish line as he anchors the Gobblers to first-place finishes in the 400 and 800 relays Saturday at the Region IV-3A Track and Field Meet. Cuero claimed the team title with 81 points, while Yoakum finished second.
Cuero captures Region IV-3A title
May 1, 2005
MIKE FORMAN
Advocate Sports Writer
KINGSVILLE - Cuero's Martell Williams had enough time to gulp a few cups of water, stretch his hamstrings, and take as many breaths as he possibly could after finishing second in the 100-meter dash and going back on the track to run his leg on the 800 relay.
"I was just trying to concentrate on my race and get my steps down," Williams said. " Then, I just wanted to relax and have fun and go as long as I could go."
Williams went fast enough on the third leg of the 800 relay to move from third place to the lead by the time he handed the baton to Brandon James, and the anchor brought the Cuero relay team home in record time at the Region IV-3A meet Saturday at Javelina Stadium.
The Gobblers overcame a strong wind blowing in their faces down the stretch to finish the 800 relay in a time of 1 minute 27.70 seconds, eclipsing the previous mark of 1:28.18 set by Wharton last year.
James and Williams also teamed with Fabian Olguin and Stefon Hargrove to win the 400 relay, and James won the 200 to help the Gobblers capture the boys team title with 81 points, Yoakum finished second with 60 points.
Columbia won the girls team title with 75 points, while Wharton was second with 68. The Lady Tigers won the 400 and 800 relays and finished second in the 1,600 relay.
Cuero wrapped up the team title after James won his third gold medal in the 200 in a time of 22.13, and Hargrove finished third in 23.14.
"I had to run hard to the curve," James said of his 200 win. "I knew the wind would hold me back (down the stretch)."
Williams also ran a leg on the 400 relay, which had a time of 42.74, and was second in the 100 in 11.52. He overcame a severe bout with cramps during Friday's preliminaries to finish sixth in the long jump with a leap of 20 feet, 11 3/4 inches.
"We usually have a team meeting before we start and Martell said he'd be ready," Cuero coach Victor Mathis said. "He came through at the end."
"I was just running my race," Williams added, "and trying to get my team the victory."
Williams caught the runners ahead of him about halfway through his leg of the 800 relay, and got the baton safely into the hands of James, who increased Cuero's lead over Sweeny, which nipped Wharton for second place.
"Where we won the race was Martell," James said. "Once I got the baton, I knew we were going to win and I knew we would get the record because we ran that fast at the Texas Relays but got disqualified."
James also did his part for the team, giving up an opportunity to run the 100 so he could run in the 400 and 800 relays.
"It wasn't really my decision," said James, who has the best 100 time (10.19) in the state this season. "But we won the meet so I wasn't really tripping about it."
"We planned to take Brandon out of the 100 so we could get more points," Mathis explained. "It worked out well for the team."
Mathis believes having James in two relays could also pay off when Cuero travels to Austin on May 13-14 for the state meet.
"At the beginning of the year, our goal was to get there," Mathis said. "Hopefully, things will fall in place for us and with God's blessing maybe we can win it all."
Wharton's girls relay teams came from behind to win the 400 in a time of 48.91 and the 800 in 1:43.60, before finishing second in the 1600 in 4:03.58.
"I think the wind was kind of getting us at first," said Wharton's Ikeia Steele, who ran the anchor leg on the 400 and 800 relays and the third leg on the 1600. "But we got things working for us. We had no doubt we could do it."
Wharton's Roshanda Sims won the triple jump on Friday night with a leap of 37-5 1/4, finishing ahead of Hallettsville's Monique Gates, who was second in 37-3 1/2, and Cuero's Jordan Reese, who was third in 36-2.
The Wharton boys will send a 1,600-relay team to the state meet for the third straight year. The Tigers won the event in a time of 3:25.42.
"My teammates got me in front," said Wharton anchor Pierre Fleurinor, who has been on all three state relay teams. "I knew I had to finish the race for them."
Along with the relay team, Leslie Clark finished second in the 110 hurdles (15.45) and was Wharton's other state qualifier.
Yoakum will be represented at the state meet. Jordan Hiller won the boys 800 in a time of 2:03.20 and Lena Markert won the girls shot put with a heave of 39-9..
Hiller was took the lead in the 800 in the first 400 and increased it down the backstretch before holding on for the win.
"I went into this race more as a distance runner than a sprinter," Hiller said. "I wanted to make it a strength race. I kicked with 300 to go and just ran to the finish."
Markert had fallen to third before her final throw in the shot put, but passed Palacios' Stephanie Camp, the previous leader, with her last throw.
"I knew I had to do something," Markert said. "It was just a matter of getting away from everybody and focusing."
Camp settled for a silver medal in the shot put after winning a gold medal in the discus on Friday night with a toss of 123-3.
"I'm pleased I was able to perform on a bigger stage," Camp said. "Making it to state was my goal."
Gonzales' Ari Ince will get a chance to defend her girls pole vaulting title. Ince, who set a Class 3A record at last year's state meet, won the event by clearing 11 feet on Friday.
"I was kind of rushed because I had to go run in the sprint relay," Ince said of her vaults. "I'm just happy to get there again."
Yoakum's Broderick Mathis will return to state in the boys pole vault after finishing second by clearing 14-9. Mathis snapped his pole on his second attempt at 15 feet, and despite being tied for the lead, stopped vaulting and settled for second so he could run in the 400 relay, which finished second behind Cuero in a time of 43.17 and qualified for the state meet.
Cuero's Sabrina Henkes used a sprint at the finish line to capture second in the girls 300 hurdles in a time of 46.21 and earn a berth in the state meet. Henkes was in danger of finishing third after clearing the final hurdle before pushing to the finish line.
Other area athletes earning bronze medals and becoming alternates for the state meet were Cuero's Avery Sheppard in the boys high jump; Yoakum's Denard Collins in the boys long jump, Gonzales' Nolan Barborek in the boys shot put, Cuero's Olguin in the 100, and Goliad's Lyssa Hernandez in the girls long jump.
Wharton finished tied for fifth in the boys team standings with 50 points. Gonzales tied for 10th in the girls team standings with 24 points.
Cuero's Brandon James approaches the finish line as he anchors the Gobblers to first-place finishes in the 400 and 800 relays Saturday at the Region IV-3A Track and Field Meet. Cuero claimed the team title with 81 points, while Yoakum finished second.
Cuero captures Region IV-3A title
May 1, 2005
MIKE FORMAN
Advocate Sports Writer
KINGSVILLE - Cuero's Martell Williams had enough time to gulp a few cups of water, stretch his hamstrings, and take as many breaths as he possibly could after finishing second in the 100-meter dash and going back on the track to run his leg on the 800 relay.
"I was just trying to concentrate on my race and get my steps down," Williams said. " Then, I just wanted to relax and have fun and go as long as I could go."
Williams went fast enough on the third leg of the 800 relay to move from third place to the lead by the time he handed the baton to Brandon James, and the anchor brought the Cuero relay team home in record time at the Region IV-3A meet Saturday at Javelina Stadium.
The Gobblers overcame a strong wind blowing in their faces down the stretch to finish the 800 relay in a time of 1 minute 27.70 seconds, eclipsing the previous mark of 1:28.18 set by Wharton last year.
James and Williams also teamed with Fabian Olguin and Stefon Hargrove to win the 400 relay, and James won the 200 to help the Gobblers capture the boys team title with 81 points, Yoakum finished second with 60 points.
Columbia won the girls team title with 75 points, while Wharton was second with 68. The Lady Tigers won the 400 and 800 relays and finished second in the 1,600 relay.
Cuero wrapped up the team title after James won his third gold medal in the 200 in a time of 22.13, and Hargrove finished third in 23.14.
"I had to run hard to the curve," James said of his 200 win. "I knew the wind would hold me back (down the stretch)."
Williams also ran a leg on the 400 relay, which had a time of 42.74, and was second in the 100 in 11.52. He overcame a severe bout with cramps during Friday's preliminaries to finish sixth in the long jump with a leap of 20 feet, 11 3/4 inches.
"We usually have a team meeting before we start and Martell said he'd be ready," Cuero coach Victor Mathis said. "He came through at the end."
"I was just running my race," Williams added, "and trying to get my team the victory."
Williams caught the runners ahead of him about halfway through his leg of the 800 relay, and got the baton safely into the hands of James, who increased Cuero's lead over Sweeny, which nipped Wharton for second place.
"Where we won the race was Martell," James said. "Once I got the baton, I knew we were going to win and I knew we would get the record because we ran that fast at the Texas Relays but got disqualified."
James also did his part for the team, giving up an opportunity to run the 100 so he could run in the 400 and 800 relays.
"It wasn't really my decision," said James, who has the best 100 time (10.19) in the state this season. "But we won the meet so I wasn't really tripping about it."
"We planned to take Brandon out of the 100 so we could get more points," Mathis explained. "It worked out well for the team."
Mathis believes having James in two relays could also pay off when Cuero travels to Austin on May 13-14 for the state meet.
"At the beginning of the year, our goal was to get there," Mathis said. "Hopefully, things will fall in place for us and with God's blessing maybe we can win it all."
Wharton's girls relay teams came from behind to win the 400 in a time of 48.91 and the 800 in 1:43.60, before finishing second in the 1600 in 4:03.58.
"I think the wind was kind of getting us at first," said Wharton's Ikeia Steele, who ran the anchor leg on the 400 and 800 relays and the third leg on the 1600. "But we got things working for us. We had no doubt we could do it."
Wharton's Roshanda Sims won the triple jump on Friday night with a leap of 37-5 1/4, finishing ahead of Hallettsville's Monique Gates, who was second in 37-3 1/2, and Cuero's Jordan Reese, who was third in 36-2.
The Wharton boys will send a 1,600-relay team to the state meet for the third straight year. The Tigers won the event in a time of 3:25.42.
"My teammates got me in front," said Wharton anchor Pierre Fleurinor, who has been on all three state relay teams. "I knew I had to finish the race for them."
Along with the relay team, Leslie Clark finished second in the 110 hurdles (15.45) and was Wharton's other state qualifier.
Yoakum will be represented at the state meet. Jordan Hiller won the boys 800 in a time of 2:03.20 and Lena Markert won the girls shot put with a heave of 39-9..
Hiller was took the lead in the 800 in the first 400 and increased it down the backstretch before holding on for the win.
"I went into this race more as a distance runner than a sprinter," Hiller said. "I wanted to make it a strength race. I kicked with 300 to go and just ran to the finish."
Markert had fallen to third before her final throw in the shot put, but passed Palacios' Stephanie Camp, the previous leader, with her last throw.
"I knew I had to do something," Markert said. "It was just a matter of getting away from everybody and focusing."
Camp settled for a silver medal in the shot put after winning a gold medal in the discus on Friday night with a toss of 123-3.
"I'm pleased I was able to perform on a bigger stage," Camp said. "Making it to state was my goal."
Gonzales' Ari Ince will get a chance to defend her girls pole vaulting title. Ince, who set a Class 3A record at last year's state meet, won the event by clearing 11 feet on Friday.
"I was kind of rushed because I had to go run in the sprint relay," Ince said of her vaults. "I'm just happy to get there again."
Yoakum's Broderick Mathis will return to state in the boys pole vault after finishing second by clearing 14-9. Mathis snapped his pole on his second attempt at 15 feet, and despite being tied for the lead, stopped vaulting and settled for second so he could run in the 400 relay, which finished second behind Cuero in a time of 43.17 and qualified for the state meet.
Cuero's Sabrina Henkes used a sprint at the finish line to capture second in the girls 300 hurdles in a time of 46.21 and earn a berth in the state meet. Henkes was in danger of finishing third after clearing the final hurdle before pushing to the finish line.
Other area athletes earning bronze medals and becoming alternates for the state meet were Cuero's Avery Sheppard in the boys high jump; Yoakum's Denard Collins in the boys long jump, Gonzales' Nolan Barborek in the boys shot put, Cuero's Olguin in the 100, and Goliad's Lyssa Hernandez in the girls long jump.
Wharton finished tied for fifth in the boys team standings with 50 points. Gonzales tied for 10th in the girls team standings with 24 points.