All five of La Porte High School's cross country teams won the district championship as they competed at the District 21-5A cross country meet held in Baytown on Oct. 28. This was the first time in school history for all five teams to win the district championship at the same time.
The varsity teams will now advance to the regional meet, to be held on Nov. 6 at Atascocita. The girls will compete at 11:45 a.m., and the boys will compete at noon.
Boys' Cross Country Results
In spite of a windy and slow course, the LPHS boys' cross country team had a very successful day, said LPHS boys' cross country coach Zach Johnson.
"It was a great race and was close to the end with North Shore, but thanks to some valiant efforts and great support from the cheerleaders and parents, they managed to out-kick the pack from North Shore," Johnson said, adding that the team brought home a number of plaques and medals.
In the varsity boys' three-mile race, Gustavo Aguilera won second place with a time of 16.39, followed by Alex Mosley in sixth place with a personal record of 17.08. Cameron Avina placed ninth with a personal record of 17.20, and Jordan Claypool earned 12th place with 17.24.
Also placing were Eric Cantu, 15th place, with a time of 17.27; A.J. Padilla , 19th place,with a time of 17.52, and Duan White, 20th place, with a personal record of 18.01.
The boys' junior varsity team took the top four places, all setting personal records in the three-mile race. Wyssam Zaaban came in first with a time of 17.49, followed by Christopher Robins in second at 18.14. Daivon Clark placed third with a time of 18.34, and Rolando Perez placed fourth with a time of 18.34.
JV participants also included Alber Marte, 12th place, with a time of 19.40; Sean Young, 16th place, with a personal record of 19.45; Jeremiah Golla, 19th place, with a time of 20.02; Demetrius Guzman, with a time of 20.12; and Raul Martinez, with a personal record of 20.26.
The LPHS freshmen took the top three spots, with all six runners setting personal records. Michael Davis earned first place with a time of 12.10. Evan Cook came in second with a time of 12.13, followed by Quentin Sanders in third with a time of 12.19. Jonathan Carpio earned fifth place with a time of 13.02, Dustin Moore placed 21st with a time of 14.29, and Ryan Dodd came in 24th with a time of 15.00.
"All of the early mornings, running twice a day, and being picky eaters have paid off for our boys," Johnson said. "The competition will be very good, and we expect to compete very well with them, hoping to qualify for state."
Girls' Cross Country Results
This marks the 21st straight year for the La Porte High School girls' cross country team to qualify for the regional meet. According to Coach Joel Fagan, from 1988 through 2010 they have qualified each year except 1989.
Fagan said that all of the girls ran faster on the windy course that they did weeks ago, with both the varsity and junior varsity teams winning the district meet.
Imani Mark emerged as the district champion in the varsity division with a first place finish. Also contributing to the district win were Alexis Brown, fourth place; Courtney Butler, fifth place; Anna Richburg, sixth place; Nicole O'Guinn, 10th place; Nikki Rhea, 11th place; and Kayla Blanchard, 20th place. The girls scored a low of 26 points compared to second-place North Shore's 61 and 3rd place Baytown Sterling's 83. Other scores were Channelview, 100; West Brook, 104 and Port Arthur Memorial, 149.
The junior varsity recorded a perfect score by taking the top five places as well as eight of the top nine awards. Savannah Riggenbach took first place, followed by Dora Reynosa, second; Daevonna Goodeau, third; Gabby Bustos, fourth; and Kristi Coleman, fifth. Montrell Freeman finished sixth, Jenna Saucier, seventh and Ashley Reister, ninth. La Porte had a low of 15 points (perfect score), with North Shore scoring 71; Sterling, 95; Port Arthur Memorial, 109; Channelview, 126; and West Brook, 128.
