Fourteen area track and field athletes will compete for state titles at the 2019 UIL Track and Field State Meet at the Mike A. Myers Track Complex in Austin.
Four athletes, Coronado seniors Liam Walsh and Grant Levesque, Hanks junior Michael Abeyta and San Elizario’s Edwin Gomez will compete in multiple events.
In Class 6A, Walsh enters the boy’s 800-meter run with a 1:54.42 in what looks to be one of the tightest races of the meet with five runners within 10th of a second of each other. Walsh will also race in the 1600-meter championship. His qualifying time was 4:21.23.
Walsh finished seventh at state in the 800 last year in a time of 1:55.17.
The 800 is scheduled to begin around 5:25 p.m. Saturday and the 1600 at 8:35 p.m. also on Saturday.
Levesque will attempt to earn a medal in the 110-meter hurdles. His regional time was 14.27. He will also compete in the pole vault where he is the top seed (16-feet, 3 inches).
The pole vault is at noon Saturday and the 110-hurdles is at 5:35 p.m. the same day.
He earned a bronze medal in the pole vault last year with a personal and school record mark of 16 feet, 9 inches.
Jennelle Jaeger-Darakjy, a Coronado senior, enters the 800-meter race with a regional time of 2:08.93, tops in the state. Lewisville Flower Mound senior Anastaysia Davis is second with a 2:09.26 and Keller’s Isabel Van Camp comes in with the third fastest regional time of 2:10.44.
She earned a bronze medal in the 800 meters at last year’s state meet. Her time was 2:12.73.
That race will begin at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Franklin junior Omajuwa Etiwe is the top seed in Saturday’s 400-meter run. He ran a 46.95 to win the regional meet. His race is at 7:05 p.m. Saturday.
In Class 5A, Abeyta will race in the 800-meter run where he posted a state-best 1:53.54 at regionals and the 1600-meter run. His qualifying time was 4:23.68.
Abeyta won gold in the 800-meter run last year in 1:53.38 and finished second in the 1600 in 4:16.53.
The 800 begins at 5:25 p.m. Friday and the 1600 is at 8:55 p.m. also on Friday.
Parkland sophomore Angelina Lujan-Marrufo will make her UIL championship debut in the 800-meter run. She comes in with a 2:16.80. That race is at 5 p.m. Friday.
Burges senior Joshua White will race for a medal in the 400-meter run. His regional 48.01is second fastest in the state. That race begins at 7:15 p.m. Friday. He was 8th last year with a time of 49.60 seconds.
Eastlake senior Aeriel Garcia will test her talents in the 1600-meter run. Her qualifying time was 5:19.21. The 1600 is at 8:55 p.m. Friday.
Eastlake sophomore Makeia Ray comes into the girl’s high jump competition with the second-best jump in the state, soaring 5-feet, six inches. The high jump begins at 7 a.m. Friday.
Burges senior Christian Matamoros leaped 6-feet, 7-inches at regionals in the high jump, placing him tied for second in the state. The boy’s high jump is at 7 a.m. Friday.
Chapin senior thrower Meghan Tualamalii seeks a medal in the shot put. Her regional mark was 40-feet, 11 inches. The first throw is at 9 a.m. Friday.
Donta Hayes, a junior at Parkland will compete in the triple jump. He leaped to a silver medal at regionals with a 46-feet, 5-inch jump. It begins at 3:45 p.m. Friday.
In Class 4A, San Elizario sophomore Edwin Gomez will race in the 3200-meter run. He ran a 9:54.19 at regionals. He will also race in the 800-meter run where he comes in with a 1:55.70, the state’s fastest time. In addition to that, he will race in the 1600-meter race where his regional time is 4:30.21.
He won state gold in 1,600 (4:23.14) and 3,200 meters (9:38.79) last year.
His races are Saturday starting at 8 a.m. (3200), 5 p.m. (800) and 8:35 p.m. (1600).
In Class 3A Tornillo junior Ofir Ortega made the championship meet as a wild card, meaning his 3200-meter run time of 9:57.24 was the fastest of all the third-place finishers in the four regions. His race will be at 8 a.m. Friday.
Broadcast information
The NFHS Network will provide live webcasts of the 2019 UIL Track & Field State Championships. Those unable to attend can watch the UIL Track & Field State Championships live online with a subscription at https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/championships/spring/section/uil.
Subscribers can also watch on the go by downloading the NFHS Network app for iPhone and Android devices.
UIL App: UIL State is the official mobile app for all UIL State Championships. The app features spectator information, schedules, team profiles, and live stats. It is free and available for immediate download in the App Store and Google Play.
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