Every Thursday, El Paso Running will utilize a point system to highlight El Paso’s top boy’s cross country runners.
The system is as follows: In a race of less than 150 runners, first place gets 10 points, second gets 9 points all the way down to and 10th place which gets 1 point. For meets with between 150 to 300 runners, double points will be rewarded meaning 20 points for first, 19 for second all the way down to 1 point for 20th. For every additional 150 runners, another 10 runners will be included in the points.
For those who like raw times, we also list the Top 25 boys and girls race times and the meets and dates that they occurred.
This week’s schedule:
Desert Twilight: 9 p.m. Sept. 27 in Casa Verde, Ariz. Eastwood, Hanks, Riverside, Bel Air, Bowie, Cathedral, Del Valle, San Elizario.
Lubbock Invitational: 8:45 a.m. Sept. 28, Mae Simmons Park in Lubbock. Socorro, Valle Verde, Parkland, Franklin, Austin, Jefferson, El Paso, Ft. Hancock, Burges, Americas, Eastlake, El Dorado, Pebble Hills, Montwood.
Las Cruces Onate Invitational: 8:30 a.m. Sept. 28 at Onate High School. Coronado, Canutillo, Chapin, Loretto, Andress.
For questions, videos and photos email vrmart66@gmail.com.
Top 10
1, Eastwood: Eastwood placed sixth out of 32 teams in the Sweepstakes Division of the 39th Woodbridge (Calif.) Cross Country Classic presented by ASICS. Elias Perez finished ninth out of 241 runners in 14:25.9. Two other runners – Sergio Leon-Cuartes (48th, 14:51.4) and Juan Olmos (49th, 14:51.9) – had top 50 finishes. The Troopers will race the Desert Twilight in Casa Verde, Ariz. Friday.
2, Americas: The Trailblazers placed all five of its scoring runners in the top 10 to easily win the Parkland/Riverside Invitational at the Northeast Regional Park. Jacob Ye led the way with a second-place finish in 15:22.23. Americas runners finished 7-10 – Aaron Saenz seventh in 15:36.45, Hector Sanchez, eighth in 15:36.89, Jared Laverty, ninth in 15:38.00 and Gage Garcia, tenth in 15:44.35. Americas will compete in the Lubbock Invitational at Mae Simmons Park on Saturday.
3, Franklin: The Cougars move back up to the third after its 53-point performance at the Parkland /Riverside Invitational at Northeast Regional Park. Franklin and Coronado actually tied but Franklin’s fifth runner – Rai Lopez, finished in 16:41.82, ahead of Coronado’s fifth runner. Franklin had two runners – Fernie Morales (third, 15:23.42) and Daniel Kennedy (fifth, 15:35.20) – in the top 10. Franklin will race in the Lubbock Invitational at Mae Simmons Park on Saturday.
4, Coronado: The T-Birds drop one after finishing third at the Parkland /Riverside Invitational at Northeast Regional Park. Nick Gonzalez won his fourth individual championship of the season, racing to a 15:19.21 while Alan Alba was sixth in 15:35.77. The T-Birds will race at the Las Cruces Onate Invitational on Saturday.
5, San Elizario: The Eagles seem to be hitting their mid-season stride, winning the Tornillo/San Eli Invitational at Tornillo High School. San Elizario scored 46 points with four runners in the top 10. Leading the way was Edwin Gomez who won the event in 16:11.24. Rene Arambula was fourth (16:24.05), Dilan Sanchez was fifth (16:24.67) and Irvin Vazquez was ninth in 16:26.20. The Eagles will race the Desert Twilight in Casa Verde, Ariz. Friday.
6, Hanks: Again, the Knights did not run its top two runners and finished with 108 points (tied for second) at the Tornillo/San Eli Invitational at Tornillo High School. Four the second straight week, sophomore Gael Alvarado paced the Knights with a sixth-place finish in 16:25.29. Senior Omar Munoz was 11th in 17:16.87. The team will compete at the Desert Twilight in Casa Verde, Ariz. Friday.
7, Chapin: The Huskies continue to improve, placing fourth at the Parkland/Riverside Invitational at Northeast Regional Park. Senior Angel Contreras was fourth in 15:29.51. The team will race at the Las Cruces Onate Invitational on Saturday.
8, Montwood: The Rams finished fifth at the Tornillo/San Eli Invitational at Tornillo High School with 128 points. Trenton Nelson continues to lead Montwood (12th in 17:18.80). The Rams are scheduled to compete in the Lubbock Invitational at Mae Simmons Park on Saturday.
9, Tornillo: Tornillo is struggling just a bit on the back end of the team. Senior Ofir Ortega continues to be the only consistent runner, finishing third at the Tornillo/San Eli Invitational in 16:50.61. Its closest runner finished in 22nd place. The Coyotes will compete in the Lubbock Invitational at Mae Simmons Park on Saturday.
10, Eastlake: The Falcons did not race last weekend. The team will race in the Lubbock Invitational at Mae Simmons Park on Saturday.
Dropped out: None.
On the verge: Socorro, Burges.
Top times (3-mile or 5K)
1, Elias Perez, Eastwood 14:25.90 (Woodbridge Classic, 9/21).
2, Sergio Leon Cuartas, Eastwood, 14:51.40 (Woodbridge Classic, 9/21).
3, Juan Olmos, Eastwood, 14:51.90 (Woodbridge Classic, 9/21).
4, Nick Gonzalez, Coronado, 15:19.21 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
5, Victor Parra, Eastwood, 15:22.40 (Woodbridge Classic, 9/21).
6, Jacob Ye, Americas, 15:22.23 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
7, Fernie Morales, Franklin, 15:23.42 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
8, Michael Abeyta Hanks, 15:25.84 (Southlake Carroll, 9/7).
9, Nathan Hernandez, Eastwood, 15:27.4 (Woodbridge Classic, 9/21).
10, Rodger Rivera, Hanks, 15:29.04 (Race to Midnight, SAC, 8/24).
11, Angel Contreras, Chapin, 15:29.51 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
12, Daniel Kennedy, Franklin, 15:35.20 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
13, Alan Alba, Coronado 15:35.77 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
14, Aaron Saenz, Americas, 15:36.45 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
15, Hector Sanchez, Americas, 15:36.89 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
16, Jared Laverty, Americas, 15:38.00 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
17, Gage Garcia, Americas, 15:44.35 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
18, Seth Andrade, Americas, 15:48.70 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
19, Ofir Ortega, Tornillo, 15:50.00 (Guyer Invitational, 9/14).
20, Melo Corral, Americas, 15:53.93 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
21, Christian Parra, Socorro, 15:55.00 (Guyer Invitational, 9/14).
22, Andres Gurrola, Eastwood, 15:55.60 (Woodbridge Classic, 9/21).
23, Stephen Pitchkolan Coronado, 15:56.74 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
24, Isreal David, Eastlake, 16:04.45 (Canutillo Invitational 8/31).
25, Jose Nila, Austin, 16:06.27 (Northeast Regional Park, 9/21).
Power rankings
(number parenthesis indicate meets won):
1, Ofir Ortega, Tornillo, 43 (1).
2, Edwin Gomez, San Elizario, 42 (2).
3, Nick Gonzalez, Coronado, 40 (4).
4, Fernie Morales, Franklin, 31 (1).
4, Alan Alba, Coronado, 31.
6, Michael Abeyta, Hanks, 30 (2).
7, Elias Perez, Eastwood, 29.
8, Hector Sanchez, Americas, 26.
9, Dilan Sanchez, San Elizario, 25.
10, Isreal David, Eastlake, 24.
Rene Arambula, San Elizario, 23.
Jacob Ye, Americas, 21.
Melo Corral, Americas, 20.
Angel Contreras, Chapin, 20.
Juan Olmos, Eastwood, 18 (1).
Daniel Kennedy, Franklin, 17.
Gage Garcia, Americas, 15.
Gael Alvarado, Hanks, 14.
Sergio Leon Cuartas, Eastwood, 14.
David Gonzalez, Burges, 14.
Aaron Saenz, Americas, 13.
Alex Sanchez, Horizon, 11.
Rodger Rivera, Hanks, 10 (1).
Matthew Avila, El Paso, 9.
Christian Parra, Socorro, 9.
Nathan Hernandez, Eastwood, 9.
Omer Ibrahim, Pebble Hills, 9.
Steve Porras, Franklin, 9.
Jorge Garcia, Socorro, 7.
Victor Anchondo, Eastwood, 6
Michael Bernal, Pebble Hills, 6.
Cristian Ibarra, Ysleta, 6.
Dylan Walker, Burges, 6.
Jared Laverty, Americas, 6.
Seth Andrade, Americas, 5.
Dylan Espinosa, Bowie, 5.
Evan Rubio, Ysleta, 5.
Stephen Pitchkolan, Coronado, 5.
Jose Nilo, Austin, 4.
Irvin Vazquez, San Elizario, 4.
Joaquin Sanchez, Chapin, 3.
Isaac Becerill, Canutillo, 3.
Victor Parra, Eastwood, 3.
Trenton Nelson, Montwood, 2.
Michael Mier, Americas, 2.
Alan Ceballos, San Elizario, 1.
Joshua Gonazalez, Mt. View, 1.
Aaron Perez, Eastwood, 1.
Abraham Cruz, Eastwood, 1.
Jacob Ontiveros, El Paso High, 1.
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