The Haybalers held their own against the toughest competition
the state has to offer last Saturday in the rain and the mud at
Fresno’s Woodward Park.
The Haybalers held their own against the toughest competition the state has to offer last Saturday in the rain and the mud at Fresno’s Woodward Park.
The conditions were less than favorable as inclement weather made traction difficult for everyone involved but the San Benito runners in attendance still managed some respectable finishes.
Junior Amanda Boyd wrapped up her phenomenal 2004 campaign with a 26th place finish out of 197 runners on a time of 18:57. Teammate Jamie O’Brian took 118th with a total time of 20:13.
“Jamie had a good year for us and I’m sure she’ll have a great season running track,” said Haybalers coach Jess Morales. “For Amanda, what she did in her first year of running was incredible. She real.y did great and I know that next season, she’ll be even better.”
Boyd isn’t quite done running for distance this season. She will be competing in the Foot Locker Western region Championship this Saturday in Los Angeles.
On the boys side, senior Josh Vasquez finished the race with a time of 16:30, good enough for 55th place. Sophomore Eddie Trujillo ended up close behind Vasquez with a time of 16:33, which landed him in the 66th overall spot.
Both Vasquez and Trujillo’s times at the meet were good for personal records.
While Boyd and O’Brian went to the competition as individuals, the boys went as a team due to their first-place finish in the Tri-County Athletic League. Among Division I schools, San Benito’s boys finished in 12th place out of 23 schools, 2nd of the CCS teams behind only Serra. Out of the 112 schools participating in all divisions, the Balers finished an impressive 35th.
“It was the best of the best out there,” Morales said. “The weather was bad but, that’s cross country. I told my guys, ‘Your mother always told you not to play in the mud and to stay out of the puddles’ so I told them to go out there and have fun.”
Looking at the list of finishers from Saturday’s meet, one thing stands out like a sore thumb: Most of San Benito’s strong runners are only sophomores.
Yes, the future is looking bright for Morales and his squad, which hopes its recent success will attract even more quality athletes to the cross country team in upcoming years.
“I’d like to thank everyone who supported us this season,” said Morales, whose wife even chips in with spaghetti dinners for her husband’s athletes. “From our athletic director to our sports trainer. They did a great job for us all season long.”
