Girls Individual
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Gang Green |
Power Rankings |
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1) “Killer” Kate, St. Mikes 2) 3) Torres, Pojoaque 4) Bedrick, Sandia Prep 5) Tess Amer, St. Mikes 6) Mermejo, SFIS 7) Janet Pinto, Zuni 8) Lee, Zuni 9) Duboise, Wingate 10) Garmanez, Miyamura |
2) 41) 43) Olivia Mermejo 48) Brandi Garnanez Miyamura 7 1002.11 52) Felicia James Miyamura 6 998.78 |
The race for the 3A individual title should not be very close. That is not what the top girls will want to hear but the facts are what they are. When healthy Kate Norskog has not faced much of a test in 3A state competitions 1600m or longer and she is healthy and running at or close to the top of her game. Look for her to win by over 30 seconds. There will be a furious pack battling for the red second place medal. In that pack is 3A XC defending champion Sophia Torres who finished third in district 2AAA. Torres finished behind Marlinda Pecos who has had a breakout season and should take the red. Bronwyn Bedrick was a solid champ in District 4AAA but she has struggled in the past when racing in November.
Boys Individual
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Gang Green |
Power Rankings |
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1) R. Fenton, Hope 2) Walthal, Thoreau 3) Trevor Serrao, St. Mikes 4) Thomas Zunie, Zuni 5) Fred Baca, St. Mikes 6) Shiji, Sandia Prep 7) Bekes, Bloomfield 8) E. Fenton, Hope 9) Toya, Thoreau 10) Tyler Pino, Laguna-Acoma |
10) Evan Bekes Bloomfield 5 1048.87 15) Dustin Walthal Thoreau 8 1042.81 24) Dillon Shije Sandia Prep 5 1024.05 30) 35) 51) Marcus Toya Thoreau 6 993.9 |
Dillon Shije will be a favorite among many after his impressive victory over Dustin Walthal and Ryan Fenton in the District 4AAA race. Shije received some special home cooking when his school, Sandia Prep, hosted the championship on his home trails at Zia Pueblo. The Zia course has an extraordinary hill and deep sand; the kinds of which will not be present on the state course in Rio Rancho. The change of venue should favor Ryan Fenton. Look for Thomas Zunie to be in the lead pack early and hang on for a top 5 finish. You can also count on Walthal, Trevor Serrao and Fred Baca not being with the lead pack early on and making up ground when they push up the
Girls Team
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Gang Green |
Power Rankings |
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1) St. Mikes 2) Zuni 4) Pojoaque 5) Miyamura |
11) Zuni 7 1174.28 14) St Mikes 4 1097.69 18) 21) Pojoaque 6 1035.29 25) Miyamura 8 1015.12 |
You may be asking, “Gang Green, how can you pick a district runner-up to win the 3A girls title?” While it is true that Santa Fe Indian School defeated St. Michael’s (defending champs) at Rodriguez Park for the 2AAA title it is also true that the Lenny Gurule coached Lady Horsemen have a history of running hot at the right time. Last year they pulled everything together and ran the perfect race to defeat the heavily favored Zuni Thunderbirds. That memory is still fresh in the Zuni girls’ minds as they venture back to Rio Rancho. Zuni has looked strong at times but they are not as dominant as they were in 2007. There could only be 10 points separating the top 3 teams come Saturday.
Boys Team
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Gang Green |
Power Rankings |
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1) Zuni 2) St. Mikes 3) SFIS 4) Hope 5) Pojoaque |
11) Zuni 7 1220.05 14) St Mikes 6 1179.04 15) Hope Christian 7 1164.72 16) |
In the boys’ team race it is a question of, “which late season addition helped more?” St. Michael’s looked like they would run away with the 3A boys title after there impressive performance at the UNM meet. However, a pair of accidents (one on a trampoline and a second on a dirt bike) resulted in a rough mid-season stretch for the Horsemen. Zuni looked anything but impressive during the early season but have received an upgrade following first quarter grading. Two runners have become eligible and have made Zuni the favorite to win the Blue.