The Onate Knights will be one of 32 teams to take the starting line in the Championship Race at Saturday's Rio Rancho Jamboree. Photo by Alan Versaw.
There are usually three check points during the typical New Mexico high school cross country season: the first race, the end of September, and mid-October.
While there were many races to choose from at the start of the season, the largest meet was the UNM Lobo Invite, which had 31 boys and 26 girls varsity scoring teams. 19 of those teams are entered in Saturday’s Championship Division races.
At the end of September, 21 teams in the Championship Divisions chose from either the Albuquerque Academy Invite, Las Cruces Public Schools Invite or the Piedra Vista Totah Invitational.
On Saturday, 32 varsity boys teams and 30 varsity girls teams will toe the line in the last big cross classification clash of the season. Let’s take a look at a few story lines from both of these races, starting in Saturday morning’s race order.
BOYS CHAMPIONSHIP
You name it this race has it.
A battle of #1 ranked teams? Yup. Based on the most recent NM Preps Team Rankings, the 6A #1 Rio Rancho Rams, 5A #1 Albuquerque Academy Chargers, 4A #1 Taos Tigers, and 3A #1 Pecos Panthers will all be in the field.
Curious about winning streaks? Well, what are you looking for, Team or Individual? If it’s team winning streaks then the discussion starts with the 4A #1 and #2 Taos Tigers and Zuni Thunderbirds. The Tigers started their season by winning the Espanola Valley Invite, following their talented trio of Roy Madrid, Donevan Gravelle, and Mateo Vigil, and proceeded to reel off another five victories to sit at 6-0. The Thunderbirds sport their own talented trio of Tre Riley, Cody Latone, and Vincent Yunkstine, who have led the Thunderbirds to their own impressive 6-0 record.
If you’re interested in individual winning streaks, then Miyamura’s Niles Thomas is the answer. UNM Lobo, Miyamura, Shiprock, Albuquerque Academy, Curtis Williams, and the Zuni Patason Amesoli Invites, all first place finishes for the 6-0 Thomas.
Another competitor to keep an eye on is Belen’s hard charging Aaron Valenzuela. Since finishing second in his first race, Valenzuela has torn through every race entered south of I-40. Defending home at Belen Adron Gardner, taking down El-Paso Eastwood at the Las Cruces Public Schools Invite, stopping Estancia’s Jakob Bernal excellent September at the Valencia Invite, and sweeping Valencia County at the Los Lunas David Allen. If you’re curious who Valenzuela finished second in his first meet, the answer again is Niles Thomas.
More interested in titanic clashes between capital “p” Programs? Well, you’re in luck. In addition to Zuni and Taos, the field consists of the three teams who received votes in the most recent Southwest Region Rankings: Rio Rancho, Albuquerque Academy, and Los Alamos. A word of advice if you’re goal is to watch as much of this battle as possible, be swift of foot and don’t blink. All three teams boast average pack times of 45 seconds or lower with the NM #1 Devin Paredes-led Rams leading the way with a 35 second average. 35 seconds, that’s like realizing both your shoes are untied, and stopping to tie them. Remember, don’t blink.
In addition to these storylines, here are some others to keep in mind:
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Four 3A teams are entered in the Championship race, headlined by Pecos and Laguna-Acoma. How will they fare?
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There are 10 4A teams entered in the Championship race, which will give a good indication of the frontrunners, are they the teams we think? How will the new 4A additions (Kirtland Central, East Mountain, Zuni) fare?
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Estancia’s Jakob Bernal and West Las Vegas’ Moises Coca will be racing up, what will their result look like?
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Niles Thomas, 7-0?
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Rio Rancho has either won or been the top New Mexico team in every meet they’ve entered, garnering a well deserved NM #1 ranking. Should they win, and with the depth of the field, can they, or anyone else, break 100 points?
The answers to these questions are only a dayaway! It’s Jamboree time!
To see how deep this field is, click here to view the Virtual Meet. It’s close.
