The Tyler High boys cross country team earned the first-place title at the District 10-5A Cross Country Championships on Wednesday morning, held at Lindsey Park. In the girls' competition, Tyler's Amy Vazquez won the individual race, clocking a time of 18 minutes, 26 seconds.
With their performances, the Tyler High boys team, along with the Hallsville and Whitehouse boys teams, have qualified for the Class 5A Region II Championships. On the girls' side, the Nacogdoches, Mount Pleasant, and Hallsville teams also secured their spots at the regional meet. The top three teams and the top 10 individual finishers from the district championships advance to the regional level.
In the boys' team standings, Tyler finished with 58 points, closely followed by Hallsville with 60 points and Whitehouse with 61 points. Mount Pleasant placed fourth with 95 points, Nacogdoches was fifth with 124 points, Texas High sixth with 133 points, and Marshall finished seventh with 179 points.
The girls' team standings showed Nacogdoches and Hallsville tied for first with 55 points each, followed by Mount Pleasant with 62 points. Texas High placed fourth with 87 points, Whitehouse fifth with 88 points, and Tyler High sixth with 149 points.
Beyond Vazquez's winning time of 18:26, other top 10 individual finishers in the girls' race included Nacogdoches' Mia Perez (19:53), Hallsville's Rilee Gustavsen (20:19), Whitehouse's Bliss Burgess (20:31), Nacogdoches' Makynze Garrett (21:17), Hallsville's Macy Smallwood (21:18), Whitehouse's Avery Brooks (21:25), Mount Pleasant's Ryleigh Mendez (21:45), Hallsville's Vivian Loe (22:15), and Texas High's Kali Scott (22:15).
In the boys' individual race, Texas High's Duncan Powell claimed first place with a time of 16 minutes, 29 seconds. The remaining top 10 finishers were Mount Pleasant's Christopher Mendez (17:14), Whitehouse's Kaisen Posey (17:22), Hallsville's Kalon Powell (17:27), Nacogdoches' William Bouldin (17:32), Hallsville's Brycen Richardson (17:42), Whitehouse's Max Hale (17:50), Mount Pleasant's Marcos Ramirez (17:51), Tyler's Esteban Aguillon (17:51), and Tyler's Alexander Renteria (17:53).
Other Tyler boys runners contributing to the team's district championship included Jesus Giron (18:03), Jose Vazquez (18:14), Aaron Villa (18:18), and Troy Fuentes (18:24). Runners for Hallsville's boys team included Parker Tatman (17:59), Kristian Alba (18:58), David Macedo (19:09), Colton Smith (19:19), and Austin Dvorak (19:36). Whitehouse's boys team had Christopher Bailey (18:27), Colt Mayo (18:31), Oscar Trejo (18:43), Elijah Drake (19:42), and Levi Ackerman (22:39) completing their lineup.
Additional runners for the Nacogdoches girls team were Angelique Martinez-Martinez (22:41), Peyton Casner (23:12), Emma Russell (23:34), and Deborah Arrona (24:02). For Mount Pleasant's girls, Victoria Salmeron (22:21), Alexia Hawkins (22:33), Mary Beth Snyder (22:34), Kate Gil (23:37), Katie Snyder (25:22), and Renata Fernandez (25:44) competed. Hallsville's girls team also included Eliana Rodriguez (23:51), Gabby Fontenot (24:16), Riley Graham (24:45), and Blakely Salmon (26:41).
The Class 5A Region II Championships are scheduled to take place on October 26-27 at the Rolling Hills Soccer Complex in Fort Worth. These qualifying teams and individuals will compete there for a chance to advance to the state meet.
