David Mora leads Monterey top-three trio as Plainsmen nab boys cross country district title

David Mora figured Thursday morning was a good time for a workout. It just happened to also be the District 4-5A cross country meet.

Leading throughout, the Monterey senior finished the 5K course at Mae Simmons Park in 15 minutes, 41.36 seconds to win his second consecutive district title. His closest competitors were fellow Plainsmen, with Xavier Sanchez and Tripp Gray rounding out the top three to give Monterey the boys team title by a wide margin.

Mora was so unfazed, he jogged back to the home stretch to cheer on Gray.

"(I) work hard during the workouts and go easy on the races," Mora said. "… I just took it easy today, just used it as a workout. (At) regionals, I'll race for real."

Sanchez, who was also runner-up last year as the Plainsmen won the team title, ran a 16:09.60. Gray finished in 16:58.34, a little more than 3 seconds ahead of Lubbock High's Elias Gonzalez.

Mora sets the example, and pace, for his teammates to follow.

"David, he's a great runner," Sanchez said. "He works just as hard as anybody, any professional. He's probably better than some of the college runners out there, so it's great to work out with him. He motivates the team and inspires everybody."

The win was nothing new for Mora, who has qualified for the state meet each of his first three seasons. This year, he's hoping the team joins him. Monterey will get that chance at the Region I-5A meet Oct. 24, back at Mae Simmons.

"Our goal is just to compete and beat ourselves," Sanchez said. "PR, just have fun out there and enjoy the moments that we have."

District favorite Peña finishes fifth after collapsing; Coronado's Harris places second

Lubbock High's Reese Peña won all six regular-season competitions this season and looked on her way to another victory Thursday.

Next thing she knew, she was being helped off the ground.

About 2 miles into the 5K district race, Peña collapsed after building a significant lead over the field. The sophomore was able to recover and finish fifth to extend her season.

"I think that the reason I fell was the lack of nutrition that I had in my body," Peña said, "and the nerves. It just got to me. I tried to push through it and I ended up on the ground."

The episode opened the door for Abilene High's Mason Murray, who entered with the second-best time behind Peña this season. Murray won the girls District 4-5A title in 18:54.46, leading the way for the Lady Eagles' team championship.

The Lady Westerners (65 points) edged Coronado (69) for second place, and both teams advanced to the region meet.

Coronado's Zanashia Harris, the reigning district champion, was runner-up in 19:01.53. The sophomore said she was proud of how she overcame a bit of self-doubt.

"I feel like I ran strong," Harris said. "I pushed myself, because I did feel like at some parts I wanted to give up. But I had to push myself because it was tough. But overall I feel like I did pretty good."

Harris said she wanted to stay within striking distance of the leaders and found a comfortable pace. She reached state last year after placing third at regionals, and she'll look to punch her return trip later this month.

Coronado coach Kolista Garcia said all of Harris' goals are in front of her.

"She's in the midst of figuring out you've got to have hard work on top of that talent," Garcia said. "You get to regionals and state, everyone's talented, so it's a matter of the ones that put that work in. Z is starting to realize it."

Levelland girls win District 3-4A, boys place second

With four finishers in the top 10, the Levelland girls won the District 3-4A team championship Thursday at Mae Simmons.

Evelyn Mendias and Ariani Lopez placed third and fourth, respectively, while Ciarra Sanchez was sixth and Emily Ramirez 10th.

That allowed the Loboettes to hold off Big Spring, which had the top-two finishers in freshmen Bergan Pinkley and Luna Jimenez. San Angelo Lake View got third to advance to the Region I-4A meet as a team.

On the boys' side, Levelland was runner-up to a dominant Big Spring squad. The Steers had four of the top five runners, and half of the top 10, led by champion Adrian Solis.

Snyder's Antonio Martinez had the area's best individual result after placing third. The Tigers were third to advance to regionals.

Eighth-place Ryan Jeannert was the Lobos' best finisher, but a run of four consecutive Levelland runners from 12th to 15th rounded out the second-place team. The Lobos also had the 16th finisher.

DISTRICT 4-5A CROSS COUNTRY

Note: The top three teams and top 10 individuals advance to the Region I-5A meet Oct. 24 at Mae Simmons Park.

BOYS — 5K

Team standings: 1. Monterey 25; 2. Abilene High 59; 3. Lubbock High 85; 4. Coronado 104; 5. Abilene Cooper 114; 6. Lubbock-Cooper 115; 7. Abilene Wylie 186.

Individuals: 1. David Mora, Monterey, 15:41.36; 2. Xavier Sanchez, Monterey, 16:09.60; 3. Tripp Gray, Monterey, 16:58.34; 4. Elias Gonzalez, Lubbock High, 17:01.55; 5. Karter Batten, Abilene High, 17:07.94; 6. Lathen Myers, Coronado, 17:10.70; 7. Grayson Hastings, Monterey, 17:11.04; 8. Aldo Sanchez, Abilene High, 17:19.09; 9. Roman Martinez, Coronado, 17:19.74; 10. Trustin Treviño, Lubbock High, 17:25.90.

GIRLS — 5K

Team standings: 1. Abilene High 25; 2. Lubbock High 65; 3. Coronado 69; 4. Monterey 71; 5. Abilene Cooper 144; 6. Abilene Wylie 163.

Individuals: 1. Mason Murray, Abilene High, 18:54.46; 2. Zanashia Harris, Coronado, 19:01.53; 3. Zoe Vann, Abilene High, 19:15.23; 4. Marin Murray, Abilene High, 19:27.25; 5. Reese Peña, Lubbock High, 19:41.97; 6. Sydney Smothers, Monterey, 19:52.37; 7. Jocelyn Smith, Abilene High, 20:06.68; 8. Roslyn Rodriguez, Monterey, 20:24.07; 9. Bailey Springer, Monterey, 20:35.16; 10. Molly Bessent, Abilene High, 20:46.80.

DISTRICT 3-4A CROSS COUNTRY

Note: The top three teams and top 10 individuals advance to the Region I-4A meet Oct. 24 at Mae Simmons Park.

BOYS — 5K

Team standings: 1. Big Spring 21; 2. Levelland 62; 3. Snyder 77; 4. San Angelo Lake View 78; 5. Estacado 124.

Individuals: 1. Adrian Solis, Big Spring, 16:31.85; 2. Isaac Gonzales, Big Spring, 16:54.11; 3. Antonio Martinez, Snyder, 17:23.23; 4. Kevin Quezada, Big Spring, 17:30.97; 5. Diego Rios, Big Spring, 17:57.61; 6. Aiden Leal, Snyder, 18:04.07; 7. Sterling Grey, Lake View, 18:09.01; 8. Ryan Jeannert, Levelland, 18:31.15; 9. Enrique Calderon, Big Spring, 18:40.05; 10. Justin Vasquez, Lake View, 18:52.08.

GIRLS — 2 miles

Team standings: 1. Levelland 36; 2. Big Spring 44; 3. Lake View 80; 4. Snyder 92; 5. Estacado 130; 6. Sweetwater 143.

Individuals: 1. Bergan Pinkley, Big Spring, 12:51.34; 2. Luna Jimenez, Big Spring, 13:19.83; 3. Evelyn Mendias, Levelland, 13:23.10; 4. Ariani Lopez, Levelland, 13:28.20; 5. Lily Rodriguez, Snyder, 13:35.19; 6. Ciarra Sanchez, Levelland, 14:01.42; 7. Jaylen Cuellar, Lake View, 14:26.99; 8. Kandace Gonzales, Big Spring, 14:33.15; 9. Faith Miller, Lake View, 14:34.61; 10. Emily Ramirez, Levelland, 14:44.62.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: David Mora leads Lubbock Monterey to District 4-5A cross country title