Lubbock High's Reese Peña unbeaten heading into Lubbock ISD Invitational cross country meet
Reese Peña made a splash as a freshman, and she's working toward even more this year.
The Lubbock High runner, who reached the state cross country meet in her debut, has won all three races to start the season. Along with her teammates, Peña's next challenge will be Saturday at the Lubbock ISD Invitational.
Across all classifications, more than 650 schools and 1,650 participants will take to Mae Simmons Park for the annual event.
"For us, it's great because it's a course that we're really comfortable with," LHS coach Michael Sparks said. "… We run that course so much, and I know a lot of the teams, they're fighting to get into this meet with it being the host site for the regional meet. Teams want to see this course before regionals.
"It's just exciting with the competition that we have coming in."
All boys will run 5K, as will girls in Classes 5A and 6A. Girls in 4A and smaller will run 2 miles.
Peña's best time this season was a 3-mile finish of 18 minutes, 11 seconds at the Lubbock Christian University meet. She also bested the field at races in Denton and Abilene. Sparks said the sophomore has shown strides in her training, which has the coach excited about her potential.
"She's running on a different level this year, really," Sparks said. "She looks a lot more rested. She looks like she's running on fresh legs every single week. It just keeps on amazing me because the way she works at practice, I figured she's got to be getting tired a little bit. But I think she's figured out that balance between being a high school student and a varsity athlete.
"She's figured out that balance on how to rest and how to work hard."
Sparks thinks part of the reason is getting advice from a former Westerner. Isaac Alonzo, a 2021 grad running for the University of Texas, has lent a hand in Peña's progression.
"I know they're talking regularly," Sparks said. "He's kind of giving her the ins and outs of what to expect and what to do, how to handle herself at that kind of level."
Peña placed third at the LISD Invitational last year, behind seniors from Canyon Randall and Amarillo High, who also finished 1-2 in the team standings. She was just ahead of then-fellow freshman Zanashia Harris of Coronado.
A win in the talented field would be a feather in Peña's cap, though the real goals are still down the line.
"Really, the only thing that we've talked about is making sure that she doesn't peak too soon," Sparks said. "I think she may have gotten a little tired towards the end of the season last year, if you look at her region time and her time at state, those times don't really match up to what she's doing early and middle of the season.
"We just want to make sure that she peaks at the right time and still has some gas in the tank by the time we get to state. That is her goal: to repeat that trip and to finish much higher than she did last year."
Lubbock ISD Invitational
Saturday at Mae Simmons Park
9 a.m. — Class 3A girls
9:30 a.m. — 3A boys
10 a.m. — 4A girls
10:30 a.m. — 4A boys
11 a.m. — 5A girls
11:30 a.m. — 5A boys
1 p.m. — 6A girls
1:30 p.m. — 6A boys
2 p.m. —1A girls
2:30 p.m. — 1A boys
3 p.m. — 2A girls
3:30 p.m. — 2A boys
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock ISD Invitational cross country meet set for Mae Simmons Park
