At the NCAA Mountain Regional meet in Albuquerque on Nov. 14, Ian, an NMSU sophomore, finished 41st, while Jonah was 58th. The performances and the team finish of 14th out of 17 men's teams in the 10K race capped a wonderful year for the program.

Ian earned All-Western Athletic Conference honors at the WAC Championships on Oct. 31 in Reno, Nev., placing ninth, while Jonah was 16th in that race, with the top five Aggie finishers that day all being from New Mexico hometowns.

The Lady Aggies won the WAC title with three native New Mexicans in the top 10 overall.

"I remember it was my junior year of high school that I really began to improve in running, and that is when I began to enjoy it so much," said Jonah. "Going into my senior year, I wanted to make the most of it, and try to do as well as my brother had done, but I wasn't as serious about training as I am now."

Jonah placed eighth at the Class 5A state cross country meet in 2008 for LLHS, with Ian having been fourth at state the year before, with both placing at state in distance track and field events as well, making them runners New Mexico State coach Paul Harkins wanted to recruit. Harkins' program has a number of male and female runners from in-state, a change for that program, and it seems to have vaulted the Aggie teams much closer to national prominence.

There were no seniors on the Aggie men's team this fall, and only one on the women's side.

"I think both squads are going to be even stronger because we will each have more experience, and if we get new recruits that will definitely help us," said Ian. "What I learned at WAC and Regionals is that you can't be intimidated by anyone and you just have to go out there and do your best to beat as many people as you can. You have to be confident in your abilities and know that you can run with the best of the best in the conference and the region."

The brothers, the sons of Jay and Christine Ruybalid, are part of a growing Tiger distance running program that has flourished in the last few years under coach Larry Padilla. They're part of a string of state placers that, if not for a near miss in 2005, would have had at least one male runner in each of the past seven Class 5A state championship races.

Jonah signed with NMSU the same day his Los Lunas classmate, Patrick Lueras, signed with Eastern New Mexico. Lueras competed with the Greyhounds as a true freshman on a team that reached the Division II South Central Regionals.

Some of the Ruybalids' teammates on the NMSU roster include Eldorado's Kevin Palmer (who was injured this fall), Ryan Fenton of Hope Christian, Kevin Taft of Manzano and Robert Selph of Rio Rancho High. The Lady Aggies had many New Mexico natives as well.

Harkins was at this year's high school championships in Rio Rancho, where he saw Los Lunas senior Justin Lueras, Patrick's brother, manage a late burst to finish fourth in the boys Class 5A race. Of course, Harkins, who said it will be later in the school year before most scholarship offers or other recruiting-related business really take off, got to see many other talented LLHS, Belen and Valencia High runners at state as well.

"I think they (prospective college runners) should give N.M. State a serious look, because all of us New Mexico runners have improved so much from high school to college," said Ian. "It's amazing. We all really get along too, and I think that if they want to continue to improve in their running and have a great time with the team, then NMSU is right for them."

Each brother said their love of running is as strong as ever.

"I love going for runs now and thinking about my next competition and about how we can improve as a team," said Jonah.

Ian was just as emphatic.

"I love to push past my limits on a daily basis and be the very best that I can be," said Ian. "I love to run. It's my passion, and I will always love running."