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Cross-country preview: Elevated expectations for high school runners
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The anticipation for the cross-country season at Belen and Los Lunas is similar, with one noteworthy difference — BHS has strength with the girls’ team, while at LLHS, the boys seem to have a leg up.
At Valencia, the new coach is looking for more runners, of either gender.
Belen Eagles
“It looks excellent right now,” is how Belen coach Fernando Sisneros sized up the cross-country team as official workouts got underway several weeks ago.
“The girls’ side looks really, really strong again this year. A lot of depth,” Sisneros said.
It certainly helps to have three of the four members of the 2023 4A State Championship 4X800 team on the roster in Lisette Sanchez, Sara Martinez and Avery Carter. Plus, there is depth with Lalainy Gonzales, Gabby Jaramillo and Alexis Price battling for a top five spot.
“They’re going to have to come out here and compete every practice, every meet. They’re going to have to prove themselves,” said Sisneros, who believes the Eagles can fight with Los Alamos and Albuquerque Academy for a top three finish at the state meet. “I know they can do it, and they know they can do it — it’s exciting.”
The BHS boys’ team is a bit more of a work in progress, dealing with low numbers.
“We’ve got just enough to field the boys’ varsity team, and that’s pretty much it,” said Sisneros.
Julian Jurado, who does double duty with the soccer team, wrestlers Josh Jaramillo and Marinus Sanchez, along with Kyle Glodt and Niko Arriaga, will be counted on to score points for the cross-country squad. All are seniors.
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The BHS season begins Saturday at the Jemez Valley Meet.
Los Lunas Tigers
The strength of the Los Lunas cross-country team is on the boys’ side, with a mix of youth and experience.
James Kilcullen is the Tigers’ lone senior, while Eloy Urtiaga is an eighth-grader.
“He’s amazing. In our timed run (in early August), he (Urtiaga) was our fifth runner — we have a strong five,” said coach Larry Padilla, referring to the top five who score points in meets.
Brady Garcia, a sophomore, has made strides this season, finishing at or near the top of timed runs in practice.
“I’m really excited with what we’re doing,” Padilla said, especially with what’s called the “pack time,” the time between when the top runner and No. 5 finish. “Last year, we got close to a 30 second pack time. We can probably do the same thing.”
The LLHS girls’ squad should be competitive again, although it will be difficult to unseat Albuquerque High atop the district.
Sol Romero is back from injury, while improved Ainsley McKay and newcomer Mya Fragua bring quality.
“The kids think I’m crazy when I say this,” Padilla said about posting early practice times. “I get excited even when I see those times because they’re even doing better than I expected at this time,” and traditionally the runners improve as the season goes on.
The Tigers travel Saturday to Red Rocks for a meet hosted by Miyamura.
Valencia Jaguars
The No. 1 priority for new Valencia cross-country coach Ashley Brower is to improve participation.
Brower was hired just as official practice began, so she has work to do for a program that has been slow to catch on at VHS.
“Running is sometimes not highly thought of, but it does help for other sports,” Brower said. “It can help build endurance; it can help you in track for sprinting.”
By visiting with students at VHS and Valencia Middle School about the sport, Brower hopes, “It could spread to more students — get more students who want to come forward.”
Francesca Otero has returned for Valencia, while Brower says five others have committed recently as well.
LLHS scrimmage
All three county programs took part Friday in a scrimmage at LLHS, along with runners from the new middle school teams in Belen and Los Lunas.
Individually, James Kilcullen, of LLHS, was first for the boys, followed by teammate Brady Garcia and Belen’s Julian Jurado.
The Eagles’ Lisette Sanchez dominated the girls’ race, with Ainsley McKay of LLHS second. Valencia’s Francesa Otero was fifth.
