Marble Falls cross country runs well at invitational

CAPTION: Marble Falls High School varsity runners Graham Goggans (left), Owen Martin and Logan Hargraves wear the medals they earn from the Cedar Park Vista Ridge Invitational Aug. 22. Courtesy photo

The Marble Falls High School cross country program competed at the Cedar Park Vista Ridge Invitational Aug. 22.

The Mustangs were fifth overall with 108 points thanks to a cumulative time of 1 hour and 35.08 seconds with each runner averaging 19:01 on the 5K course.

“Overall, I was really pleased with how the boys competed,” head coach Brenda Gonzalez said. “I especially liked the way our first four finishers — Owen Martin, Graham Goggans, Logan Hargraves and Jahir Garcia — got out and set the tone.”

Martin earned the bronze medal in the individual standings with a time of 17:53 followed by Goggans who was seventh in 18:10, Hargraves came in 12th in 18:31, Garcia was 26th in 19:25, and Santiago Gaytan finished 60th in 21:07. Connor Yaklin was 82nd in 22:31.

“Owen is doing a great job of leading the boys, and I like what I’m seeing from him,” Gonzalez said. “Graham wasn’t too far behind and turned in a solid run as well. Logan opened the season with a (personal record), which was exciting, and freshman Jahir Garcia really impressive competing in his first-ever 5K as did JJ Walker.”

One runner was out because of illness.

“That played a big role in the gap,” the coach said. “We understand that’s an area we’ll need to adjust moving forward. The good news is we have two promising freshmen, JJ Walker and Joaquim Edwards, who will get a chance to run at the varsity level this week along with Colton Rutland, who is coming back from injury. Rutland was big for us last year, and we’re looking forward to seeing him get fit and back to top form. Santiago has made huge strides from where he was a year ago, and both Connor Yaklin and Gaytan just need to work on pacing — starting a little more controlled so they can finish stronger.”

The Lady Mustangs finished eighth overall with a cumulative time of 1:16.20, which means each runner’s average time was 15:16 on the two-mile course.

Sapana Kahtri was the first Lady Mustang to cross the finish line for 24th in 14:29 followed by Katerina Moseley, who was 32nd in 14:55, Graci Nelson was 54th in 15:28, Savannah Hamblin, who was 58th in 15:36, Hadalye Hernandez, who was 67th in 16:09, Sonoma Damuth came in 69th in 16:21, and Abigail Henderson finished 77th in 17:41.

“Freshman Sapana Khatri did a great job leading the varsity girls in her first official high school race —she stepped up and set the tone for the team,” the coach said. “Right behind her was freshman Kat Moseley, and both finished under 15 minutes. Freshman Graci Nelson and sophomore Savannah Hamblin also turned in strong runs. For our girls, this was a solid starting point, and we’ll keep building from here.”

District members Burnet, Lampasas and Salado also competed at the meet.

“It was good for us to get the chance to race them early and see where we currently stand compared to our district opponents,” Gonzalez said. “I’m excited about the direction both our boys and girls teams are headed. It’s early in the season, but we’ve got a great group that’s willing to compete and continue improving.”

Marble Falls will compete in the Viking Cross Country Invitational hosted by Lago Vista Thursday, Aug. 28, staring at 7:30 a.m. the first Classes 1A-4A race starting at around 8:30 a.m.

CAPTION: The Lady Mustangs in a pre-race huddle before competing in the Cedar Park Vista Ridge Invitational Aug. 22. Courtesy photo

RESULTS

BOYS

Varsity

3, Owen Martin (Marble Falls), 17:53 4, Clark Yanez (Burnet), 17:58, 7, Graham Goggans (Marble Falls), 18:10, 9, Adan Carreon (Burnet), 18:24, 12, Logan Hargraves (Marble Falls), 18:31, 18, Isaac Vega (Burnet), 18:55, 26, Jahir Garcia (Marble Falls), 19:25, 27, Austin Moore (Burnet), 19:30, 38, Jose Flores (Burnet), 19:54, 53, Hector Vega (Burnet), 20:08, 48, Christopher Hernandez (Burnet), 20:23, 60, Santiago Gaytan (Marble Falls), 21:07, 82, Connor Yaklin (Marble Falls), 22:31

GIRLS

Varsity

3, Asah Roy (Burnet), 12:52, 24, Sapana Kahtri (Marble Falls), 14:29, 28, Kamila Palacios (Burnet), 14:50 (new personal best), 31 Erica Flores (Burnet), 14:55, 32, Katerina Moseley (Marble Falls), 14:55, 33, Abby Bennight (Burnet), 14:57, 36, Josie McDavid (Burnet), 15:02, 48, Breken Langley (Burnet), 15:15, 53, Brooklyn Flores (Burnet), 15:23, 54, Graci Nelson (Marble Falls), 15:28, 58, Savannah Hamblin (Marble Falls), 15:36, 67, Hadalye Hernandez (Marble Falls), 16:09, 69, Sonoma Damuth (Marble Falls), 16:21, 77, Abigail Henderson (Marble Falls), 17:41