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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Sports
Thursday, February 24, 2000
Eagles seek titles at first-ever 4A finals
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Feb. 24, 2000 -- Before they even competed at the Region I-4A
swim meet in Lubbock two weeks ago, the Pecos Eagles pretty much knew how
things would come out overall, since they had faced all of their regional
rivals at regular season meets.
Things will be different on Friday and Saturday, when the Eagles will
compete in Austin against schools from all across Texas, in the first-ever
UIL Class 4A Swimming and Diving Championships at the University of Texas
at Austin.
Eight Pecos boys qualified for the state finals, led by senior Kevin
Bates, who is seeded first in both the 50 and 100 yard freestyle races
going into Friday's 10:30 a.m. preliminaries at the University of Texas
Aquatic Center.
"They've really looked pretty good, and t hey say they feel good," said
Eagles' coach Terri Morse. "They're healthy and seem rested, so I see now
reason why we can't go as fast as we did at regionals, or a little faster
in a faster pool."
Bates had the fastest time of the 16 state qualifiers in both events
at the regional meet in Lubbock, with a 21.69 time in the 50 freestyle
and a 48.27 effort in the 100 free. Pecos' three boys relay teams were
also seeded in the Top 8 going into the preliminaries, with the Top 6 advancing
to Saturday's finals and the next six earning berths in the consolation
finals. A total of 16 swimmers or relay teams are entered in each event.
But while Morse said she expected her swimmers to improve on their times,
she also expected the other schools to post better times this weekend.
"I would think that schools that have a number of swimmers there will
cut their times. Highland Park, and Texarkana on the boys' side I expect
will cut their times," Morse said, while adding that teams in the most
competitive districts, around the Dallas, Houston and Austin areas, may
have had to work harder at regionals to earn a trip to Austin.
"They may not cut their times as much if they had to taper for regionals.
They may just cut them a little bit," she said. "But I feel like if they're
going for the team championship and have a shot at it, they will cut their
times."
Pecos did have a chance to see most of the teams they'll face at state
last year, in a practice Class 4A state meet at Temple. Texarkana's boys
and Highland Park's girls won that meet, with the Eagles placing sixth
on the boys' side and 13th on the girls' side. Going into the
state meet, Morse said Pecos was again sixth on the boys' side, based on
regional times.
The girls, meanwhile, will have only one swimmer in Austin, junior JoAnn
Wein, who won both the 200 and 500 yard freestyles at regionals. But Wein
is only seeded 15th entering Friday's prelims, meaning she'll
have to cut her times in order to swim again on Saturday.
"I think JoAnn can cut her times. I don't think she's been challenged,"
Morse said. "I think with someone else neck and neck with her, she'll cut
her time.
"She will really have to cut her times to do it (swim on Saturday),
but she might be able to," Morse added.
After Bates, the next best seeding for Pecos is the 200 medley relay
team of Bates, Tye Edwards, Jason Lopez and Cortney Freeman are seeded
third with a 1:43.02 time, behind Cedar Park (1:40.62) and Highland Park
(1:41.64). The 200 yard freestyle relay is seeded seventh and the 400 free
relay team is seeded sixth, though Morse thought Pecos had the best chance
of moving up there, with Freeman replacing Randall Reynolds. He finished
third in the 50 freestyle and second in the 100 free at regionals, but
just missed earning an at-large regional berth.
Reynolds is entered in the 500 freestyle relay, where Morse said he's
seeded 14th while teammate Patrick McChesney is seeded 15th.
Edwards is seeded seventh in the 100-yard backstroke and 11th
in the 100-yard butterfly, Holland is seeded 13th in the 200
individual medley and 14th in the 100 breaststroke and Lopez
is seeded 11th in the 100 breaststroke.
The team was scheduled to leave late this morning for Austin. Morse
said the UT Aquatic Center is located west of Interstate 35 on Martin Luther
King, Jr. Boulevard, just south of the Royal Memorial Stadium on the UT
campus.
Track season opens at Sandhills on Saturday
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Feb. 24, 2000 -- The track season opens this weekend for the
Pecos Eagles, and for the first time in decades, it's not opening in Fort
Stockton.
The Eagles, who've begun their track seasons for years at the Comanche
Relays, will instead be heading up Interstate 20 to Monahans, for the Sandhills
Relays, which are being held in February for the first time.
The meet will run all day on Saturday, and officials there are trying
to make sure it doesn't last as long as the 1999 marathon, which was run
the day before Good Friday and didn't wrap up until after 2 a.m.
Pecos' boys will only have a few competitors at the meet, said coach
Ron Arnesen, while the girls will have 15 entered in the day-long meet,
according to coach Lily Talamantez.
"We've got some grade problems and attendance problems," Arensen said
Wednesday. "Hopefully, they're learning. We'll have quite a few more than
that at or next meet (March 4 in Andrews)."
Only six Eagles _ three in the varsity division and three in the junior
varsity division _ will be entered in Monahans. Arensen said seniors Len
Carson and Jason Payne would run in the 200, 400 and 800-meter runs, while
junior Daniel Terrazas will be entered in the 200 and 400 meters. In the
field events, Carson will be entered in the pole vault, Payne in the high
jump and Terrazas in the discus.
Carson qualified for regionals in the pole vault last season, while
Terrazas advanced to regionals in the 400-meter relay.
The girls qualified their 1600-meter relay team for regionals last year,
and also have back one other regional qualifier, Maricela Arenivas in the
long jump.
Talamantez said on Saturday, the Eagles would run Yvette Barreno, Jessica
Rodriguez, Christina Arenivas and Mindy Harrison on the 1600-meter team,
while Philonicus Fobbs would run with Barreno, Arenivas and Harrison on
the 400-meter relay team.
"In the sprint relay we have three coming back, although we did lose
one to grades," Talamantez said.
She said some of the girls just came out this week, and a decision on
where they would run was not made until Wednesday's workouts.
Rodriguez, Maricela Arenivas and Desirae Tercero would be entered in
the 100 meter dash; Fobbs and Christina Arenivas in the 200; Tercero, Michelle
Romo and Abby Romo in the 400; and Harrison, Kelsey Holt and Nicole Payne
in the 800. Holt would also be tried in the mile and two-mile races, while
Payne and Beatrice Villarreal would be in the mile run.
In the field events, Talamantez said Stephanie Camacho, Crissy Rodriguez
and Alexandra Vasquez would be in the shot put, while Camacho, Vasquez
and Helena Pendleton will compete in the discus. Both Arenivases and Fobbs
would be entered in the long jump, while Fobbs, Stephanie Arreguy and Sarah
Marquez would be in the high jump, and Harrison, Barreno and Shanna Tredaway
would be in the triple jump, though Talamantez said Tredaway would miss
this weekend's relays.
"This week we won't have any hurdlers. They're going to a big conformation,
and Shanna is going to the state swim meet," Talamantez said.
Pecos' baseball opener delayed
PECOS, Feb. 24, 2000 -- The Pecos Eagles baseball team, which already had
its final pre-season scrimmage canceled, will see their regular season
opener delayed by one day, Eagles' coach Bubba Williams said Wednesday.
Pecos was scheduled to open the 2000 varsity baseball season at home
Friday night with a game against the Monahans Loboes. But the game has
been changed to Saturday afternoon in Monahans in order to avoid a conflict
with the Loboes' Class 3A playoff match-up against Dimmitt on Friday in
Lamesa.
The Eagles already were scheduled to face the Loboes in Monahans at
1 p.m. on Saturday, and that will now be the first game of a doubleheader,
with Game 2 set for about a 3:30 p.m. start. The Eagles opened last season
with a home doubleheader sweep of Monahans.
Pecos' home opener will now be next Tuesday, against the Kermit Yellowjackets.
The Eagles had been scheduled to scrimmage Kermit on Feb. 15, but that
was canceled due to the death of the Jackets' first baseman, Omar Gallardo,
on Feb. 13 from an aneurysm.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
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Copyright 2000 by Pecos Enterprise
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