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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Tuesday, March 4, 2003
Pecos opens 3-4A softball with Presidio
Tougher teams, but shorter trips, were two of the main changes for the
Pecos Eagles' softball team in their move from District 2-4A into District
4-3A this season … except for today.
The Eagles, who closed out their four years in District 2-4A by winning
their final 24 district games, also took first place in the district all
four seasons, which made up for the fact that none of their district rivals
were closer than 175 miles away. This year figures to be far tougher, with
Pecos having to face four other nearby teams _ Monahans, Greenwood, Fort
Stockton and Kermit _ who advanced to the Class 3A playoffs a year ago.
But the other district team, Presidio, figures to be more like some of
the Eagles' 2-4A rivals from the past four seasons. The Eagles will find
out this afternoon, when they take the 160-mile trip south to face the Blue
Devils at 5 p.m., in the 4-3A opener for both teams.
Pecos' scheduled pre-district game against Presidio two weeks ago in Alpine
was canceled, but coach Tammy Walls said she saw the Blue Devils a couple
of days later at the Midland Invitational Tournament.
"They didn't look like the strongest team in the district, but we won't
take them lightly," said Walls, whose team went 2-2 this past weekend at
the Midland Christian Tournament. "We know what we've got to do; it's just
a matter of going out and playing our ballgame. They're a second year team,
so you don't know what to expect."
Pecos lost to Midland Christian and Andrews at the tournament, while defeating
Midland Christian's junior varsity and Fort Stockton. It was the second defeat
of the season for the Eagles to both Mustang squads, and came by 11-0 and
5-1 scores, while the 7-2 win over Fort Stockton came following a 3-1 loss
to the Prowlers the previous weekend.
The Eagles didn't go back for the tournament's final day, Walls said,
because several of her girls were going to compete at the Comanche Relays
in Fort Stockton. "We had worked that out with track before then," she said.
"In order for us to get in some games, we said we'd play Thursday and Friday,
but not go back on Saturday."
The split left Pecos with a 6-7 record going into today's 4-3A opener,
with all the games played on the road. The Eagles will play their first home
game this coming Friday, against Monahans.
Eagles finish 4th, 5th at Comanche Relays
The Pecos Eagle boys placed fourth and Pecos' girls finished fifth this
past Saturday competing against their District 4-3A rivals, plus a couple
of Class 4A teams at the Comanche Relays at Fort Stockton.
Andrews edged El Paso Parkland for first place in the varsity boys division
of the track meet, while Parkland beat Greenwood for first in the girls'
division. Andrews had 135 points to 131 for the Matadors, while Monahans
took third with 100 points to 81 for Pecos, after the Eagles had edged the
Loboes for first the previous Saturday at the West of the Pecos Relays. Greenwood
was in fifth place, finishing with 53 points.
"It was a good meet against better competition, which is what we need,"
said Eagles' coach Jerry Parent, who added that Pecos' main problem was in
the jumping events.
"Jason (Sanchez) wasn't there to split points, but we did all right except
for the jumps, and still got fifth in the high jump," he said. Sanchez, who
also runs in all three relays plus the 400-meter dash, was absent from the
meet, leaving Rashad Terry as the only Eagle to score in any of the jumping
events.
Pecos ended up fourth in both the 400 and 1600-meter relays, and were
sixth in the 800-meter relay. "Peter Juarez did an outstanding job as a freshman"
replacing Sanchez in the 400 relay, Parent said. "The second exchange was
our main problem."
The Eagles did get one first place finish on the day, from Rashad Terry
in the 200-meter dash. The sophomore ran a 22.71 despite slipping off the
blocks at the start, Parent said. Earlier, he placed second to Andrews' Isaac
McQueen in the 100-meter dash.
The Eagles had four other second place finishes at the meet, two from
Genaro Mendoza in the 1600 and 3200-meter runs. Isaiah Juarez was third in
the 3200 meters and later took second place in the 800 meter run, while Jack
Bradley took second place in the 110-meter high hurdles.
Bradley also was fifth in the 300-meter hurdles, and the Eagles' other
point in the running events came in the 400-meter dash, where Alex Orosco
finished sixth.
Aside from Terry's fifth place in the high jump, Pecos picked up one medal
in the field events, as John Parent took third in the discus. In the shot
put, Tony Trujillo placed fourth and Eric Fuentes finished sixth.
On the girls' side the Eagles finished with 45 points, while Parkland
won with 142½ points to 116 for Greenwood. Andrews had 108 points
and Monahans 94 points, while Pecos finished three points ahead of the host
Prowlers.
The girls' point total was almost the exact same as in Pecos the previous
weekend, but the Eagles picked up more of their points in the field events
this time around.
"Stephanie (Herrera) did well and Alessandra (Carrasco) cut almost six
second off her time in the 800," said Eagles' coach Roxie Chavez. Herrera,
who competed in the shot put and discus for the Eagles, placed third in the
shot and second in the discus, with a personal best 125-foot-5¼ throw.
The Eagles picked up one other medal on the day, a third place from Jummy
Akinyode in the 100-meter dash with a 13.34 time. That was slightly slower
than her third place finish in the same event in Pecos the previous Saturday,
and Chavez said overall, "On some things we cut times and on some we didn't.
I'm still working on where we're going to put our girls at."
Akinyode was fifth and Tiana Terry sixth in the 200 meter dash; while
Leslie Rodriguez was fourth in the 1600 meter run and fifth in the 3200 meters;
Jessica Martinez was fifth in the 1600 and Carrasco was fifth in the 800.
In the relays, Pecos finished fourth in the 800 meter relay with Terry, Akinyode,
Serafina Dunlap and Harrison running, while Harrison Carrasco, Jennifer Martinez
and Ashley Dunn were fifth in the 1600 meters.
Chavez said the girls were scheduled to go to the West Texas Relays in
Odessa this weekend, but instead will go to the Van Horn Relays on Saturday.
Pecos' JV boys will also go to Van Horn, while the varsity will run in Odessa
on Friday and Saturday.
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 2003 by Pecos Enterprise
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