Hudson Cross Country: Racing Into A Great Year
Kristina Johnson
On Friday, August 26, Hudson’s Cross Country team began their season at the largest meet in Texas: The Friday Night Lights Woodlands XC Invitational, held at the Bear Branch Park in The Woodlands, Texas. After almost a full week of rain beforehand, the course was muddy and slick, but that didn’t stop Hudson’s runners from performing well!
Gerardo Rodriguez, who placed 12th in his race of almost 200 competitors, says of the race, “It was a really good way to start the season, as now we got all of the jitters out of the way after being done with a huge race.” Christina Hernandez, who placed 14th in the girl’s varsity A race, agrees with Rodriguez, saying, “I think the race eased the tension and nerves that comes with racing, so that was great for any new freshman!”
The race mainly consisted of 5A and 6A schools, including local schools such as Lufkin and Central. The high school division of the race was split into varsity A and B for both girls and boys. Hudson’s teams, with the exception of Christina Hernandez, competed in the varsity B category. Rodriguez says that, “The competition was really tough, like always, with it being a meet that big, and there’s always more room for improvement in the next races to come.”
Hudson’s success against faster and more intense competition was a strong start to what the teams believe to be a fantastic upcoming season. Rodriguez states that, “I’m very excited for this upcoming season. The past two years we’ve come up just short of two state championships, and we have the potential this year to give it another good run. It should be a great season for me and my team.” As for the Lady Hornets, Hernandez says, “I am extremely excited for this season! I’m sure everyone is going to race awesomely in all of the meets and I know there will be plenty of personal records broken this season! Many of the upperclassmen are doing great welcoming the freshman in, so the team is getting along really well! I’m looking forward to seeing everyone improve more than they have already, and I think we have a great shot at winning regionals this year!”
The results were:
Girls: Christina Hernandez, 14th in Varsity A
Natasha Carcano, 38th, Tiffany Vargas, 51st, Mary Beth Ratcliff, 91st, Jocelyn Gonzales,
95th, Stephany Vargas, 116th, Ryleigh Evans, 134th, and Kristina Whiteley, 135th.
Boys: Gerardo Rodriguez, 12th, Cristian Medina, 50th, Ivan Encarnacion, 66th, Ricardo Valdez,
82nd, Cade Rudd, 103rd, Jose Villareal, 105th, and Adam Orlov, 110th.
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