Freshman places 14th individually in boys meet
Robert Perea, The Fernley Reporter
Competing in its first State Meet since 1895, the Fernley girls cross country team placed sixth overall last Saturday at the Shadow Mountain Sports Complex in Sparks, while freshman Kael Paz earned a top 15 finish and second-team All-State honors.
The girls team finished with 115 total points. Spring Creek won the meet with 50 points, while Moapa Valley was second with 66. Truckee finished third, South Tahoe fourth and Somerset Sky Pointe was fifth. Behind the Vaqueros, Pahrump was seventh and Rancho came in eighth.
The morning started off with a mini send-off by the runners’ parents and the Fernley High School Dance Team.
“Bigs thanks to Coach Tey’ana Peterson and the dance team and to the cross country parents for their support all season,” coach Todd Wright said.
The State course was the same course from the regional meet the previous week, and each of the Fernley runners, Myla Bott, Trinity Garcia-Anders, Laila Kinnick, Lilly Bacock, Kori Scott, Cora Maldonado, and Sasha Smith, ran a faster time at State.
“They ran smart from the beginning and were able to move up in the race during the final mile,” Wright said.
Garcia-Anders was the first runner to cross the finish line for the Fernley girls, placing 22nd overall with a time of 23:04. Bott was close behind, finishing 26th with a time of 23:29. Bacock was the 44th runner to finish with her time of 25:20, and she was followed to the finish by Scott, in 45th place with a time of 25:33. Maldonado finished 54th in 27:43 and Smith was 60th in 29:59.
“The team has really bonded, and they were honored to be the first Fernley girls team to race at State since 1985,” Wright said.
The girls wrote 1985 on one calf and 2021 on the other.
“Made up of three juniors and four sophomores, the FHS girls team will be back next year with loftier goals,” Wright said.
In the boys race, freshman Kael Paz ran an 18:29 to place 14th. With that placing, he earned second team All-State.
“This is the best freshman season a Fernley High School cross country runner has had in many, many years,” Wright said
Rylan Roth placed 18th with a time of 18:48.
“Qualifying and competing at the State meet was a great way to cap four years of high school cross country,” Wright said. “I’ve had the pleasure of watching Rylan grow, not only in running, in all aspects of his life.”
The cross country team is hosting a 5K and 2.5K run to raise funds for the program on Thanksgiving morning, on the same course the team uses for its home meets.
"The cross country program would greatly appreciate the community’s support at our first ever Turkey Trot fundraiser run on Thanksgiving morning at the FHS track," Wright said. "Thank you for your support!"
See the registration form below for all the details.
Photos courtesy of Tony Erquiaga and Todd Wright
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