2018 El Paso Spring Sports recap
2018 Spring Sports Recap
The spring sports begin with basketball which actually begins its’ season in the late fall and runs through early March. Other spring sports are baseball, softball, wrestling, swimming, tennis, soccer, track and field, and golf. El Paso area high schools had an outstanding spring season winning team titles and individual titles in most sports. Faith Christian won TAPPS titles in both Basketball and Baseball. El Paso Home School won the SWCAA Basketball Championship. Cathedral continued its dominance in TAPPS Swimming winning its 32 nd state title. Cathedral also won individual championships in Swimming and Track and Field. San Elizario won its second UIL 4A Soccer title as well as individual titles in Track and Field. Hanks High School continued its dominance in 5A Girls Wrestling winning their 5 th consecutive state title as well as several other individual titles. Hanks was not the only school to shine in Wrestling. Several other schools had athletes claim individual titles at the UIL State Wrestling Championships.
Basketball Faith Christian and El Paso Home School win State Championships
El Paso area high schools have a proud tradition in the sport of basketball. El Paso High, Eastwood, Cathedral, Faith Christian Academy, and El Paso Home School have all won state championships in the past. Several other high schools like Bowie, Austin, Andress, and Riverside have made appearances in the Final Four. Andress High School has carried the torch lately making deep play off runs the last few years. The El Paso area public schools had several good teams this past season but the traditional deep play off runs didn’t happen. Two private schools, Faith Christian and El Paso Home School did win state championships in 2018. Here is a recap of the 2017-2018 season:
Private Schools
I will start with the private schools because two of the schools won state championships within their own associations. El Paso Faith Christian Academy has a long, proud tradition in basketball and several other sports, especially baseball where the school’s team has won four straight state championships. Faith Academy has also won several state basketball championships in the 2000’s. Readers should be aware that Faith Academy routinely beats some of the best teams in the El Paso area and has done so for many years. The Lions of 2017-2018 beat Andress, Cathedral, Ysleta, Americas, Riverside, Fabens, and Clint. The only negative that I can find about Faith is that the school keeps changing the associations that it plays in, This year, the Lions competed in TAAPS Division 3. The Academy was 17-3 this season and beat the Highlands 60-37, Abilene Christian 70-51, Calvary Christian 48-43, Yavneh Academy 62-49 and Our Lady of the Hills 69-40 to win the championship. Yavneh Academy was the defending state champion and was previously undefeated before playing Faith Academy. Congratulations to the Lions.
I don’t know much about El Paso Home School other than they compete in the SWCAA and have won that association’s state basketball championship for the past several years. The school’s website states that El Paso Home School has won the title for the past six years. The Panthers were 20-7 this past season and beat Radford 64-52, Harmony Science Academy 50-42, and Radford 74-66 to win the title. Congratulations to the Panthers.
Public Schools
6A Boys
Pebble Hills, Montwood, Coronado, and Americas dominated 6A play during the season. Unfortunately, only Americas was able to win a bi district championship. Americas defeated Frenship 69-60 to advance to the Area round of the playoffs. Tascosa beat Pebble Hills 76-74, Odessa defeated Montwood 59-54, and Permian ousted Coronado 52-38 in othe bi district games.
Americas’ season came to an end the following week in the Area round when they lost to Arlington Bowie 54-34.
5A Boys
Usually two or three schools from the El Paso area 5A schools make deep playoff runs. El Paso schools have played each other in the Regional Quarter Finals the past few years. Such was not the case this season. All El Paso area representatives were eliminated from the state playoff chase by the end of the Quarter Finals.
Bi District action saw Andress beat Hanks 79-60; Canutillo defeated EPHS 65-60; Eastlake topped Chapin 72-61; and Burges defeated Bel Air 88-54.
El Paso teams held their own in Area round. Burges was defeated by Randall 48-43; Amarillo beat Canutillo 40-39; Andress defeated Caprock 72-52; and Eastlake outlasted Palo Duro 68-58.
Both El Paso area teams saw their season’s come to an end in the Quarter Finals. Andress was defeated by Amarillo 44-43 and Eastlake was beaten by Randall 41-39.
4A Boys
The story was much the same for the 4A boys. Bi district action saw Fort Stockton getting by Mountain View 69-43; Clint beat Greenwood 76-55; Andrews beat San Elizario 67-44; and Monahans defeated Fabens 86-61.
Clint was defeated in the Area round by Seminole 51-48.
3A Boys
Tornillo lost its bi district game to Ballinger 63-48.
2A Boys
Anthony has made deep playoff runs the past two seasons but that wasn’t the case this year. Anthony won their bi district game against Smyer 56-41 but lost in the Area round to Forsan 59-49.
6A Girls
Pebble Hills, Eastwood, El Dorado, and Franklin were the El Paso area’s 6A representatives in the state playoffs. Pebble Hills was the only team to win its bi district game when the Trailblazers beat Midland 48-42. Tascosa defeated Eastwood 53-51; Frenship ousted El Dorado 51-42; and Midland Lee beat Franklin 51-45.
Pebble Hills’ season came to an end in the Area round with a 67-47 loss to Arlington Bowie.
5A Girls
Bi district action saw Burges defeating Hanks 47-41; Eastlake beat Chapin 74-72; Bel Air ousted Jefferson 59-34; and Andress topped Parkland 59-55.
All El Paso area teams were defeated in the Area round. Plainview beat Andress 44-42; Amarillo beat Bel Air 69-23; Randall over Burges 54-45; and Canyon topped Eastlake 73-34.
4A Girls
Bi district actions saw Greenwood beating Mountain View 67-25; San Elizario beat Fort Stockton 48-39; Clint defeated Monahans 57-51; and Fabens ousted Pecos 67-59.
Seminole would defeat Fabens 58-41 in the Area round while Levelland beat Clint 88-43.San Elizario lost to Denver City 78-31.
3A Girls
Tornillo beat Grape Creek 45-24 to win its bi district game but lost to Roosevelt 61-44 in the Area round.
El Paso area teams win 2 state championships in basketball.
Baseball Faith Christian wins TAPPS Division IV Class 3A Championship
Private Schools
Faith Christian Academy has been a dominant force in baseball the past few years in the TCAL Athletic Association. The Lions switched to TAPPS in 2018 but the dominance continued. Faith Christian won their fourth straight state championship when they defeated Pasedena First Baptist 9-0 to capture the TAPPS Division IV Class 3A title. Matthew Paz struck out 10 batters and pitched a one hitter to lead the Lions to the title. Robert Frayre hit a two run homerun in the first inning to stake Paz to an early lead. Faith sent ten batters to the plate in the second inning and scored four more runs. The game was essentially over by the end of the second inning. Faith also had playoff victories over Willow Park Trinity Christian 15-0, Dallas Covenant 4-0, and Denton Calvary 7-1.
Public Schools
The only teams to win a UIL baseball championship were the Bowie Bears in 1949 and the Socorro Bulldogs in 2009. That trend would continue in 2018.
6A Baseball
El Paso area teams did well in the bi-district round winning 3 out of 4 series matchups. Franklin defeated Midland by scores of 2-7; 3-1; and 14-0. Socorro advanced to the area round by beating Permian 1-0; 1-5; and 8-6. Coronado beat Frenship 4-5; 4-6; and 4-0. Americas lost its bi-district matchup to Odessa 3-2 and 9-3.
Franklin was the only 6A team to win an Area round matchup. The Cougars defeated Paschal 5-3 and 12-3. Keller defeated Socorro 11-3 and 1-0. Timbercreek beat Coronado 8-7 and 3-0.
Franklin’s playoff run ended in the Regional Quarterfinals when the Cougar’s were defeated by Keller in two straight games 10-1 and 7-3.
5A Baseball
Bi-District action saw Andress defeat Canutillo 10-7 and 4-2; Bel Air ousted Chapin in their best of three matchup by scores of 5-6; 5-4; and 12-5; Eastlake topped Burges in two straight games 3-2 and 3-0; while Bowie defeated Riverside 4-3 and 2-0.
The Area round wasn’t kind to the El Paso are teams. Only Eastlake would advance to the next stage when the Falcons defeated Monterey in two straight games by identical 9-6 scores. Andress was defeated by Lubbock Coronado 14-2 and 17-4; Amarillo beat Bel Air 4-0 and 15-4; while Bowie was ousted in two straight game by Lubbock Cooper 15-0 and 12-4.
Lubbock Cooper would end Eastlake’s playoff run the following week in two straight games 6-0 and 2-1.
4A Baseball
All the El Paso 4A representatives were eliminated in their Bi District matchups. Pecos defeated Mountain View; Andrews ousted Clint; Monahans beat San Elizario; and Greenwood topped Fabens.
3A Baseball
Tornillo was defeated by Reagan in their bi-district matchup
2A Baseball
Anthony and Fort Hancock had byes in the bi district round but both were eliminated in the Area round. Anthony lost to Albany while Fort Hancock was defeated by Deleon.
Softball
No El Paso area team has ever won a championship in softball and that trend would unfortunately continue in 2018.
6A Softball
Coronado would be the only team to advance out of the Bi District stage of the playoffs when the Thunderbirds defeated Midland 2-1. Odessa beat Socorro in two straight games 12-2 and 7-6; Frenship ousted Montwood in two straight 11-3 and 12-2; Permian topped Americas in a best of three series by scores of 7-12; 12-4; and 11-0.
Coronado would see their season end in the Area round when the T-Birds were defeated by Abilene in two straight games 8-1 and 6-4.
5A Softball
Bi-District action aw Hanks defeat Burges; Bel Air beat Andress; Eastlake topped Jefferson; and Chapin ousted Canutillo. Eastlake would win its Area round matchup against Lubbock Coronado winning two straight games 4-3 and 13-3. Lubbock Cooper ousted Chapin in three games 1-0; 4-2; and 5-0. Canyon beat Bel Air inn two straight 10-2 and 4-1
Lubbock Coronado eliminated Eastlake from the playoffs in the Regional Quarter Finals in two straight games 6-3 and 7-4.
4A Softball
All the El Paso 4A representatives were eliminated in their Bi District matchups. Fort Stockton defeated San Elizario; Greenwood ousted Fabens in two straight games; Monahans beat Clint; and Andrews topped Mountain View.
2A Softball
Forsan defeated Anthony in their Bi-District matchup.
El Paso area teams won 1 state championship in baseball.
Soccer San Elizario Wins Class 4A State Championship
El Paso area teams have always excelled in the soccer state playoffs. Cathedral, Coronado, Del Valle, and San Elizario have all won state championships in the past. San Elizario, under the leadership of Coach Max Sappenfield, won the UIL 4A title two years ago and the Eagles repeated the feat in 2018. Yes, San Elizario is once again the 4A state champions.
The Eagles finished the season with a 22-5 record including 6 straight playoff wins where San Elizario played smothering defense not allowing a single goal and scoring 15 themselves. The Eagles started the playoffs by beating Hirschi 4-0 in the Area round following a bye in the Bi-District stage. San Elizario then defeated Decatur 5-0 in the Quarter Finals and Life Oak Cliff 2-0 in the Regional Semi-Finals. Eric Valdez scored the winning goal in double overtime to give San Elizario a 1-0 victory over Bridgeport in the Regional Finals. The Eagles then defeated Madisonville 2-0 in the State Semi Finals setting up their title match against Palestine. Palestine came into the match as defending state champions with a 35-0 record. Martin Rodriguez scored the winning goal to give the Eagles a thrilling 1-0 victory and their second 4A state championship in the last three years. Congratulations to Coach Sappenfield and the Eagles.
Several other teams had outstanding seasons and deep playoff runs. Here is a rundown of the 2018 Boys and Girls soccer seasons in all classifications:
6A Boys
Bi District Matches
Montwood 3 Midland 1; Socorro 2 Odessa 0; Frenship 4 El Dorado 2; Eastwood 2 Midland 0
Area Round
Socorro 2 Sam Houston 1; Montwood 2 Keller 1; Eastwood 3 Arlington 1
Quarter Finals
Montwood 1 Socorro 0; Frenship 4 Eastwood 2
Regional Semi Finals
Montwood 2 Irving 2 Irving advances on penalty kicks.
5A Boys
Bi-District
Del Valle 2 Austin 1; Eastlake 1 Irvin 0; Jefferson 3 Bel Air 2; Bowie 1 Riverside 0
Area Round
Del Valle 1 Monterey 0; Eastlake 3 Palo Duro 2; Caprock 3 Jefferson 1; Bowie 2 Abilene Cooper 0
Quarter Finals
Del Valle 2 Eastlake 1; Bowie 2 Caprock 1
Regional Semi Finals
Del Valle 1 Rider 0; Aledo 3 Bowie 2
Regional Finals
Aledo 3 Del Valle 3 Aledo advances on penalty kicks
On a side note: Two El Paso area teams were eliminated from the playoffs on penalty kicks. Montwood and Del Valle were both defeated by this archaic method of deciding soccer matches. I know that penalty kicks are part of the game that decide matches after overtime has been played but it is unfair to put all the pressure on the goal keeper to stop a penalty kick. It is a 50-50 chance to stop the kick and it ends up making the goal keeper the scape goat for losing a match. Please decide the game on the field no matter how many overtimes that it takes to reach a decision.
4A Boys
I have already described San Elizario’s run to another state title. Here is the rest of the 4A playoff picture:
Bi District
Mountain View 7 Estacado 0; Clint 1 Borger 1 (Clint wins 4-2 in shootout) ; San Elizario Bye
Area
Stephenville 5 Mountain View 1; Bridgeport 4 Clint 0; San Elizario 4 Hirschi 0
Quarter Finals
San Elizario 5 DeCatur 0
Regional Semi Finals
San Elizario 2 Life Oak Cliff 0
Regional Finals
San Elizario 1 Bridgeport 0 2 ovetimes
Championships
San Elizario 2 Madisonville 0; San Elizario 1 Palestine 0
Girls Soccer
6A Girls
Bi District
Franklin 1 Midland 0; Odessa 3 Coronado 0; Frenship 4 Eastwood 0; El Dorado 2 Permian 1
Area
Keller 2 El Dorado 1; Mansfield 1 Franklin 0
5A Girls
Bi District
Burges 2 Eastlake 3; Andress 5 Canutillo 3; Jefferson 4 Del Valle 3; EPHS 2 Bel Air 1
Area
Abilene Cooper 4 Jefferson 3; Monterey 2 EPHS 1; Lubbock Coronado 6 Eastlake 2; Amarillo 1 Andress 0
4A Girls
Bi District
Pampa 6 Mountainview 0; Estacado 3 Clint 0; San Elizario Bye
Area
San Elizario 0 Wylie 0 Wylie advances on shootout 4-3
TAPPS Soccer
Cathedral 3 Nolan 0; St. Thomas Catholic 1 Cathedral 0
El Paso area schools won 1 team state championship in soccer.
Track and Field Michael Abeyta, Edwin Gomez, Ian Smith, Brandon Seagraves win gold medals at UIL and TAPPS State Championships
No El Paso area team has ever won a Track and Field state championship. That is still true at the end of the 2018 season. There were no state team championships but there were several individuals who won gold medals at the UIL and TAPPS state meets. There were also several other individuals that bought home silver or bronze medals and others that competed very well at their state meet.
Michael Abeyta of Hanks High School finished in first place in 5A 800 meter run in a time of 1:53.38. Abeyta also brought home a silver medal in the 5A 3200 meter run with a time of 9:15.50 and another silver medal in the 5A 1600 meter run with a time of 4:16.53.
Edwin Gomez of San Elizario had an outstanding meet at the 4A classification. Gomez won two gold medals in the 1600 meter run with a time of 4:23.14 and the 3200 meter run with a time of 9:38.79.
A pair of Cathedral runners brought home a total of three gold medals for the Irish at the TAPPS Class 6A State Meet. Brandon Seagraves won gold in 1600 meter run with a time of 4:26.05 and the 3200 meter run with a time of 9:29.0. Ian Smith won the TAPPS 800 meter run with a time of 1:57.85.
There were several other individuals who won silver and bronze medals. Grant Levesque of Coronado finished 3 rd in the 6A Pole Vault with a jump of 16 feet and 6 inches. Coronado’s Jaeger-Darakjy finished third in the 6A Girls 800 meter run with a time of 2:12.73. Aaron Gilliam of Irvin High School finished 3 rd behind Michael Abeyta in the 5A 3200 meter run with a time of 9:24.24.Milos Rios of Eastlake took 2 nd place in the 5A High Jump with a jump of 6 feet and 8 inches. Burges High School’s Itzel Alcantar finished in 4 th place in the 5A Girls 800 meter run in 2:14.80 and 5 th in the 1600 meter run with a time of 5:02.99. Eva Jess of Franklin finished in 5 th place in the 6A Girls 3200 meter run with a time of 10:50.32. Garrett Stokes of Burges finished in 6 th place in the 5A Shot Put with a throw of 51 feet 9 and a quarter inches. Infant Jones of Parkland finished in 5 th place in the 5A 300 meter Hurdles with a time of 38.62 seconds. Daniel Amaya of Tornillo finished in 5 th place in the 3A 3200 meter run and in 4 th place in the 3A 1600 meter run with times of 9:47.45 and 4:28 respectively.
The Hanks High School boys team finished the 5A state meet in 7 th place The San Elizario boys team finished in 9 th place at the 4a state meet. Cathedral finished in 7 th place at the TAPPS 6A meet.
El Paso area athletes won 6 individual gold medals in Track and Field
Tennis Coronado and Franklin Dominate 6A; Jefferson, EPHS, Chapin Control 1-5A; Bel Air, Riverside, Eastlake, Hanks, and Horizon Take 2-5A District Honors; Fort Hancock Girls Doubles Team Finishes 2 nd at State Tournament.
The one shining moment for El Paso area tennis teams at the 2018 UIL State Tournament was provided by a team to the east of El Paso. Fort Hancock’s 2-5A Girls Doubles team of Miranda Galindo and Jenna Aguilar won the silver medal at the state meet. The state tournament was no stranger to Galindo and Aguilar as they had finished in fourth place in 2016. The Fort Hancock girls defeated Madalynn Woelfel and Weslynn Boatright of Thrall 6-4 and 6-2 in their first match of the state tournament. They then defeated Shelly Gerner and Ellery Martin of Blue Ridge 6-2; 3-6; and 6-2 in the State Semi Finals. Galindo and Aguilar’s quest for a title came up short as they lost the deciding match to Mason High School’s Kate Gillespie and Reagan Glentz 7-5 and 6-2. Congratulations to Miranda Galindo and Jenna Aguilar for their second place finish in 2-5A Girls Doubles.
El Paso area high schools had high hopes entering the UIL Regional playoffs. Coronado and Franklin both had experience players. Jefferson had just won its first ever spring district tennis title. El Paso High and Chapin both had an outstanding District 1-5A Tournament while Bel Air, Riverside, Hanks, Eastlake, and Horizon could say the same in District 2-5A. The high expectations generated by the various district tournaments faded in Regional play. No individual player or team survived the weekend to advance to the state tournament the following week.
The story in 1-5A tennis was the girls singles match. Jefferson team-mates Jia Diau and Katrina Aguila played each other for the district title. Their story is similar to the story of Franklin’s Sebastian Herrera and Coronado’s David Cenk during last year’s singles match in 6A. Diau and Aguila are good friends and have built up quite a rivalry. The two battled it out for three sets and then a deciding tie breaker. Diau would take top honors by winning 2-6; 6-3; 7-6; and 8-6 in the tie breaker. Both would make the trip to Regionals.
In other 1-5A action:
Boys Singles: Rohan Kamath Chapin defeated Jacob Maese 6-3 and 6-4
Boys Doubles John Jay and Juan Pablo Munoz of EPHS won the title
Girls Singles Jia Diau Jefferson defeated Katrina Aguila Jefferson 2-6; 6-3; 7-6; and 8-6 tb
Girls Doubles Karla Ramos and Sophia Sapien of EPHS won the ttile
Mixed Doubles Cesar Gallardo and Caprice Huitron of Chapin won the title.
Jefferson won the girls team title while EPHS won the boys team title. It was Jefferson’s first ever district team title in Spring tennis.
In 2-5A action:
Boys Singles Mario Gallinar of Bel Air won the title
Boys Doubles David Lopez and Jalen Thomas of Horizon won the title
Girls Singles Denise Melendez of Horizon won the title
Girls Doubles Meagan Vasquez and Evelyn De La Cruz of Hanks won the title
Mixed Doubles Adriana Hinojos and Daniel Vidaurri of Riverside won the title
Bel Air edged out Riverside for Boys Team title while Eastlake, Horizon, and Hanks finished in a three way tie for the Girls Team title
6A Tennis
Coronado and Franklin continued their strangle-hold on 6A tennis winning all the district honors:
Boys Singles Sebastian Herrera of Franklin repeated as district champion
Girls Singles Isabella Sambrano won the title
Boys Doubles David Cenk and Nickolas Spurbeck of Coronado won the title
Girls Doubles Elissa Perches and Andrea Andujo of Coronado took the title
Mixed Doubles Ethan Katz and Skyler Stogner of Coronado won the title.
I couldn’t find much information on Regional play but I do know that no one from 5A or 6A qualified for the state tournament.
San Elizario’s Carlos Munoz won his opening round match at the 4A regionals defeating Angel Alaniz of Pecos in boys singles 7-6; 6-1. Munoz would lose his Quarter Finals match to Burkburnett’s Marius Kleckner 6-2 and 6-2. Julie Sotelo of Clint dropped her opening match to Danielle Rangel of Perryton 6-2 and 6-3. In the 2A Regionals Wink’s CJ Mercier and Jonah Smith defeated Mount Enterprise’s Courtney Parsley and Jase Bell in Mixed Doubles 6-1 and 6-2. They would lose to Cason Dudley and Ryli Ruffin of Mason 6-2 and 6-2 in their next match.
Medal CountTennis one silver medal
Golf Eastwood and EPHS dominate Local Golf Scene
Coronado High School use to be the dominant force in El Paso area golf. The T-Birds even won a state championship in 1992. The Thunderbird dominance would appear to be over, at least in 2018. Eastwood was the dominant 6A team in both boys and girls golf. El Paso High was the winner in 1-5A in both boys and girls golf. The Eastlake boys won the 2-5A crown while the Hanks took the 2-5A title in girls golf.
6A Golf
Boys
1 st 2 day total 610
2 nd Coronado
Top Individuals Alex Delgadillo Eastwood 149 and Nick Myers Eastwood 150
Girls
1 st Eastwood A Team 2 day total 650
2 nd Eastwood B Team 686
Top individuals Valeria Enriquez Eastwood 157 2 day total and Amanda Portillo Eastwood 162
5A Golf
1-5A Boys
1 st EPHS 783
2 nd Burges 807
Top Individual Trey Turner EPHS 161 and Blaise Solem Andress 171
1-5A Girls
1 st EPHS 908
2 nd Chapin 975
Top Individual Isabella Armendariz EPHS 180
2-5A Boys
1 st Eastlake 766
2 nd Del Valle 772
Top Individuals Roman Guerrero Del Valle 161 and Ethan Jasso Del Valle 170
2-5A Girls
1 st Hanks 812
2 nd Eastlake 892
Top Individuals Natalie Sanchez Eastlake 170
No El Paso area golfers or teams qualified for the state tournament after Regional play. Eastwood’s boys team was the top El Paso team at Regionals finishing 10 th while Coronado’s boys team finished in 14 th place. Alex Delgadillo finished tied for 30 th place and team mate Nick Myers finished tied for 42 nd place.
Swimming Cathedral wins 30 th Straight TAPPS Division I Title and 32 nd Overall; El Paso Public Schools Have Outstanding Year
Cathedral High School continued its dominance of TAPPS Division I swimming by winning its 32 nd overall state championship and extended their winning streak to 30 straight TAPPS or TCIL swimming titles. Cathedral swimmers won 3 individual gold medals and 2 relay gold medals racking up 190 points to easily out distance second place finisher St. Thomas’ 128 points. Irish swimmers also brought home two silver medals and two bronze medal to add to their over flowing trophy cases. Connor White won two individual gold medals and was part of two gold medal relay teams. Luis Reynoso was the other gold medal winner for Cathedral.
Gold Medal Winning Individuals or Relay Teams
Connor White 200 yard Free Style 1:4463
Connor White 500 yard Free Style 4:42.41
Luis Reynoso 100 yard Backstroke 52.21 seconds
200 yard Medley Relay 1:40.77 Connor White, Jose Guillot, Luis Reynoso, Blake Assi
400 yard Free Style Relay 3:16.53 Xavier Navarro, Manuel Armenta, Connor White, Luis Reynoso
Silver Medal Winners
Luis Reynoso 50 yard Free Style 22.02 seconds
200 yard Free Style Relay Xavier Navarro, Pablo Vega, Skylar Agan, Blake Assi
Bronze Medal Winners
Manuel Armenta 100 yard Butterfly
Xavier Navarro 100 yard Free Style
Other Cathedral Swimmers not mentioned above that scored points or swam at the state meet:
Pablo Vega, Adrian Prieto, Jose Guillot, Vicinte Lopez, David Delgado, Alejandro Cos, Daniel Rivera
Loretto Academy finished in 9 th place at the TAPPS Division I state meet scoring a total of 42 points. Celeste Hirschi finished 7 th in the 200 yard Free Style. Mary Furlong finished in 6 th place in the 200 yard Individual Medley while Luissa Rivera finished 15 th in the same event. Mary Furlong finished in 6 th place in the 100 yard Butterfly while team-mate Analisa Cortez finished in 16 th place in the same event. Celeste Hirschi finished 5 th in the 500 yard Free Style. Loretto’s 400 yard Free Style relay team finished in 4 th place. Relay members were Mary Furlong, Luissa Rivera, Paulina Quiroz, and Celeste Hirschi.
Public Schools
The El Paso area public schools also had an outstanding season in the pools although no UIL State Meet medals were won. El Paso area swimmers did very well locally and at the various Regional swim meets. Here is a summary of the 2018 swimming season:
District Competition
1-6A Boys
1 st Eastwood ; 2 nd Franklin; 3 rd Coronado; 4 th Montwood
1-6A Girls
1 st Eastwood; 2 nd Franklin; 3 rd Coronado; 4 th Americas
1-5A Boys
1 st EPHS; 2 nd Burges; 3 rd Jefferson; 4 th Chapin
1-5A Girls
1 st EPHS; 2 nd Jefferson; 3 rd Chapin; 4 th Andress
2-5A Boys
1 st Hanks; 2 nd Del Valle; 3 rd Eastlake; 4 th Bel Air
2-5A Girls
1 st Hanks; 2 nd Eastlake; 3 rd Del Valle; 4 th Ysleta
Regional Competition
El Paso area teams and individual swimmers performed very well at the Regional meet. El Paso High probably was the best of the El Paso area teams as the Tigers finished second in the team standings in both the boy’s and girl’s competitions. El Paso High also qualified many individuals for the state meet. Here is a breakdown of the 5A and 6A Regional meets:
5A Girls Meet
200 yard Medley Relay EPHS 1 st Place (Rebecca Perez, Isabella Valles, Natalia Villa, and Emily Lugo) 1:52.48
200 yard Free Style Natalia Villa EPHS 1 st place 1:58.75
200 yard Individual Medley Andi Acosta Jefferson 1 st place 2:10.70
100 yard Free Style Natalia Villa EPHS 1 st place 53.78 seconds
200 yard Free Style Relay EPHS 2 nd place (Emily Lugo, Emma Perez, Cassandra Wagoner, Mackenzie Tovar) 1:43.45
100 yard Breaststroke Andi Acosta Jefferson 1 st place 1:06.44
100 yard Breaststroke Isabella Valles EPHS 2 nd place1:10.91
400 yard Free Style Relay EPHS 2 nd place (Emily Lugo, Emma Perez, Mackenzie Tovar, Natalia Villa)
5A Girls Team Standings 1) Lubbock 2) EPHS 6) Jefferson 11 th ) Hanks 13 th Del Valle 15 th ) Ysleta 16 th ) Andress 17 th ) Eastlake 20 th ) Bel Air
5A Boys Meet
200 yard Medley Relay EPHS 1 st place (Adrian Aguirre, Branson Baca, Kevin Bohls, Vincent Pedregon) 1:38.72
200 yard Free Style Armando Flores Bel Air 1 st place 1:45.59
200 yard Individual Medley Vittorio Kirken EPHS 2 nd 1:59.94
100 yard Butterfly Armando Flores Bel Air 1 st place 51.02 seconds
100 yard Butterfly Mohammad Abdeljaber EPHS 2 nd place 52.09 seconds
500 yard Free Style Roberto Griffith EPHS 2 nd 4:58.07
200 yard Free Style Relay EPHS 1 st place (Branson Baca, Roberto Grifith, Vittorio Kirken, Mohammad Abdeljaber) 1:29. 57
100 yard Breaststroke Adrian Aguirre EPHS 1 st 52.95 seconds
100 yard Breaststroke Branson Baca EPHS 2 nd 1:00.27
400 yard Free Style Relay EPHS 1 st (Roberto Griffith, Vincent Pedregon, Vittorio Kirken, Mohammad Abdeljaber)
5A Boys Team Standings 2) EPHS 10 th ) Del Valle 13 th ) Bel Air 14 th ) Jefferson 15 th ) Hanks 16 th ) Chapin 17 th ) Eastlake 18 th ) Burges 19 th ) Irvin
All the above mentioned swimmers and relay teams qualified for the state meet.
6A Regional Meet The 6A schools didn’t have quite the results that the 5A schools had but several swimmers did qualify for the state meet:
Rose Barakat of Coronado qualified in two events. She finished in first place in the 100 yard Breaststroke (1:05.81) and in second place in the 50 yard Free Style (24.23 seconds)
Airam Olivia-Aun Franklin won the 100 yard Buuter Fly (59.13 seconds)
Lauren Melendez Eastwood 2 nd place 100 yard Butterfly (59.37 seconds)
Omar Torres Eastwood 1 st place 100 yard Free Style (46.1 seconds)
State Swim Meet
El Paso area swimmers didn’t win any medals at the state meet but there were some very good performances.
5A Schools
Boys
EPHS 200 yard Medley Relay 5 th place (Aguirre, Baca, Kirken, Abdeljaber)
EPHS 200 yard Free Style 11 th place (Baca, Kirken, Abdeljaber, Pedregon)
Branson Baca EPHS 8 th place 100 yard Breaststroke
Mohammad Abdeljaber EPHS 12 th place 100 yard Butterfly
Vittorio Kirken EPHS 12 th 200 yard IM
Armando Flores Bel Air 10 th 200 yard Free Style and 10 th 100 yard Butterfly
Girls
EPHS 200 yard Free Style Relay 4 th place (Villa, Lugo, Perez, Tovar)
Natalia Villa 13 th 100 yard Butterfly
EPHS 400 yard Free Style relay 11 th place (Villa, Lugo, Tovar, Perez)
Andi Acosta Jefferson 8 th 200 yard IM and 10 th 100 yard Breaststroke
EPHS Girls team finished in 16 th place while Jefferson girls finished 37 th
EPHS Boys team finished in 14 th place while Bel Air boys finished 34th
6A Schools
Rose Barakat Coronado 16 th 50 yard Freestyle and 12 th 100 yard Breaststroke
Omar Torres Eastwood 12 th 100 yard Free Style
Coronado Girls team finished in 42 place
Eastwood Boys team finished in 50 th place
El Paso Area Swimmers Named to All State Team
It was a very good 2018 season for El Paso area swimmers. The following athletes were named to the Texas Interscholastic Swim Coaches All State Team:
6A
Rose Barakat Coronado 2 events
Omar Torres Eastwood
5A
Mackenzie Tovar EPHS
Natalia Villa EPHS 2 events
Andi Acosta Jefferson 2 events
EPHS girls 200 yard Free Style Relay
EPHS girls 400 yard Free Style Relay
Roberto Griffith EPHS
Adrian Aguirre EPHS
Branson Baca EPHS
Vittorio Kirken 2 events
Mohammad Abdeljaber EPHS
Armando Flores Bel Air
EPHS boys 200 yard Free Style Relay
EPHS boys 400 yard Free Style Relay
TAPPS
Celeste Hirschi Loretto Academy 2 events
Mary Furlong Loretto Academy
400 yard Relay Loretto Academy
Luis Reynoso Cathedral 2 events
Xavier Navarro Cathedral 2 events
Connor White Cathedral 2 events
Manuel Armenta Cathedral
Cathedral 200 yard Free Style Relay
Cathedral 200 yard Medley Relay
Cathedral 400 yard Free Style Relay
El Paso area swimmers on 1 state championships and 5 gold medals in individual or relay events.
Wrestling Hanks Girls Win 5 th Straight 5A Title and El Paso area Wrestlers Shine at State Meet
Girls Wrestling
The Hanks High School girls wrestling team has become a 5A dynasty. The Lady Knights scored 155.5 points to win their 5 th straight UIL 5A Wrestling Championship. Victoria Nunez won a gold medal at 102 pounds. Isabella Gonzalez won a gold medal at 119 pounds. Angelina Baltazar won a silver medal at 128 pounds while Annette Enciso (110 pounds), Sarah Martinez (95 pounds), and Jadyn Sayre Adona (165 pounds) all brought home bronze medals. Victoria Hinojo finished in 5 th place at 148 pounds. Congratulations to the Hanks Lady Knights.
Hanks was not the only 5A girls team that did well. Diana Cavey of Chapin finished second at 102 pounds. Kaylee Romo of Burges was 5 th at the same weight classification. Melissa De Los Santos of Irvin finished in 5 th place at 110 pounds. Miah Kline of Bel Air was third at 128 pounds. Zoe Hankins of Parkland was 5 th at 185 pounds. Marlene Avila of Fabens won a gold medal at 110 pounds.
El Paso area teams fared quite well at the state meet. Hanks finished 1 st , Bel Air and Chapin finished tied for 22 nd place, Irvin finished in 26 place, and Parkland finished in 28 th place.
The 6A girls also had a good state tournament. Mia Morales of Americas won a bronze medal at 95 pounds. Esther Walker of Montwood was 4 th in the same event. Adrienne Garcia of Americas also won a
bronze medal at 148 pounds. Danielle Saldivar of Eastwood won a silver medal at the 165 pound weight class.
Americas finished the meet in 5 th place with Eastwood coming in at 15 th place and Montwood finishing the meet in 22 nd place.
Boys Wrestling
5A Boys
Christian Hernandez of Bel Air won a gold medal at 145 pounds. Joshua Molinar of Eastlake and Javier Duchene of Del Valle won bronze medals at the 220 pound weight class and 113 pound weight class, respectively. Damian Monreal of Ysleta finished 4 th at 106 pounds, Mason Purvis of Chapin placed 4 th at 120 pounds, Rene Fierro of Eastlake finished in 6 th place at 132 pounds, Elliot Cortes of Del Valle finished in 5 th place at 145 pounds, and Terrance Doyle of Austin was 4 th at 152 pounds
Eastlake was the top El Paso area 5A team finishing the meet in 18 th place. Del Valle finished in 19 th place and Bel Air came in at 23 rd place.
6A Boys
James McClain Green III of Franklin brought home the gold medal at 132 pounds. Tereus Henry of Montwood won a gold medal at the 182 pound weight class. Isaiah Delgado of Eastwood won a silver medal at the 126 pound weight class. Kalob Jewett of Franklin won a bronze medal at 145 pounds. Other 6A wrestlers that had a good meet were Adrian Rodriguez of Franklin finished in 6 th place at 126 pounds, Adrian Zubia of Franklin place 4 th at 138 pounds, David Powers of Franklin was 4 th at 170 pounds and Dominique Varela of Coronado finished in 6 th place at 285 pounds.
Franklin was the El Paso area’s top 6a team finishing in 3 rd place. Montwood finished the meet in 18 th place and Eastwood placed 19 th .
El Paso area wrestlers won a state championship and a total of 6 gold medals, 3 silver medals and 8 bronze medals.
The Final Count For the 2017-2018 School Year
It was a good year for El Paso area high schools. I counted 8 state championships and 19 individual or relay titles.
State Championships
Football (1) Cathedral
Cross Country (1) San Elizario
Basketball (2) Faith Christian and El Paso Home School
Baseball (1) Faith Christian
Soccer (1) San Elizario
Swimming (1) Cathedral
Wrestling (1) Hanks Girls
Individual Titles
Cross Country (2) Edwin Gomez San Elizario and Brandon Seagraves Cathedral
Track and Field (6) Edwin Gomez San Elizario 2; Brandon Seagraves Cathedral 2; Ian Smith Cathedral 1; Michael Abeyta Hanks 1
Swimming (5) Cathedral Connor White 2; Luis Reynoso 1; 2 Relay Events
Wrestling (6) Victoria Nunez Hanks; Isabella Gonzalez Hanks; Marlene Avila Fabens; Christian Hernandez Bel Air; James McClain Green iii Franklin; Tereus Henry Montwood
