El Paso high school sports recaps: 2022-2023
(Courtesy: Charles Hill, El Paso sports historian)
EL PASO, Texas - The 2022-2023 school year has come to a close. So now it is time to take a look back on the athletic accomplishments achieved during the year. A brief look shows:
*Cathedral High School won their 35th TAPPS Division I State Swimming Championship
*Eastwood’s girls win UIL 6A Wrestling Championship
*Eight El Paso area wrestlers win gold medals at the UIL State Wrestling Tournament and 2 others win silver medals Gold medal winners: Jubilee Rendon, Alexis Montes, Erica Cobos, Trebor Moreno, Gavin Ramos, Judith Sandoval, Kellani Guillermo, Leilani Sanchez Silver Medals: Pauline Butler, Ian Abdallah
* El Paso High boys and girls sweep District 1-5A and Region 1-5A Swimming Championships
*El Paso High boys win 2 state relay championships
*Radford swimmer Isaiah Eichel wins school’s first swimming title during TAPPS Division III Championships
*Hanks softball reaches Sweet 16
*Bel Air finishes runner up in 5A Boys Soccer tournament
*San Elizario reaches Final 4 in 4A Boys Soccer tournament
*Ian Uraga finishes runner up in 6A Boy’s Singles
*Daniela Ocaranza reaches state tournament in 5A Girls Singles
*Chapin boys reach Region 1-5A Championship game and finish season 30-7
*Coronado’s Luis Pastor wins a silver medal and bronze medal at UIL 6A Boys Track Meet
*Chapin’s Morgan Little wins bronze medal and qualifies for 4 events at the UIL 5A Girls Track Meet
*Riverside’s Angel Munoz wins 2 bronze medals at Class 4A Track Championships
*Long time Hanks wrestling coach, Anthony Carter, retires after winning 6 state championships from 2014 to 2019
These are just a few of the year’s highlights. Read on for a more detailed look at the teams and individuals who shined during the 2022-2023 school year.
Fall 2022 Sports
Volleyball
El Paso area high schools didn’t fare well in the 2022 UIL Volleyball State Tournaments. Most teams were eliminated by the Area round.
6A Eastwood, Franklin, and Coronado all won Bi-District championships but were all defeated in the Area round.
5A Burges, Jefferson, Hanks, and EPHS won Bi-District titles but only the Tiger girls made it past the Area stage. EPHS was defeated in the Regional Quarterfinals by Abilene High School.
4A San Elizario, Fabens, Clint, and Irvin won Bi-District crowns but all were ousted in the Area round.
2A Fort Hancock won their Bi-District match but was defeated in the Area stage.
Team Tennis
El Paso area teams usually do well in the UIL Team Tennis Tournament. This wasn’t the case in 2022.
6A Franklin and Coronado won Bi-District crowns but were eliminated in the Area round.
5A Chapin, Jefferson, Parkland, and EPHS won Bi-District titles but all were defeated in the Area playoffs.
4A Riverside was the only 4A team to win a Bi-District title but the Rangers were defeated in the Area round.
Football
El Paso area football reached its high point in 2014 with Canutillo’s amazing run in the state playoffs.
I am not discounting Cathedral’s consecutive state championships in TAPPS’ football but I consider UIL football to be at a much higher level of competition.
The 2022 season was not a stellar year for football in the El Paso area.
6A Pebble Hills and Eastwood won Bi-District titles but were eliminated in the Area round of the playoffs.
Pebble Hills defeated Odessa Permian but lost to North Crowley. Eastwood defeated San Angelo Central but lost to Fort Worth Nelson.
5A Canutillo was the only 5A team to win at the Bi-District level and the Eagles also won the next week in the Area stage.
Canutillo’s playoff run ended the following week in the Quarterfinals. Canutillo defeated Palo Duro and Arlington Heights. The Eagles lost to Abilene Wylie.
4A Fort Stockton won a Bi-District championship but lost in the Area round. Fort Stockton beat Perryton but lost to Glen Rose.
TAPPS’ Cathedral finished the season with a 4-5 record.
Cross Country
El Paso area high schools and individuals usually do very well in the various cross country state meets but 2022 was not a stellar year. That being said, there were some good school finishes and individual performances.
6A Boys
Franklin High School was the top performing 6A team with an overall 7th place ranking. Omar Ibrahim of Pebble Hills had finished in 5th place while Luis Pastor of Coronado took 10th place.
6A Girls
Franklin High School finished the meet in 7th place. Top individual performances were turned in by Adelynn Rodriguez of Eastwood (43rd) and Franklin’s Abigail Pinon (63rd).
5A Boys
Alejandro Tarin of Hanks High School finished the meet in 14th place. No school finished in the top 10.
5A Girls
No schools or individuals finished in the top 10.
4A Boys
San Elizario has dominated 4A Cross Country in recent years but 2022 was not their normal finish. Still a 3rd place ranking is a very good performance. Christopher Moreno paced the Eagles with a 6th place overall individual finish. Other San Elizario runners were Julian Guerra, Angel Maese, Emilio Solano, Gustavo Salazar, Omar Garcia, and Matthew Moreno.
4A Girls
No top 10 individual or school finishes
3A Boys
Angel Torres of Tornillo placed 4th.
TAPPS’ Cross Country
Cathedral High School finished the 2022 6A Division with a 4th place ranking.
Team members were Bernard Martinez, Elijah Noble, Julian Noble, Sebastian Cervantes, Santiago Cervantes, Victor Martinez, and Mauro Acosta.
2022-2023 Spring Sports
Boys Basketball
El Paso area teams usually advance several stages in the UIL Basketball Championships every year and the trend continued once again in 5A basketball.
6A Boys
It was not a good playoff year for the 6A boys. Coronado, Franklin, Americas, and Eastwood qualified for tournament play but only the Troopers won a Bi-District game. Eastwood defeated San Angelo Central 48-46 in their matchup but lost to Northwest Nelson 71-54 in the Area round.
5A Boys
The strength of El Paso area basketball appears to lie in the 5A ranks. Andress, Canutillo, Parkland, and Chapin won Bi-District crowns defeating Del Valle, Hanks, Burges, and Bel Air respectively.
Parkland and Chapin would win Area round games against Tascosa 62-59 and Palo Duro 50-42 setting up a Quarterfinal matchup that was played in El Paso the next week.
Chapin and Parkland continued their Northeast El Paso rivalry with Chapin winning 56-53 to advance to the Semi-Final round. Chapin’s dreams of a
state championship continued the next week as the Huskies defeated Fort Worth Wyatt 69-68 setting up a Regional Final matchup with Mansfield Summit. The Huskies dream season came to an end losing to Summit 54-47.
4A Boys
Bowie, Austin, Riverside, and EP Harmony all won Bi-District Championships defeating Fabens, Clint Mountain View, Irvin, and San Elizario respectively. Riverside advanced past the Area round defeating Midland Greenwood 58-54. Bowie lost to Canyon; Austin was defeated by Seminole; and Harmony lost to Canyon Randall in their Area matchups. Riverside would lose to Canyon Randall in their Regional Quarterfinal matchup bringing the Rangers season to an end.
Girls Basketball
It wasn’t as a successful playoff run for El Paso area girls teams as it was for the boys. Several teams won Bi-District games but only Riverside was able to advance past the Area round.
6A Girls
Eastwood, Pebble Hills, El Dorado, and Franklin qualified for the state tournament. Eastwood beat Midland Legacy 31-20 in their Bi-District tilt; Pebble Hills beat San Angelo Central 53-52; and Franklin defeated Odessa 89-44 to capture their Bi-District championship. Area round play saw Eastwood lose to Southlake Carroll 69-41 and Franklin lose to FW Keller 46-43.
5A Girls
Bi-District play saw Burges beating Del Valle; Andress defeating Hanks; Bel Air beating Canutillo; and Chapin defeating Ysleta. All four El Paso teams fell in Area round play. Burges lost to Monterey; Andress was defeated by Amarillo; Bel Air lost to Tascosa; and Chapin dropped their game to Lubbock Cooper.
4A Girls
Austin, Clint, Mountain View, Bowie, Riverside, El Paso Steam, Irvin, and San Elizario all qualified for the state tournament. Bi-District action saw Clint beating Austin; Mountain View defeating Bowie; Riverside ousting EP Steam; and Irvin beating San Elizario. All but Riverside would lose in the Area round. Riverside beat Pampa while Clint lost to Canyon and Mountain View was defeated by Seminole. Riverside’s playoff run came to an end in the Regional Quarterfinals losing to Canyon Randall.
Soccer
El Paso area high schools have won several state championships in soccer in both the UIL and TAPPS. It should come as no surprise that El Paso area schools do well in the sport. Soccer has been very popular in El Paso for many years.
The sport requires speed and agility instead of size.
El Paso has an abundance of great athletes and very good coaches.
As a result, I would expect the El Paso area schools to continue their success in soccer.
2023 was another very good year as Bel Air and San Elizario reached the Final Four in their respective classifications.
Boys Soccer
6A
El Dorado, Pebble Hills, Franklin, and Eastlake all qualified for the state tournament and all 4 teams won Bi-District championships. El Dorado beat Midland Legacy; Pebble Hills ousted Odessa Permian; Franklin upended Midland; and Eastlake beat San Angelo Central. Eastlake continued
their winning ways in the Area round defeating Southlake Carroll. Unfortunately, the other 3 El Paso qualifiers were defeated in the Area stage. El Dorado lost to Timber Creek; Pebble Hills was defeated by Northwest Nelson; and Franklin lost to Euless Trinity. Eastlake playoff run continued in the Regional Quarterfinals as the Falcons defeated Euless Trinity to advance to the Regional Semi-Finals. Eastlake’s playoff dreams come to an end as they lost to Lake Highlands in the Regional Semi-Finals.
5A Boys
Bel Air had a tremendous 2023 season finishing 5A state runner up. Brandon Carrillo, Ivan Escobedo, and Ruben Esparza were named to the All Tournament Team.
Bel Air’s Playoff Matches
Bi-District defeated Chapin 5-0
Area defeated Caprock 3-1
Regional Quarterfinals defeated Abilene 5-0
Regional Sem-finals defeated Centennial 4-0
Regional Finals defeated Midlothian 1-0
State Semi-Finals defeated Mission Sharyland 4-1
State Championship lost to Frisco Lone Star 4-1
The 5A qualifiers from the El Paso area were Burges, Ysleta, Del Valle, Jefferson, Bel Air, Chapin, Andress, and Hanks.
Bi-District play saw Burges defeat Ysleta; Del Valle beat Jefferson; Bel Air ousted Chapin; and Andress upended Hanks.
Only the Highlanders were able to advance past the Area round. Burges lost to Monterey; Del Valle was defeated by Palo Duro; Bel Air defeated Caprock; and Abilene beat Andress.
4A Boys
San Elizario has been a 4A soccer power house in recent years. That trend continued in 2023 as the Eagles reached the 4A Final Four before being defeated 1-0 by eventual state champion Hidalgo Early College. San Elizario was not the only area 4A school to make a deep play off run. Bowie made it to the Area round; Irvin reached the Regional Semifinals, and Riverside lost to San Elizario in the Regional Quarterfinals. San Elizario’s Matthew Hernandez and Marco Legarda were named to the 4A All Tournament Team.
San Elizario’s Playoff Run
Bi-District defeated Midland Greenwood 7-0
Area defeated Borger 5-2
Regional Quarterfinals defeated Riverside 2-0
Regional Semifinal defeated FW Western Hills 2-0
Regional Finals defeated FW Diamond Hill-Jarvis 3-0
State Semifinals lost to Hidalgo Early College 1-0
El Paso’s 4A qualifiers were Bowie, Irvin, Riverside, and San Elizario. Bi-District winners were Bowie over Estacado, Irvin over Andrews, Riverside over San Angelo Lakeview, and San Elizario over Midland Greenwood. The Area round saw Bowie fall to Wichita Falls, Irvin defeated Pampa, Riverside defeated Burkburnett, and San Elizario beat Borger. Regional Quarterfinal action saw Irvin beat Wichita Falls and San Elizario defeated Riverside. Irvin’s playoff run came to an end in the Regional Semifinals with a loss to Fort Worth Diamond Head-Jarvis.
Girls Soccer
6A
The El Paso area qualifiers for the 6A state tournament were Eastwood, Coronado, Montwood, and Franklin. The Cougars were able to win a Bi-District crown by defeating Midland. Other Bi-District action saw Eastwood lose to San Angelo Central, Coronado was defeated by Odessa
Permian, and Montwood fell to Wolforth Frenship. Franklin’s playoff run ended in the Area round with a loss to Northwest Nelson.
5A
The El Paso area qualifiers were EPHS, Hanks, Bel Air, Chapin, Del Valle, Canutillo, Andress, and Ysleta. Bi-District play saw EPHS defeat Hanks, Chapin beat Bel Air, Del Valle ousted Canutillo, and Andress upended Ysleta. Area round winners were Andress over Abilene Wylie and Del Valle over Monterey. EPHS and Chapin fell in Area round competition to Abilene and Amarillo, respectively. Andress and Del Valle faced each other in the Regional Quarterfinals with Andress being victorious. The Eagles playoff run ended in the Regional Semifinals with a loss to Wichita Falls Rider.
4A
The El Paso area’s 4A qualifiers were Austin, Bowie, Irvin, and San Elizario. Bi-District play saw Austin defeat Snyder, Bowie fell to Estacado, Irvin was beaten by San Angelo Lakeview, and San Elizario beat Midland Greenwood. Area round play saw Austin fall to Wichita Falls and San Elizario beat Burkburnett. San Elizario advanced to the Regional Semifinals by defeating Randall in the Regional Quarterfinals. San Elizario’s season came to an end in the Regional Semifinals with a loss to Stephenville.
Baseball
El Paso area teams have been successful in the UIL Baseball State Championships since its’ inception in 1949. In fact, Bowie High School won the very first championship in 1949 and Socorro High School took the title in 2009. El Paso area schools usually advance a couple of rounds on a yearly basis but none have reached the state finals since Socorro. That would also be the case in 2023.
6A
The El Paso area representatives in the 6A playoffs were Pebble Hills, Eastlake, Eastwood, and Americas. Pebble Hills won a Bi-District title defeating Odessa and Americas defeated Midland Legacy to capture their Bi-District crown. Eastwood lost to Frenship and Eastlake was defeated by Midland. Area round action saw Pebble Hills lose to Keller and Americas defeated defending state champion Southlake Carroll. Americas season came to a close in the Regional Quarterfinals with a loss to Northwest Nelson.
5A
El Paso area playoff teams were EPHS, Clint Horizon, Ysleta, Burges, Del Valle, Chapin, Canutillo, and Hanks. Bi-District winners were Horizon over EPHS, Ysleta over Burges, Del Valle over Chapin, and Hanks over Canutillo. Unfortunately all four El Paso qualifiers were ousted in the Area round. Clint was defeated by Lubbock Cooper, Ysleta was beaten by Abilene, Del Valle lost the Abilene Wylie, and Hanks was beaten by Monterey.
4A
The El Paso area qualifiers were Bowie, Fabens, San Elizario, Irvin, Clint, Austin, Riverside, and Clint Mountain View. Bi-District winners were Bowie over Fabens, San Elizario over Irvin, Clint over Austin, and Riverside over Mountain View. All four of the remaining El Paso teams were defeated in the Area round. Bowie lost to Randall, San Elizario was ousted by Hereford, Clint was beaten by Midland Greenwood, and Canyon defeated Riverside.
3A
Tornillo took a Bi-District championship defeating Lamesa. The Lobos were defeated in te Area round by Slaton.
Softball
Americas made a Final 4 appearance in 2022 becoming the first El Paso area team to reach that stage since Bel Air made consecutive appearances in the early 1990’s. Many in El Paso expected a repeat performance by the Lady Trailblazers in 2023. Unfortunately, Odessa Permian had other ideas and defeated Americas in the Bi-District round. Hanks High School would make the deepest run made by any El Paso area team reaching the 5A Regional Semifinals.
6A
Bi-District
Montwood was defeated by Midland; Socorro was beaten by Frenship; Permian beat Americas; and Eastwood was beaten by San Angelo Central.
5A
Bi-District
Ysleta beat Canutillo; Del Valle over Burges; Hanks beat EPHS; Parkland defeated Chapin.
Area
Monterey defeated Ysleta; Amarillo beat Del Valle; Hanks defeated Abilene; and Abilene Wylie beat Parkland.
Regional Quarterfinals
Hanks defeated Abilene Wylie
Regional Semifinals
Hanks was defeated by Colleyville Heritage.
4A
Bi-District
Pecos beat Canyon; Fabens beat Austin; Clint defeated El Paso Young Women’s Steam; San Eizario beat Bowie; Riverside defeated Clint Mountain View
Area
Fabens lost to Canyon; Pampa beat Clint; Dumas defeated San Elizario; and Randall beat Riverside.
Track and Field
No El Paso area team has ever won a UIL Track and Field Championship.
Hopes were high in 2023 as Franklin, Chapin, and Austin had swept their respective district track meets.
The Franklin boys 4x100 meter relay team recorded the third fastest time (41.18 seconds) in El Paso history.
The Franklin boys continued their dominance in the Area meet becoming the first boys team to win consecutive Area titles.
The Franklin girls also did very well at the Area meet.
Hopes were high as El Paso area teams competed in the Regionals to qualify for the state meet.
Luis Pastor of Coronado qualified in both the 1600 meter run and 3200 meter run.
Franklin qualified their boys 4x100 meter relay team with a time of 41.60 seconds.
Team members were Beau Sparks, Julian Mars, Gerald Williams, and Jordan Morales. Ricardo Leyva of Clint Horizon qualified for the Boys 5A High Jump with a winning jump of 6 feet 11 inches Seth Truax of Chapin qualified in the 800 meter run finishing second.
Parkland’s 4x200 meter relay team (Kaleb Martinez, Joseph Gomez, Lincoln Jurardo, and DJ Crest) qualified for the state meet with a wild card selection. Morgan Little of Chapin qualified for the Girls Long Jump finishing second and also for the Girls 100 meter Dash with her first place finish.
Chapin’s 4x100 Meter Relay team (Maliyah Pride, Morgan Little, Caidence Johnson, and Samahdi Foster) earned a wild card selection by finishing in third place. Chapin’s 4x200 meter Relay team (Maliyah Pride, Morgan Little, Caidence Johnson, and Samahdi Foster) earned a trip to state with a second place finish.
Angel Munoz of Riverside earned a wildcard selection finishing third with
his third place finish in the 300 meter Hurdles. San Elizario’s Christopher Moreno won the 4A 800 meter run and finished second in the 4A 1600 meter Run. Daniel Romero of Tornillo qualified in the 3A 1600 meter Run and 3200 meter Run finishing second in both races.
El Paso area schools didn’t have the state meet that they had hoped for but there were several outstanding performances.
6A Coronado High School finished the tournament with a 13th place ranking as Luis Pastor finished 2nd in the 1600 meter run and 3rd in the 3200 meter run. Franklin High School finished the meet in 36th place with their 4x100 Meter Relay team taking 5th place. Team members were Beau Sparks, Jordan Morales, Gerald Williams, and Julian Mares.
5A Ricardo Leyva of Clint Horizon won a silver medal with his 2nd place finish in the High Jump. The Chapin High School girls team finished the tournament in 14th place and Morgan Little had an outstanding meet. She finished 3rd in the 100 Meter Dash and 6th place in the Long Jump. She was also a member of Chapin’s 4x100 Meter Relay team that finished in 4th place and their 4x200 Meter Relay team that took 8th place. Team members were
Morgan Little, Maliyah Pride, Caidence Johnson, and Samahdi Foster.
4A Riverside High School took 19th place at the meet with Angel Munoz taking a pair of bronze medals finishing 3rd in the 300 Meter Hurdles and 3rd in the Long Jump. San Elizario High School took 22nd place with Christopher Moreno taking a silver medal for his 2nd place finish in the 800 Meter Run and 6th place in the 1600 Meter Run. Jose Guardado took 5th place in the 4A Long Jump to finish the scoring for the Rangers.
3A Tornillo finished in 53rd place with Daniel Romero finishing in 6th place in the 3200 Meter Run.
Cathedral High School’s Elijah Noble finished 5th in the TAPPS 1600 Meter Run and 4th in the 3200 Meter Run.
GOLF
It has been a very long time since an El Paso area high school has won a golf state championship. Coronado, Hanks, and Cathedral have done so in the past but now El Paso area schools have trouble even qualifying for the state tournament. Such was again the case in 2023.
1-6A Boys Golf
1. Coronado 655 2. Franklin 666 3. Eastwood 734 4. Montwood 739 5. Americas
Individual Scores
Eddie Sandoval Franklin 146 (won in a playoff); Sebastian Velasquez Coronado 146; Grand McCleskey Coronado 157;Gavyn Perez Americas 166; Eduardo Hinojo Montwood 168; Patricio Chauvet Franklin 168; Sebastian Ortega Coronado 170; Zachary Mijares Franklin 175; Daniel Velez Coronado 177
1-6A Girls Golf
1. Eastwood 642 2. Coronado 650 3. Eastwood Blue 728 Franklin 819
Individual Scores
Faith Hendren Eastwood 153, Katelyn Stubbs Coronado 159, Kelly Peden Eastwood 159, Kynlee Stubbs Coronado 162, Priscilla Padilla Eastwood 162, Natalie Lewis Coronado 164, Natalia Ochoa 165, Sophie Vidal Eastwood 168, Madison Venegas Eastwood 169, Sofia Chavez Eastwood 173
District 1-5A Boys Golf
1. EPHS 660 2. Chapin 770 3. Burges 771
El Paso High won its 8th consecutive district title
Fernando Jimenez EPHS won the District championship with a 72-74 146 two day score
1-5A Girls Golf
1. Burges 832 2. EPHS 871 3. Jefferson 923
Individual Scores
Jeannette Ortiz Burges 193, Mara Narvaez EPHS 199, Kaitlyn Sanchez Burges 200, Hannah Olson Canutillo 205, Sofia Bannon EPHS 209, Sopha Fierro Burges 217, Dasha Cisneros Canutillo 219, Isabella Sims Burges 222, Julissa Cortez Jefferson 224, Natalia Diaz Jefferson 224
Tennis
Tennis is a year round sport. The fall starts with team tennis and then individual and doubles play begins in the spring. El Paso area athletes usually do well in both Team Tennis and Tennis. El Paso has had its share of state champions, the last being Coronado’s Nathan Brown in 2015. El Paso High and Austin use to dominate the state tournament from the late 1920’s until the late 1950’s. El Paso High even had a future Olympic champion, Dick Savitt, who won the Boys Single title in 1945. Last year, Coronado’s Ian Uraga made it to the Finals of 6A Boys Singles. He repeated the quest in 2023 and once again fell in the Finals. He had company this year as El Paso High’s Daniela Ocaranza qualified for the State Tournament in 5A Girls Singles where she fell in the Quarterfinals.
State Playoff Runs for Ian Uraga and Daniela Ocaranza:
Girls Singles
Quarterfinals Daniela Ocaranza defeated by Sanwi Sarode (Austin LASA) 7-6(3), 6-3
Ocaranza earned her trip to the State Tournament by defeating Wylie’s Kate Delgado in a Regional playback match 2-6, 6-2,6-2 Ocaranz has been to the 1-5A Regionals three straight years. She will have an opportunity to make it 4 straight years next year . She had lost earlier in the Region 1-5A title match.
Boys Singles
Quarterfinals Ian Uraga defeated Praneet Tulluri (Bridgeland) 6-3,6-4
Semi-Finals Ian Uraga defeated Marko Mesaarovic (Rock Westwood) 6-3, 4-2 retired
Finals Ian Uraga defeated by Lathan Skrobarcek (Northside Harlan) 6-1, 2-6, 6-4
How dominant was Uraga? He lost two matches all season: The State Final and he finished runner up in the Region 1-6A Tournament.
Congratulations to both Ian Uraga and Daniela Ocaranza.
Other Tennis Highlights
1-6A Boys
Boys Singles
1. Ian Uraga Coronado; 2. Daniel Spurbeck Coronado
Boys Doubles
1. Ayden Fraire/Ben Gurovich Franklin
2 .Mills Hal/Landon Rivas Coronado
Girls Singles
1. Helaina Reynoso Coronado 2. Karla Franco Franklin
Girls Doubles
1. Karina Lee/Bella Hernandez Franklin
2. Ana Valdez/Louisa Valdez Pebble Hills
Mixed Doubles
1. Alexa Collins/Carlos Blasco Coronado
2. Kendall Olivas/Oliver Blanchet Franklin
1-5A Tennis
EPHS took top honors in Boys Singles, Girls Singles, Girls Doubles, and Mixed Doubles. El Paso High’s Maximus Martin won his first district title taking the Boys Singles. Daniela Ocaranza won her third straight Girls Singles title for EPHS. She defeated her team-mate Kenndi Tovar.
District 2-4A
Boys Singles
Riverside’s Grecan Hinojos took first place with Mountain View’s Jessie Lozoya taking second and Clint’s Rey Ramirez finishing third.
Girls Singles
Clint’s Ileana Maldonado took first place with Riverside’s Leah Curtis finishing second and San Elizario’s Sophia Alvarez taking third place
Boys Doubles
Fabens Jon Saenz/ Luis Tarango 1st place Riverside’s Declan Adebayo/ Brian Adebayo 2nd place; Clint’s Miguel Jalil/ Jose Enriquez 3rd place
Girls Doubles
1st Clint’s Kate Garcia/ Paula Garcia 2nd San Elizario’s Valeria Gomez/ Emily Esparza 3rd Fabens Ranea Ezquivel/ Leslie Loya
Mixed Doubles
1st San Elizario Adrian Guzman/ Denise Munoz 2nd San Elizrio Santiago Cano/ Sally Mota 3rd Fabens Osbaldo Martinez/ Yazmin Torres
Boys Team Champions Riverside 30 Points Fabens 25 points
Girls Team Champions San Elizario 37.5 points Clint 35 ponts
District 1-4A
Boys Singles 1. Matthew Gonzalez Austin 2. Diego Perez Bowie
Girls Singles 1. Caroline Olvera Austin 2. Yomara Chavez Austin
Boys Doubles 1. Adam Blessiner/ Daniel Esparza Austin 2. Josh Hernandez/ Hugo Gonzalez Bowie
Girls Doubles 1. Alazay Gomez/ Adrianna Ruiiz Austin 2. Victoria Soledad/ Madeline Terry Austin
Mixed Doubles 1. Savanah Hackett/Angel Zamora Austin 2. Danai Figueroa/Anthony Quinonez Austin
Swimming
El Paso area schools had a very good year in the swimming pool in 2023, especially El Paso High and Cathedral. The Irish continued the dominance in TAPPS swimming by winning their 35th championship. El Paso High’s boys and girls team won not only 1-5A titles but also Regional titles. The Tigers boys team also had a very good state meet finishing in 4th place.
Cathedral scored 336 points in route to winning their 35th TAPPS Division 1 championship. Sebastian Machado took a silver medal in the 200 yard IM while team-mate Nareg Aidanian took third place in the same event. Ian Ramirez-Aizawa placed 4th in the 100 yard butterfly. Diego Young finished 5th in the 500 yard freestyle while the Irish took 4th place in the 200 yard freestyle relay. Diego Young was
6th in the 100 yard backstroke and Nareg Aidanian took 3rd place in the 100 yard backstroke.
Loretto Academy finished the TAPPS Division 1 Girls Championship in 7th place with 107 points. The Angels 200 yard medley relay team took 7th place and Tenly Reha took 8th place in the 200 yard freestyle.
Radford ‘s Isaiah Eichel scored the school’s very first TAPPS gold medal by winning the Division III 100 yard butterfly event.
El Paso High completely dominated the 1-5A District Swimming competition winning both the girls and boys championship. The girls team received a major boost when Sarah Wallen won the 100 yard backstroke and took second in the 200 yard medley. She continued her strong swimming in the 1-5A Regional Meet by finishing 2nd in the 100 yard breaststroke. Wallen was also a member of the Tiger’s three relay teams that qualified for the state meet. EPHS’s girls team qualified for the state meet in the 200 yard medley relay, the 200 yard freestyle relay, and the 400 yard freestyle relay.
El Paso High had a tremendous Regional 1-5A meet winning both the girls and boys titles. The Tigers ended Lubbock High’s dominance at the Regional meet. Lubbock had won 11 straight regional girls titles and 7 consecutive boys titles. Lubbock had also won three straight state titles. El Paso High’s boys team scored 460 points at the Regional meet. The Tigers won the 200 yard medley relay, the 200 yard freestyle relay, and the 400 yard freestyle relay. Holden Convertino was 2nd in the 100 yard freestyle and took the gold medal in the 50 yard freestyle. Marcos Otero took gold medals in the 100 yard freestyle and 100 yard breaststroke. Zev Benjamin took silver medals in the 100 yard butterfly and 100 yard backstroke. Michael Saucedo was second in the 100 yard breaststroke.
The Lady Tigers also had a great Regional meet. Allegra Rojas-Antillon won the 50 yard freestyle and the 500 yard freestyle. Sofia Reese took gold in the 100 yard backstroke. Sarah Wallen was 2nd in the 100 yard breaststoke. Zyenna Martinez was 2nd in the 200 yard IM and second in the 100 yard butterfly. The Tiger girls also dominated the relay events. They won the 200 yard freestyle and finishing 2nd in both the 200 yard medley and 400 yard freestyle. The Tiger girls finished the meet with 472 points.
Other El Paso area swimmers also had a good Regional meet. Jefferson’s Brianna Elliott won the 100 yard freestyle and placed 2nd in the 50 yard freestyle.
The EPHS girls and boys teams entered the 5A UIL State Swimming Tournament with hopes of winning state titles after their impressive Regional performances. Both teams did well but the state titles proved to be elusive. The Tiger boys finished the competition with a very strong 4th place finish while the girls placed 15th. Still a very strong showing by EPHS.
The Tiger boys scored 153 points and missed out by 6 points in claiming 3rd place. The EPHS boys 200 yard freestyle relay team won gold medal with a time of 1 minute 24.83 seconds. Team members were Holden Convertino, Zev Benjamin, Denny Adams, and Marcos Otero. The same swim team won the 400 yard freestyle relay event. Marcos Otero finished second in the 100 yard freestyle and third in the 100 yard backstroke. Holden Convertino took 9th place in two events. Zev Benjamin took 13th place in the 100 yard butterfly and 7th in the 100 yard backstroke.
The Tiger girls were paced by Zyenna Martinez with her 6th place finish in the 200 yard IM and 7th in the 100 yard butterfly. Allegra Rojas-Antillon was 16th in the 50 yard freestyleand 16th in the 500 yard freestyle. El Paso High’s 200 yard freestyle relay team finished in 7th place. Team members were Zyenna Martinez, Sarah Wallen, Ava Valles, and Chloe Duchouquette. The Tigers 400 yard freestyle relay team took 10th place. Team members were Rojas-Antillon, Valles, Wallen, and Martinez. EPHS finished in 15th place with 63 points.
Jefferso’s Brianna Elliott was the only non EPHS competitor at the State meet and finished with an 8th place performance.
I am indebted to El Paso Times reporters Felix Chavez and Brett Bloomquist for their outstanding reporting on high school sports. It is very hard to find information on some of the sports that I include in my recaps, especially non UIL sports. I can usually find information in the El Paso Times or on the UIL Athletic website.
The El Paso Times named Marcos Otero and Zyenna Martinez as their MVPs for the All City Swimming teams. Other top swimmers on the boys side were El Paso High’s Holden Convertino , Denny Adams, and Zev Benjamin, Coronado High’s JP Cardenas, Nico Ramirez, and Demian Hidalgo, Franklin High’s Nicolas Pinal, Cathedral High’s Ian Ramirez-Aizawa, Mauricio Olvera-Escobar, Bel Air’s Pepper Trujillo, and Ysleta’s Joaquin De Avila.
All City girl swimmers in addition to Martinez were El Paso High’s Sarah Wallen, Ava Valles, Jefferson’s Brianna Elliott, Coronado’s Alanna Crites, Abby Hernandez, Socorro’s Samirah Avila, Franklin’s Jaclyn Vargas and Victoria Miller, Bel Air’s Annette Escobedo, Loretto’s Tenly Reha, and Americas’ Alejandra Rodriguez.
Wrestling
El Paso has always been a state power in wrestling even before the UIL recognized the sport. Many individuals have won state championships but it was not until 2014 that an El Paso area school won a team championship. That changed when the girls of Hanks High School won the first of six straight state titles and then a 2nd place finish in 2020. The Knights have been coached by Hall of Fame coach, Anthony Carter, who retired at the end of the last school year. He will be sorely missed but enjoy your retirement.
El Paso has been a dominant force in high school wrestling since 2014 and that trend continued in 2023. The Eastwood girls were 6A co-state champions with Allen High School. Both schools scored 67.5 points to capture the state title. The El Paso area also had 8 individual state champions and two silver medalists.
Eastwood, Franklin, and Montwood took top honors in 1-6A girls wrestling while Eastwood, Montwood, and Franklin took top honors in 1-6A boys wrestling.
The Horizon boys and the Hanks girls took top honors in District 2-5A. The top finishers for the girls were Hanks, Bel Air, and Riverside. Horizon, Bel Air, and Hanks took the top three spots in boys wrestling.
The Andress Eagles boys won the District 1-5A crown followed by Burges and Chapin. Onn the girls side, Chapin, Burges, and Andress were the top 3 finishers.
The Eastwood girls got ready for state action by finishing 2nd at the 1-6A Regional meet. The Troopers were paced by gold medal performances by Alexis Montes, Paulina Butler, and Daniela Romo.Jadine Montes took a silver medal. Eastwood’s coach, Troy Douglas was named Region 1-6A Coach of the Year. Franklin’s Jubilee Rendon and Americas Erica Cobos also won gold medals. Isabella Martinez of Pebble Hills and Eastlake’s Alexis Navarette took 2nd and 3rd place, respectively at 126 pounds. On the boys side Trebor Moreno won a gold medal andte Eastwood boys took 4th place. Elijah Molinar also won a gold medal for the Troop. Montwppd’s Gavin Ramos followed up his district title with a Region 1-6A title.
In Region 1-5A wrestling, the Hanks girls finished 3rd with Judith Sandoval bringing home a silver medal. Chapin’s Keilani Guillermo and Bel Air’s Cydney Davis won Regional gold medals. On the boys mat, Horizon’s Ethan Salazar won a silver medal and Joshua Rodriguez brought home a bronze medal.
UIL Wrestling State Championships
El Paso area schools and individuals had a very successful state tournament experience.
Eastwood High School was co-state champion with Allen High School. Each school tallied 67.5 points to share the title. Eastwood led the way for the girls of 6A and were followed by Americas in 18th place and Franklin in 22 place. Jubilee Rendon of Franklin won a gold medal at 100 pounds and Eastwood’s Alexis Montes won a championship at 120 pounds. Erica Cobos of Americas won a state title at 235 pounds and Eastwood’s Paulina Butler won a silver medal at 138 pounds.
Trebor Moreno of Eastwood won the gold medal at the 132 pound weight class to pace the 1-6A boys. Gavin Ramos of Montwood also won a state title while Franklin’s Ian Abdallah brought home a silver medal.
The 5A girls were led by first place finishes by Hanks’ Judith Sandoval at 100 pounds, Chapin’s Kellani Guillermo at 132 pounds, and Andress’ Leilani Sanchez at 235 pounds.
El Paso was led in 6A Boys ranks by Eastwood (5th place), Franklin (10th place) and Montwood (10th place). The 5A Girls were paced by Hanks (5th place), Chapin (9th place), Bel Air (16th place) and Andress (19th place).
The Texas High School Coaches Association named 5 El Paso area wrestlers to their Elite Team. Those wrestlers were Ian Aballah (Franklin), Gavin Ramos (Montwood), Erica Cobos (Americas), Jubilee Rendon(Franklin), Leilani Sanchez (Andress).
The El Paso Times also published its All City Wrestling Team. Girls MVP was Eastwood’s Alexis Montes and Trebor Moreno of Eastwood was name Boys MVP.
Top Boys Wrestlers and Their High School
Montwood: Gavin Ramos, Jose Angel Rosales
Franklin: Ian Abdallah, Braulio Estrada, Joaquin Tanabe
Pebble Hills: Manuel Padilla, Dorian Jaramilo, Juan Hernandez
Eastwood: Noah Magana, Miguel Solis, Ethan Franklin, Andres Solis, Elijah Molinar, Trebor Moreno
Hanks: Giancarlo Falcon
Horizon: Fernando Villa, Joshua Rodriguez, Ethan Salazar
Riverside: Yann Kizzee
El Dorado: Jon Banda, Alexander Nunez
Girls Top Wrestlers
Franklin: Jubilee Rendon, Melina Prado
Americas: Erica Cobos
Chapin: Keilani Guillermo, Joy Ortiz
Hanks: Judith Sandoval, Amalie Lucero, Sophia Fernandez
Andress: Leilani Sanchez
Pebble Hills: Isabella Martinez
Burges: Joy Jackson
Eastwood: Jadine Mata, Daniela Romo, Alexis Montes
Montwood: Vanessa Sanchez
Bel Air: Ashley Delgado
Eastlake: Alexis Navarrette, Edith Buendia
Horizon: Irisz Vazquez
