Posted by Dyestat Meet Page on September 15, 2011

LaPorte San Jacinto Battleground 9/10/2011

Kingwood jr Sandie Raines (pre-season South Individuals to Watch) went out hard and never looked back, clocking 18:59.15 over tricky footing due to numerous drought-related cracks in the ground. Her teammates claimed the next 6 places, led by sr Laura Craig in 19:53.13 for silver and all within 27 seconds of Craig.

Sandie Raines shared, “I felt good today. The ground was rough, but I like a 5k. It was a good race to shake off the dust.” She had some interesting summer training. “I went to Peru on a mission trip for student-athletes. We did our training at 10,000 feet. I also got to experience my first 12-mile run – we ran to our destination instead of driving!”

Friendswood jr Ryan Teel, 7th at Nike South last season, shared the lead through two miles (9:40) before surging to victory in 15:26.79. Klein Oak super-soph Ryan Dohner made a charge the last 400 to make it interesting in 15:28.95 followed by sr teammate Nate Jones in 15:54.32 for bronze. Klein Oak scored 48 for the team title over Friendswood with 65.

Ryan Teel said, “My summer was full of hard training. My coach and teammates are all pushing hard. My quads and calves were sore so I didn’t want to leave it to the end. Instead I started kicking with a mile to go.” After building a nice gap, Teel appeared to tire near the end as Dohner was closing. “My sister is a big fan and motivates me. I heard her yelling near the finish and she has that certain pitch I recognize (when it’s getting urgent). I heard it today and knew I had to get going!”