2021 UIL 4A Boys UIL Cross Country Championship race
Last year's UIL 4A state cross country meet was one to remember.
It was won by Athens senior Micah Swann in 15:42. The East Texas harrier held off the hard charging El Pasoan, Chris Moreno from perennial powerhouse San Elizario. Moreno finished in 15:45, just ahead of Kaufman's Edwin Rivera's 15:48 finish.
The top three was just the beginning of six places of fury cracking the 16-minute barrier and a total of 13 boys under 16:10.
If you thought the 2021 state meet was good, then we hope you've been paying attention to the way the boys have been running this season.
Next week's UIL 2-4A Regional Championships will be the precursor to an even more outstanding state meet.
Angel Sanchez (Fort Worth Diamond Hill-Jarvis) isn't just having a top Texas type of season, he is one of the top runners in the country. Breaking 16 minutes isn't the goal this year as the junior has already turned in several races under 15 minutes this season. He won his district meet last week by cruising a 15:32.
5000 Meter Run
| RANK | TIME | ATHLETE/TEAM | GRADE | MEET DATE PLACE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14:55.54 | Fort Worth Diamond Hill-Jarvis | 2024 | |
| 2 | 15:32.60 | Pittsburg | 2023 | UIL 4A - District 15 1st F |
| 3 | 15:40.50 | Cumberland Academy | 2024 | |
| 4 | 15:45.10 | Athens | 2023 | |
| 5 | 15:57.40 | Athens | 2023 | UIL 4A - District 16 2nd F |
| 6 | 15:58.72 | Anna | 2024 | UIL 4A - District 11 1st F |
| 7 | 16:03.03 | Aubrey | 2023 | UIL 4A - District 11 2nd F |
| 8 | 16:04.80 | Canton High School | 2024 | UIL 4A - District 16 3rd F |
| 9 | 16:10.47 | Kaufman | 2023 | Kennedale Wildcat Run 2nd F |
| 10 | 16:18.83 | Caddo Mills | 2026 | James Smith Invitational 4th F |
The saying iron sharpens iron, well, let's just say Sanchez isn't the only improved runner in Region 2. Several guys are rising to the challenge as Pittsburg senior Jacob Berryhill won his district with a 15:32 of his own.
Abel Solorio (Cumberland Academy) has a 15:40 PR, Hardy Swann (Athens), last year's winner's brother also has a 15:40 SB, and Kenny Bibb (Anna) ran 15:58 last week at district.
Running at a high level isn't new to several of these guys who were medalists last year as well as some other hungry runners. Brayden Murphy (Aubrey) ran 16:03 at district, Miguel Arce (Canton) ran 16:04 at district, and Edwin Rivera (Kaufman) has a 16:10 SB. Rivera, well he was just the third place finisher at state last year and figures to be ready to explode now that it's the regional championships.
The Region 2-4A championship could be a barn burner type of race and an exciting prequel to the state meet that could be even more explosive.
With this many guys who are both talented and experienced, look for them to primarily ensure they qualify for the state meet. However, with a guy as confident as Sanchez is, look for him to push the pace and the other guys could go along for a very fast ride.