Amy Pitzel coached track and field and cross country for 16 years and her most recent stint was at Katy Tompkins in Katy ISD. She led the Tompkins girls to three consecutive UIL 6A state meet team qualifications in 2017, 2018, and 2019 with a 2017 Region 3-6A team championship and runner-up finishes in 2018 and 2019.
Pitzel was named Gulf Coast Scholastic Track and Field Coaches Association Coach of the Year in 2017.This is the second season where she selects Texas high school coaches and/or athlete(s) throughout the season to discuss a variety of topics.
Welcome to the second edition of Pitzel's Picks post-Region races. I was able to interview the Katy Tompkins Boys' teams with special guest, Rowan Saacke, and Coach Walt Yarrow. My son This program has now earned their 8th straight trip to State as a team, which is even more remarkable when you realize the school just opened in 2013.
Tompkins Boys have been consistently ranked in the CCCAT top five UIL 6A teams this season and as high as third. After winning Cy-Fair Relays, they made a big statement by winning the Elite division of The Woodlands Friday Night Lights and with a score of only 28. They won Seven Lakes Showcase and Strake Jesuit Invite and they were fourth at Lovejoy and 2nd at Nike South behind Southlake Carroll. Tompkins then went on to win the district and just this past week won Region 3-6A by almost 50 points.
The front 3 runners for Tompkins have been the same all season with Parker Wood (3rd at Region) leading the way followed by Griffen Saacke (10th at Region) and Austin Garcia. The fourth and fifth runners have a rotation of Juan Perez-Salas, Diego Reyes, Mathias Pitzel, and Aaron Ramshaw. They have had a remarkable season but the training and the goals have all been geared towards doing their best at the State Meet.
Rowan Saacke earned herself a spot at State for the second year with a Region Runner-Up performance where she looked strong the whole race. All of the team spoke of the importance of their team culture, trusting the process and running hard for each other. Please enjoy!