Del Rio News Herald

This coming weekend is why I’m an advocate of cloning.

We’ve got two major sporting events taking place in two different parts of the state and both are deserving of attention.

First, we’ve got the Del Rio High School girls varsity cross-country team competing at their very first state meet and senior Justin Garcia competing at his third state meet.

This is a huge accomplishment for the girls, but one that you could see coming. Head coach Ric Smith was singing the praises of his returners late last year and he knew he had a good group of freshmen coming in that would fill out his team.

When the team defended its title at the UTSA meet there was definitely a chance they could go far. When they ran away with the title at the Del Rio Invitational, it became apparent that these girls had a real chance to make some noise.

And when they won district in convincing style the idea of making history by qualifying for state became a serious reality.

Of the group, only Eileen Vargas and Olivia Dominguez are seniors and Vanessa Galindo is a junior. The rest are sophomores or freshmen. That means that with the right focus, this year’s trip to the state meet could be the first of many to come.

Samantha Munderback, Annie Garcia and Bianca Renteria are the team’s freshmen, but the interesting thing is only Renteria competed in cross-country last year. Munderback and Garcia were in the track program in middle school, competing in the long distance running events such as the 1,600 and 3,200-meter runs. It seems they made the transition to cross-country pretty seamlessly.

Seniors Vargas and Dominguez bring the experience. Dominguez was part of the district-winning team last year and Vargas has been a part of the program for five years. When she was profiled as a Cross-Country Runner of the Week earlier this year, Vargas said her goal was to help the girls’ team make it to state. That’s one goal she can cross off her list.

The strength of the team is in sophomore Candida Chairez and junior Galindo.

Both are strong competitors who excelled as freshmen both in cross-country and in the long distance running events in track and field. In fact both girls qualified for the regional track and field meet in the 1,600 and 3,200-meter runs.

Chairez is the two-time defending district champion, and Galindo has shown she’s an equally powerful runner. She was second overall at the UTSA meet and was Del Rio’s top finisher as the ultra-competitive McNeil Invitational meet held in Round Rock.

But the girls aren’t the only ones headed to the state meet.

Senior Justin Garcia will be making his third consecutive trip to the state meet, but this time he’ll be doing it alone.

It’s a bittersweet feeling for Garcia, as he’ll have to make the trip to Round Rock without his teammates.

The varsity boys’ team had qualified for the state meet four years in a row, but this year’s team struggled throughout the year. They barely held off a challenge from Eagle Pass at the Del Rio Invitational and had coaches and supporters sweating it out during the district meet.

Headed to the regional meet Del Rio still had to be one of the favorites as they’d finished first or second the past four years. But reputation can only get you so far; the rest is up to you.

After Garcia, only one other Del Rio boy finished in the top 50 at the regional meet. That spelled doom for the team and it showed in their seventh place team finish.

Garcia, however, finished 10th overall and beat every other runner from District 29-5A, which was his goal from the outset. He told me Saturday night that he had a pack of about six other runners right on his tail toward the end of the race but that he wasn’t going to let them catch him.

For coach Smith, it’s the fifth consecutive year he’ll be taking a team to state and the eight qualifiers are the most the cross-country program has ever had. It would have been nice to have 14 qualifiers, but he, and the rest of the community, should be proud of what the girls’ team and Garcia have accomplished.

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Meanwhile in Laredo, the Del Rio High School varsity football team will be playing in its playoffs opener against the Donna Redskins.

The game time has been changed to 6 p.m., not 6:30 as has been reported by several media outlets, so set your travel plans accordingly.

This is the team’s second consecutive trip to the playoffs, and hopefully it won’t be a “one and done” scenario.

The Rams have the tools to succeed. They have an experienced and healthy defense, a strong offensive line and an experienced backfield. Add to that a strong-legged kicker and a battle-tested unit that finished second in the district this year and that has plenty of holdovers from last year’s playoff team and it’s a recipe for success.

My caution to the team is to not get overconfident. Despite what other people are saying, the Rams cannot afford to look past Donna Saturday night. The “one game at a time” approach has worked throughout this season and that same mentality needs to be carried into the playoffs.

I’ve already seen some folks saying the Rams could go three or four games deep or could even host a playoff game if they reach a certain level of the playoffs. I’d advise the team to avoid those stories and stick with what’s in front of them now. I can promise you that’s what the coaches are telling them.

I’ll have more on the game throughout the week. For now, I hope the team remembers all the work it took for them to get to this point and all the work that’s still left ahead. Remember - one game at a time, boys. One game at a time.

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Brian Argabright has covered sports for the Del Rio News-Herald since 1996. “But That’s Just Me Talking” appears every Monday in the News-Herald. Contact the author at brian.argabright(at)delrionewsherald.com.

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