Local athletes breaking out of blocks
It would not be track and field season without Fort Bend area athletes getting offto blazing starts. In 2016 athletes from Fort Bend ISD and Lamar Consolidated ISD are leaving their marks all over the the national rankings.
The area’s top performer so far is George Ranch’s Jazmyne Tilford-Rutherford in the triple jump. Her mark of 39 feet, 10 inches from the LCISD Relays on March 4 ranks second in the nation. That jump is one inch better than El Paso Burges’ Arielle Mack’s 39-9. Those two likely are the favorites for the Class 5A state championship.
Two local kids rank third in the nation, including one more from George Ranch. The Longhorns’ Jayson Baldridge ranks third in the 300 hurdles after running 37.51 seconds at the LCISD Relays. The nation’s No. 1 mark is 36.4 set by Canyon’s Norman Grimes. Canyon is also a Class 5A school.
Hightower’s Gabriel Oladipo, who represented the United States at the IAAF’s World Youth Championships in Colombia last summer, is third in the nation in the discus throw with a mark of 19311.
The Hightower girls rank fourth in the nation in the 1,600-meter relay. The quartet of Tyler Rose, Jyria Smith, Evette Banks and Birexus Hawkins finished in 3:48.78 at the Lancaster Invitational Meet of Champions last week. Hawkins also ranks fifth individually in the 300hurdles.
The Fort Bend Marshall boys, who won the Class 5Astate championship last season, rank fifth in the 1,600 relay. The Buffalos’ John Isom ranks ninth in the nation in the 400 dash.
Stafford has a pair of athletes in the national rankings. Caleb Parker is listed seventh in the high jump after he cleared 6-8 at the LCISD Relays. Lynette Amaram is 10th in the 800 run.
George Ranch’s Champion Allison is ranked sixth in the 400 dash. Foster’s Quantonio Williams is ranked eighth in the 200 dash. The George Ranch girls are ranked eighth in the 1,600 relay.
District championship meets will be contested on or in the days leading up to April 16. The state meet is scheduled for May 12-14.
Girls soccer update
The top three seeds in District 23-6A are fixed with only Monday’s regular season finales remaining. Clements has clinched the No. 1 seed.
Fort Bend Austin has clinched No. 2 and Fort Bend Travis No. 3. Dulles is one point ahead of Alief Hastings for the final playoffberth.
Boys soccer update
The four playoff teams in District 23-6A are decided with one regular season match remaining, but seeding can change on the final night. Elsik has clinched the No. 1 seed with Alief Taylor and Clements fighting for the No. 2 seed.
They face one another on Monday, and Clements can pass the Lions with a victory. Any other result gives the No. 2 seed to Taylor. If Clements loses and Fort Bend Travis wins, it would force a tie for third place.
Crusaders set high bar
The Strake Jesuit boys track and field team has already achieved plenty, capturing back-to-back District 19-6A championships and producing several state qualifiers.
But the Crusaders could take it a step further and possibly contend for a Class 6A state crown this spring. Headcoach Chad Collier is confident in his squad’s chances, especially after victories at Katy ISD’s Bubba Fife Relays, Pearland Relays, Strake Jesuit’s Crusader Relays and LaPorte’s Bay Shore Olympics.
“We’ve competed at a high level, even though some of the races we’ve won – 4x800 (meter), distance medley and sprint medley relays aren’t official University Interscholastic League (UIL) events,” Collier said. “But we’re pretty deep this year, especially our half- and quarter-milers.”
Infact, Strake Jesuit athletes are state-ranked in several individual events and relays, which bodes well for the Crusaders’ chances.
Strake Jesuit has three runners listed in the top eight in Texas in the 800. Junior Jason Bugg is third with a time of 1:54.90, followed by closely by junior Jeff Price in fourth (1:54.95) and senior Hugo Gonzalez in eighth (1:55.38).
The Crusaders’ 4x400 relay is ranked third after being clocked in 3:16.52 at Pearland. Senior An- drew Price, a University of Texas signee, and senior Christian McStravick, who inked a football scholarship to Boston College, power the unit along with Bugg and senior Nathan Fisher.
The 4x100 relay, featuring senior Howard Grant, McStravick, Andrew Price and senior Brandon Walwyn, is ranked 11th , but Strake Jesuit’s time (41.58) is the third-fastest in Class 6A-Region III.
Strake Jesuit hasn’t run the 4x200 relay yet, but the Crusaders figure to be competitive in that event, too.
Last year, the Crusaders’ 4x400 relay qualified for state. That won’t satisfy Collier this time.
“Wewant to take at least two relays,” Collier said.
McStravick hopes to make it back to state again in the 400, although he’s focused mainly on the 4x100 and 4x400 relays so far. Andrew Price also could be a threat, if he doesn’t commit to relays exclusively.
Strake Jesuit also is awaiting the return of senior Joel Trahan and junior Tyler Litton, who have been sidelined with injuries. Trahan is one of the Crusaders’ top sprinters and relay stars, while Litton is another 400 runner.
“It’s a long season and we’re trying to take it slow with our kids,” Collier said. “We want to keep them healthy.”
Strake Jesuit is dangerous in the distance races. Senior Andrew Hebert ranks third in the 1,600 (4:19.55), with Bugg and Jeff Price close behind. The Crusaders also should do well in the 3,200.
There are a few holes. Strake Jesuit likely won’t put too much emphasis on the 100 and 200, with the relays a higher priority. The Crusaders also are looking for hurdlers with former standout Ilolo Izu now at Texas A&M University.
Strake Jesuit has major point potential in the field events, although the Crusaders must replace thrower Kenneth Sessums (University of Houston).
Fisher, a University of Pennsylvania commit, is ranked 13th in the state in the pole vault after clearing 15 feet. Senior Ryan Duff (14-6) could surprise.
Grant is one to watch in the long and high jumps, while junior Jordan Pride, who led the Strake Jesuit boys basketball team to the playoffs, could score in the triple jump.
To get ready for next month’s District 19-6A meet at Katy Tompkins, Strake Jesuit will participate in Dallas Jesuits Sheaner Relays on Saturday, March19.
Boys win sixth UIL district crown
The Strake Jesuit boys soccer team clinched the District 19-6A title – the Crusaders’ sixth league crown since joining the University Interscholastic League 11 years ago.
Strake Jesuit, 13-3-5 overall, was upset by Katy Mayde Creek 2-1 last week, but the Crusaders’ 9-3-2 league mark was sufficient to hold off Katy Cinco Ranch for the No. 1 seed in the Class 6A playoffs, which get underway next week.
“We thought we had to beat Mayde Creek, so we put in another attacking midfielder to try to score,” said Strake Jesuit head boys soccer coach Bill McDonald. “We were disappointed to lose, but Cinco Ranch lost to Katy and we took first place anyway.”
McDonald is proud of his squad, which bounced back after missing the postseason the last two years.
“I feel really good about the season. Our team had to come through a very difficult district schedule,” McDonald said.
“Cinco Ranch represented our district at state last year and returned a lot of players. To beat them and win district is pretty special.”
Strake Jesuit, which will face Reagan in a Class 6ARegion III bi-district game next week, should be battle-tested for a long playoff run.
“We beat Cinco Ranch and tied Coppell, which are both state-ranked teams,” McDonald said. “We should be ready.”
The Crusaders are led by senior goalkeeper Philip Raven, who has posted 11 shutouts this season (including seven in league play), and a stingy defense featuring seniors Diego Henning, Philipp Seitz and Sam Zabaneh and junior Harrison Vickers.
Strake Jesuit’s top scorers have been junior Angel Cueva and senior Michael Ruck in the midfield, as well as junior forward Jared Rice.