Lamar’s Heymach among state favorites
Lamar junior Julia Heymach lost a shoe at the Class 6A-Region III Cross Country Championships, but the state’s top distance runner refused to lose her cool.
Arguably the state’s premier distance runner, Heymach survived a strong field on a mudcovered course at Huntsville’s Kate Barr Ross Park, winning the girls’ 5,000-meter race in a time of 19:30.60.
“One of Julia’s shoes came off during last threequarter of a mile,” said Robert Collett, Lamar’s head girls cross country coach. “But Julia finished the race and won. It was pretty unbelievable.”
Collett, though, was holding his collective breath during every one of Heymach’s strides.
“With conditions like that, you worry about your kids twisting an ankle or getting injured,” Collett said. “Fortunately, that didn’t happen.”
Instead, Heymach, a track and field state champion in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter races last spring, pulled away to win by nearly a minute over Memorial’s Khayla Patel (20:36.40).
The top four teams at regionals advanced to the University Interscholastic League State Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Nov. 7, at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock. Katy Seven Lakes was the Class 6A-Region III girls’ regional champion with 87 points, followed by Katy Cinco Ranch with 98 and Cy-Fair and Katy with 108 each.
Aside from Heymach, Lamar’s girls weren’t a factor for the team title, finishing 12th in the standings with 357 points.
Junior Julia Irr was Lamar’s second runner, coming in 62nd in 24:06.00.
“I’m proud of our girls,” Collett said. “If you asked me before the season if I thought we could be in the top half of the region, I wouldn’t have believed it. They worked so hard and kept improving.”
On the boys’ side, Bellaire junior Ababu Mohamed was the first to cross the finish line from Houston ISD. Mohamed placed fourth in 17:52.60.
“It was a struggle for everyone, but Ababu stayed mentally strong,” said Bellaire head boys cross country coach Brett Hervat. “Overall, the times were great, but Ababu was still in the top four in the region. That’s an impressive achievement.”
As a team, Bellaire’s boys were 12th with 311 points, one spot higher than Westbury with 315.
The top four boys’ teams were Katy with 61 points, Aldine MacArthur with 95, Katy Seven Lakes with 106 and Strake Jesuit with 130.
At the Class 5A-Region III meet, Lee led the way with an 11th-place showing with 370 points. Senior Filmon Beyene (22nd, 19:16.80) was the Generals’ pace-setter.
College Station was the boys’ Class 5A-Region III regional winner, followed by Richmond George Ranch with 83, Stratford with 97 and Mont Belvieu Barbers Hill with 113.
The Class 5A-Region III girls’ champion was Stratford with 47 points, followed by College Station with 65, Magnolia with 105 and Fort Bend Ridge Point with 139. Volleyball playoffs coming up
The Bellaire girls volleyball team proved it’s the class of District 20-6A, just one win away from a perfect sweep.
But can the Cardinals’ success extend to the Class 6A playoffs?
That’s a question that even Bellaire head volleyball coach Ap Clarke doesn’t know at this moment. “You always wonder if you can adjust to the quick pace once you get to the playoffs,” Clarke said. “We haven’t seen that in a while and it’s a concern.”
Bellaire is 31-5 overall and 15-0 in league play entering its finale against Carnegie Vanguard at 4:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, at Butler Field House.