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YVHS cross country teams make their mark in Oklahoma mud
By Dave Miller / Hi-Desert Star
STILLWATER, Okla. - For the first time in history, Yucca Valley High School's varsity boys and girls cross country teams travled to Oklahoma to take part in national competition.
Proving themselves the little team that could, 21 high school age boys and girls worked weekend after weekend with one goal on their minds: Attending the 69th annual Cowboy Jamboree here Saturday, at Coach Jay Stepp's alma mater, Oklahoma State University.
To make the trip with 21 teen-agers and 8 chaperones, this group of eager young people raised $14,000 through donations and fund-raisers, such as more car washes then most of them would care to remember.
”The kids and I want to thank the community for assisting us in raising the funds needed to make this trip to young adulthood,“ Stepp said. ”The kids are still talking about the experience.“
Competing in the top high school division in the State of Oklahoma, Division 5A, one of Stepp's two varsity girls teams finished 9th in a field of 26 high schools from Oklahoma and across the nation.
Emily Snyder, a diabetic, furnished all 170 runners in her race with an example of raw courage as she led her teammates despite a blood sugar of 59. Snyder's time was impressive at 12:41.
Finishing 47th for the Lady Trojans was Sara Presley, 12:59; 56th was Randi Gheta, 13:07; 65th was Candace Salas, 13:13; 78th was Janine Watkins, 13:26; 103rd was Sarah Swanson, 13:50.
As Stepp likes to mention ”pack attack“ as many times as he can in one interview, you will note little more than 1 minute separated all six runners. ”All we have to do now is move the pack up a little,“ Stepp said with a smile.
”The girls ran a 3,200-meter course and the boys ran a 5,000 meter course. That's about 165 meters longer than we're used to,“ Stepp said.
”On top of that, we had an Oklahoma rain the night before the Saturday race. The course was soaked and muddy for the race.“
The second varsity girls team from Yucca Valley High School competed in the Division 3A/4A race, where the Trojans normally compete, and finished 13th out of 25 teams.
Chelsea Rexroat led the second varsity team, finishing 23rd in a field of 182 runners with a time of 12:55.
Katy Tucker finished 27th in 12:59; Jennifer Hazell was 64th in 13:42; Jesicah Velasquez finished 91st in 14:06; Jackie Ficara was 136th in 15:08; Elisa Escalante was 167th in 17-flat; Elish Tucker was 169th in 17:16.
The Trojan varsity boys finished 22nd in a field of 28 high schools in the Division 5A race.
Tops for the Trojan boys was Chris Woolling, who finished 81st in a field of 196 runners with a time of 19:18. Don't forget, the boys ran 5,000 meters compared to the girls' 3,200 meters, thus the difference in times.
Brian Everest was 128th in 20:08; Bradley Jones was 135th in 20:20; Tommy Stevenson was 143rd in 20:28; Ryan Conway was 146th in 20:30; Eric Hanson was 158th in 20:55.
Two members of the Trojan boys junior varsity cross country team ran Saturday, Max Mellette and Quincy Kennedy. No times were available.
Experiences To Remember
As entertainment Saturday, the Trojans - boys and girls alike - had the opportunity to quickly wash off some of the mud from the race, then attend the Oklahoma State University vs. Colorado football game.
Stepp made few comments about the game; Colorado won, 34-0.
”They can't stop talking about the trip,“ Stepp said. ”We competed in the De Anza League Meet Wednesday, raced home for three hours sleep and departed at 4 a.m. Thursday. We arrived at 5:30 p.m. Oklahoma time in Stillwater.
”We had a workout, then went to dinner at Mexican Joe's. Friday, we held a 6:30 a.m. workout, then toured the university at 11:30 a.m. Next came a study session and as we were beginning our evening workout, the rain and lightning arrived. Thus we ate dinner at Mazzios Pizza and Spaghetti.“
Stepp said the Trojans stayed in the Holiday Inn and so did the Colorado football team.
”The kids and Colorado players got along great and we have a lot of pictures taken with their All-Americans.“
At 6 a.m. Saturday, race day, the team ate breakfast, then at 8:30 a.m. departed for the university for the running of the 69th Cowboy Jamboree.
”There was no time after the races, so we washed off the mud as best we could, then it was off to the football game.“
Saturday night's dinner was served at Sirloin Stampede, where steak, chicken and fish, along with all the trimmings were on the menu. ”It was all you could eat and Coach (Merl) Abel set a new team record for food consumption in one sitting,“ Stepp said.
”Sunday we slept in, got dressed and toured the university sports facilities. Then we toured the Oklahoma City National Memorial which remembers of bombing of the Edward P. Murrah Federal Building April 19, 1995.
”It was a very touching experience for the kids who got together and left a momento. They placed one of their racing bibs that was signed by everyone on the fence which surrounds the memorial. It was a humbling experience for a lot of them.“
But that wasn't everything.
While waiting for their flight home, the team met John Lucas, a former Oklahoma State University basketball player who has been drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves. The kids and pro bonded and just about everyone had their picture snapped with Lucas.
Proving themselves the little team that could, 21 high school age boys and girls worked weekend after weekend with one goal on their minds: Attending the 69th annual Cowboy Jamboree here Saturday, at Coach Jay Stepp's alma mater, Oklahoma State University.
To make the trip with 21 teen-agers and 8 chaperones, this group of eager young people raised $14,000 through donations and fund-raisers, such as more car washes then most of them would care to remember.
”The kids and I want to thank the community for assisting us in raising the funds needed to make this trip to young adulthood,“ Stepp said. ”The kids are still talking about the experience.“
Competing in the top high school division in the State of Oklahoma, Division 5A, one of Stepp's two varsity girls teams finished 9th in a field of 26 high schools from Oklahoma and across the nation.
Emily Snyder, a diabetic, furnished all 170 runners in her race with an example of raw courage as she led her teammates despite a blood sugar of 59. Snyder's time was impressive at 12:41.
Finishing 47th for the Lady Trojans was Sara Presley, 12:59; 56th was Randi Gheta, 13:07; 65th was Candace Salas, 13:13; 78th was Janine Watkins, 13:26; 103rd was Sarah Swanson, 13:50.
As Stepp likes to mention ”pack attack“ as many times as he can in one interview, you will note little more than 1 minute separated all six runners. ”All we have to do now is move the pack up a little,“ Stepp said with a smile.
”The girls ran a 3,200-meter course and the boys ran a 5,000 meter course. That's about 165 meters longer than we're used to,“ Stepp said.
”On top of that, we had an Oklahoma rain the night before the Saturday race. The course was soaked and muddy for the race.“
The second varsity girls team from Yucca Valley High School competed in the Division 3A/4A race, where the Trojans normally compete, and finished 13th out of 25 teams.
Chelsea Rexroat led the second varsity team, finishing 23rd in a field of 182 runners with a time of 12:55.
Katy Tucker finished 27th in 12:59; Jennifer Hazell was 64th in 13:42; Jesicah Velasquez finished 91st in 14:06; Jackie Ficara was 136th in 15:08; Elisa Escalante was 167th in 17-flat; Elish Tucker was 169th in 17:16.
The Trojan varsity boys finished 22nd in a field of 28 high schools in the Division 5A race.
Tops for the Trojan boys was Chris Woolling, who finished 81st in a field of 196 runners with a time of 19:18. Don't forget, the boys ran 5,000 meters compared to the girls' 3,200 meters, thus the difference in times.
Brian Everest was 128th in 20:08; Bradley Jones was 135th in 20:20; Tommy Stevenson was 143rd in 20:28; Ryan Conway was 146th in 20:30; Eric Hanson was 158th in 20:55.
Two members of the Trojan boys junior varsity cross country team ran Saturday, Max Mellette and Quincy Kennedy. No times were available.
Experiences To Remember
As entertainment Saturday, the Trojans - boys and girls alike - had the opportunity to quickly wash off some of the mud from the race, then attend the Oklahoma State University vs. Colorado football game.
Stepp made few comments about the game; Colorado won, 34-0.
”They can't stop talking about the trip,“ Stepp said. ”We competed in the De Anza League Meet Wednesday, raced home for three hours sleep and departed at 4 a.m. Thursday. We arrived at 5:30 p.m. Oklahoma time in Stillwater.
”We had a workout, then went to dinner at Mexican Joe's. Friday, we held a 6:30 a.m. workout, then toured the university at 11:30 a.m. Next came a study session and as we were beginning our evening workout, the rain and lightning arrived. Thus we ate dinner at Mazzios Pizza and Spaghetti.“
Stepp said the Trojans stayed in the Holiday Inn and so did the Colorado football team.
”The kids and Colorado players got along great and we have a lot of pictures taken with their All-Americans.“
At 6 a.m. Saturday, race day, the team ate breakfast, then at 8:30 a.m. departed for the university for the running of the 69th Cowboy Jamboree.
”There was no time after the races, so we washed off the mud as best we could, then it was off to the football game.“
Saturday night's dinner was served at Sirloin Stampede, where steak, chicken and fish, along with all the trimmings were on the menu. ”It was all you could eat and Coach (Merl) Abel set a new team record for food consumption in one sitting,“ Stepp said.
”Sunday we slept in, got dressed and toured the university sports facilities. Then we toured the Oklahoma City National Memorial which remembers of bombing of the Edward P. Murrah Federal Building April 19, 1995.
”It was a very touching experience for the kids who got together and left a momento. They placed one of their racing bibs that was signed by everyone on the fence which surrounds the memorial. It was a humbling experience for a lot of them.“
But that wasn't everything.
While waiting for their flight home, the team met John Lucas, a former Oklahoma State University basketball player who has been drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves. The kids and pro bonded and just about everyone had their picture snapped with Lucas.
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