For Lytle High School’s cross country runners, a late-summer trip into San Antonio offered more than another chance to log miles. It gave the Pirates an early look at how their training measures up against some of the region’s deeper programs — and several Lytle athletes came away with performances that could help shape the rest of the season.

Competing at the SA Friday Night Lights XC meet on Aug. 21 at Alamo City Youth Sports Fields in San Antonio, Lytle recorded a first-place individual finish, multiple personal bests and a pair of eighth-place team finishes against fields that included larger schools from across the area.

For families and supporters across the Lytle community, the results offered an encouraging snapshot of a program finding early-season speed while also building depth across its varsity and junior varsity groups.

Hailey Montes Wins JV Girls Race

One of Lytle’s biggest performances of the night came immediately.

Hailey Montes captured first place in the junior varsity girls race, finishing ahead of a field of 306 runners. Montes is not yet eligible to compete at the varsity level and will become varsity eligible during the upcoming track season, according to Lytle High School.

Haleigh Monreal also competed for Lytle in the JV girls race, finishing 130th.

The large field reflected the scale of Friday Night Lights, which brought runners from schools across the San Antonio region to the Alamo City Youth Sports Fields. Athlete Guild lists the meet as taking place Friday, Aug. 21, with hundreds of runners competing across its divisions. (athleteguild.com)

Quintanilla Leads Lytle Varsity Girls

Lytle entered four runners in the 1A-4A varsity girls division, leaving the Pirates one runner short of the minimum needed to register a team score.

Sophomore Annalise Quintanilla led the group with a personal-best performance and a 17th-place finish.

Elyse Cortinas followed in 24th place, while Sophia Herrera finished 100th and Addison Wagner placed 135th.

For a relatively small group competing in a crowded regional meet, Quintanilla’s personal record and two top-25 individual finishes gave Lytle another positive result to build on as the fall schedule progresses.

Lytle JV Boys Finish Eighth Against Varsity Competition

Perhaps the clearest indication of Lytle’s developing depth came from a group that was technically junior varsity.

The Pirates’ JV boys competed in the 1A-4A varsity boys division and finished eighth among 26 varsity teams.

Kaleb Cantu led the group in his first 5K, completing the course in 17 minutes, 22 seconds. Lytle coaches noted that Cantu entered summer training around the sixth or seventh position on the JV depth chart, making his emergence as the group’s leader at Friday Night Lights an early sign of progress.

Three teammates also established personal bests. Shawn Robinette finished 32nd, Frank Cantu placed 36th and Chase Burley came in 50th.

Weston Cook, who finished 144th, and Zane Davenport, who placed 153rd, helped round out the scoring effort that carried the group to eighth place.

Those performances could prove especially important as the season unfolds. Cross country team success depends not only on front-runners but also on having enough athletes capable of closing gaps and lowering the overall team score.

Varsity Boys Place Eighth in 5A-6A Field

Lytle’s varsity boys also tested themselves against larger-school competition.

Running in the 5A-6A division, the Pirates finished eighth out of 26 teams, another notable result for a smaller program competing against some of the San Antonio area’s larger schools.

Jacob Cantu finished eighth individually, while Adrian Reyna placed 19th. Both runners recorded personal bests.

Nathan Garza finished 61st, followed by Jaden Castro in 84th and Sebastian Garcia in 94th.

With Cantu and Reyna both inside the top 20 and the team finishing in the upper portion of the standings, Lytle left San Antonio with evidence that its front-end varsity runners can compete effectively in fields extending beyond the Pirates’ usual classification.

Community Support Follows the Pirates

The results were only part of what stood out to Lytle coaches.

Coach Ruiz thanked the families and supporters who navigated heavy traffic and lengthy walks around the venue to reach the course and support the student-athletes.

That turnout matters for a program built around athletes representing more than themselves. For the Lytle community, cross country meets can become another gathering point for parents, classmates and neighbors following students through a season defined by early mornings, long training runs and incremental improvements that may not always show up in a final-place number.

The support was especially noticeable at a meet where Lytle was surrounded by competitors from across Greater San Antonio.

Lytle Cross Country Continues at Medina Valley

Following Friday Night Lights, the Pirates were scheduled to return to competition Saturday, Aug. 29, at Medina Valley, with the meet also marking the season debut for Lytle’s junior high runners.

The scheduled lineup included:

• 7 a.m. — Large School Varsity Boys, 5K: Jacob Cantu, Adrian Reyna, Nathan Garza, Jaden Castro and Sebastian Garcia
• 7:30 a.m. — Large School Varsity Girls, 5K: Annalise Quintanilla and Elyse Cortinas
• 8 a.m. — Small School Varsity Boys, 5K: Shawn Robinette, Frank Cantu, Chase Burley, Weston Cook and Zane Davenport
• 8:30 a.m. — Small School Varsity Girls, 2 miles: Sophia Herrera and Addison Wagner
• 9 a.m. — Junior Varsity Boys, 5K
• 9:30 a.m. — Junior Varsity Girls, 2 miles: Hailey Montes, Kaycee Galindo and Haleigh Monreal

The junior high schedule was set to begin with the combined two-mile girls division at 10 a.m., featuring seventh-graders Parker Leverton, Sadie Hernandez, Valentina Palacios, Mila Antu, Marisela Angeles and Sophia Santoya, along with eighth-graders Monica Mercado and Karley Emerson.

The boys two-mile division was scheduled for 10:30 a.m., with seventh-graders Christopher Ramirez and Jacob Ramos and eighth-graders Mariano Davila, Drake Castro, Max Cortinas, Shawn Sanchez, Vance Schott and Daniel Reyes.

The meet was scheduled to use rolling starts, with each division beginning after the preceding race and the start and finish located on the track.

Early Results Give Lytle Something to Build On

Cross country seasons are rarely defined by one August meet. Times drop, lineups shift and runners learn how to handle different courses as district and postseason competition move closer.

Still, Friday Night Lights provided several encouraging markers for Lytle: Montes winning a field of more than 300 runners, Quintanilla lowering her personal best, the JV boys holding their own against varsity teams and the varsity boys placing eighth against 5A and 6A competition.

For the Lytle community, those results offer another reason to follow a group of local student-athletes whose progress can be measured one mile — and sometimes one personal best — at a time.

Stay tuned to My Neighborhood News for more local school, sports and community updates throughout the Lytle area.

By Tiffany Krenek, My Neighborhood News 

Tiffany Krenek has been on the My Neighborhood News team since August 2021. She is passionate about curating and sharing content that enriches the lives of our readers in a personal, meaningful way. A loving mother and wife, Tiffany and her family live in the West Houston/Cypress region.

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