In his high school debut, Tiger freshman De’Andre Stephens was named as the Ganado Relays “Top Overall Boys Athlete” after racking up 33 of his team’s 120 points with silver medals in the high jump, triple jump, 200-meter dash, mile relay and a gold in the sprint relay.
Second-year head coach Chris Van-Cleave was impressed with how his team performed this past Thursday.
“The first meet went pretty well and it was competition from around the state,” VanCleave said. “The boys are not quite all the way healthy, but they are running great to see some different times that we ran at the end of April 2022.”
“Freshman De’Andre Stephens was a bright spot and adding him with Tim Grice could be special for us as a team,” he added. “Seniors Aiden Hirt and Robert Owens are also providing a solid foundation.”
Other top athletes in Ganado for the Tigers were 2022 state silver medalist Timothy Grice, who placed second in the 100-meter dash and was a part of the sprint and mile relay teams with Stephens. Senior Robert Owens also picked up a bronze medal in the 100-meter dash and picked up gold, silver and another bronze in all three relays. Distance runner Yovanney Delgadillo also came home with silver in the mile and getting a bronze medal in the 3200-meter run. Teammate Cristo Hernandez placed third in the mile and fourth in the 3200.
As a team, the Tigers placed second out of six schools with 120 points. Class 4A Bellville won the meet with 208 points.
The Lady Tigers also competed well in Ganado with Taylor Delz taking home silver medals in the 200 and 400-meter runs. The RHS senior also placed fourth in the high jump and accounted for 19 of the school’s 69 points.
The girls also had two second- place relay teams, both made up of Ciara Miles, Georgia Woodard, Jazalle Dunn and Raelynn Jackson.
For VanCleave, having enough girls to put together multiple relays is a sign of progress for the program.
“On the girls’ side, it was great to have varsity relays again,” he said. “I’m excited to see what this season holds for them.”
Other schools running in Jackson County included Bellville, Tidehaven, Wallis-Brazos, Ganado, Louise and Schulenburg.
RELAYS— On Friday, Tiger Stadium will host the 65th Rockdale Relays, which hosts nearly as many 5A and 6A programs as there are 3A and 4A programs.
For VanCleave, the team’s focus isn’t necessarily on wining the Rockdale Relays, but to hold their own against some of the stellar competition coming to town and keep their eyes on the bigger picture. “The Rockdale Relays is loaded with bigger schools,” he said. “I would like to see our kids compete at that high level and just get better each week.”
“It’s a long season, I want them to enjoy the ride and continue to progress,” he continued. “Nobody cares about what we accomplish in February and March, our goal is a district championship in April and see what shakes out after.”
Field events begin at 1:30 p.m., with the 3200-meter run beginning at 3. The rest of the running events start at 5 p.m. For a full itinerary, see the first column of page 1B.
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