Amara Smith hits her stride during cross country action for Lehman last weekend. Smith finished fourth individually in the Moulton Invitational to lead the Lady Lobos to a first place team finish. (Photo by Judy Cooper)

by MARK CAUL

The Lehman Lobos Boys Cross Country team was ready to take on a new challenge at a different venue, but unfortunately two familiar foes had the exact same idea and made their presence felt.

Coach Jay Sansom’s Lobos finished third behind state-ranked Luling and old nemesis Lockhart at the Moulton Invitational in only their second meet of the season.

“There were obviously a lot of good teams at the meet who showed up with the same purpose in mind – and that was to compete against some of the best talent from all over the state,” Sansom said. “Luling and Lockhart have always had very strong programs and this year is no exception. But our guys did a great job of competing.”

Senior captain Eddie Chabarria, junior Javier Torres, sophomore Patrick Villareal, senior Ryan Sorensen and sophomore Brian Velasquez were all top five finishers at the meet.

“It was a new course for us but it was something that we were excited about trying,” said Sansom. “Anytime you can get any kind of work in at an unfamiliar venue it serves you well down the road.”

At the same meet, the Lady Lobos secured a first place finish with captain Amara Smith leading the way for Lehman with a fourth place finish clocking in with a time of 13:56.

Freshman Olivia Marzullo was close behind, finishing fifth (14:04), Jessica Castro was sixth (14:05) and Ashley Morgan (14:09) and Stephanie Favela (14:15) were among the top finishers for the Lady Lobos. The Lehman girls dominated the meet by placing seven runners in the top 15.

Erika Rangel and Mayra Zamora were the other two Lady Lobos who competed at the meet.

Both teams will return to action on Friday at the Pflugerville Invitational Meet at Northeast Park in Pflugerville.