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Andrea Castaneda goes the distance. Levi Schifferns | SMHS
Patrick Lopez nears the finish line. Maryssa Sanchez | SMHS
Tylo Montes and Jared Gonzales outpace the competition. Levi Schifferns | SMHS
San Manuel Miner
Both the Miners boys’ and girls’ cross-country teams finished in first place in a Tri-Meet at San Manuel. The Miners hosted San Carlos and Globe. The boys’ team captured first-place by only three points.
James Duarte’s come-from-behind second place finish was the highlight of the varsity race. Patrick Lopez (5th), Juan Ortega (7th), Colton Stratton (9th), and Carlos Salas (13th) were the other top varsity finishers.
Tylo Montes finished first in the JV boys’ race.
All of the Miners girls’ runners finished in the top 10, including Andrea Castaneda (1st), Yesenia Arcienega (2nd), Jessica Lopez (3rd), Diana Medina (4th), and Rebekah Messing (9th).
The Miners participated in the 13th Annual Rattler Invitational in Marana, competing against teams in Divisions I – V. The boys finished 11th while the girls finished 10th.
The boys’ race included 120 runners and the girls’ race had 77. Patrick Lopez (26th) and Andrea Castaneda (25th) were the top Miners’ runners.
The Miners will spend the next two weeks training for the upcoming sectional meet looking to place high enough in competition for a trip to Phoenix to compete at the 2014 State Cross-Country Meet at Cave Creek Golf Course.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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