Region I-5A track: Monterey's Brandon Infante continues state tradition in high jump

Brandon Infante couldn't wait to call his former teammate Saturday.

Soon after receiving his medal, the Monterey senior was getting ready to tell Steven Runels the good news: the Plainsmen will once again have a state-meet competitor in the high jump.

A year after Infante fell one spot short of qualifying — and Runels won the region — he found redemption. Infante cleared 6-foot-6 to finish second at the Region I-5A track and field meet at Lowrey Field. It's the first state berth for Infante, who beat Granbury freshman Miller Schenewark in a jump-off to book his trip to Austin.

Infante got through the nerve-wracking situation by pretending even more was on the line.

"It felt like I had to go save my little brother. Like, if I couldn't get over this bar, he's gone, you feel me?" Infante said. "So I just put my mind to it and was like, '(Schenewark) fixing to take something from me that I really love to do.' I wasn't going to let it stop right now."

Clint Horizon's Ricardo Leyva won the event with a final jump of 6-11. He finished second at regionals last year to deny Infante, something the latter used as fuel throughout the season.

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Infante continued to get advice from Runels, who tied for fifth at state. Now he'll get his chance at Mike A. Myers Stadium on May 12, just as he predicted.

"Anything (Plainsmen) say we're gonna do, we're gonna get it done," Infante said. "I told Steven last year I'm gonna be back and I'm gonna go to state. … Made it happen."

Monterey will be represented in two other state events as well. Hebrew Hunter placed second in the triple jump Friday, and David Mora made up ground on the final lap to get second in the 1,600-meter run Saturday. They're part of a Lubbock ISD contingent that includes the Lubbock High trio of region-champion Reese Peña (3,200 and 1,600) and second-place finishers Elizabeth Florez (400) and Isaac Montoya (100 and 400 wheelchair). Coronado's Zanashia Harris qualified behind Peña in the 1,600.

It's an experience Infante plans to enjoy.

"It hasn't really sunk in," Infante said. "I'm gonna take today to celebrate and then get back to work."

Lubbock-Cooper's Wines meets 5A challenge

Niomi Wines knows what it's like to compete at the state meet. It will still be a new experience this time around.

The Lubbock-Cooper sophomore, who reached two events in the Class 4A meet while attending Big Spring, will return as a 5A participant. She clocked in at 24.09 seconds to set a personal record and place second in the 200.

Wines came into this season with a different mindset after a blasé attitude in her first year.

"Last year I really didn't have any cares," Wines said. "I was only a freshman. … (Now) there's pressure for me to go, and I did it."

She entered with the fourth-best qualifying time, but she knew she was capable. It was a situation similar to last season, when she was third in preliminaries at regionals.

"Last year it was the exact same thing," Wines said. "I got third (in prelims), and I came and won it. I could beat the girls once I got in a race with them."

Region I-5A track and field meet

at Lowrey Field/PlainsCapital Park

Saturday's events and team totals

BOYS

Team standings: 1. Mansfield Timberview, 77; 2. Denton Ryan, 58; 3. Aledo, 46; 4. Justin Northwest, 38; 5. North Richland Hills Richland, 36; 6. Midlothian High, 33; 7. Amarillo Tascosa, 32; 8. El Paso Parkland, 29; 9. Mansfield Summit, 28; 10. (tie) Lubbock-Cooper, Monterey, 26; 12. Argyle, 25; 13. Denton High, 21; 14. Grapevine, 20; 15. Fort Worth Southwest, 17; 16. Abilene Wylie, 15; 17. Amarillo High, 12; 18. (tie) Clint Horizon, Fort Worth Wyatt, 10; 20. Abilene High, 9; 21. (tie) El Paso Chapin, Colleyville Heritage, 8; 23. Burleson Centennial, 7; 24. (tie) Granbury, North Richland Hills Birdville, 6; 26. El Paso Hanks, 5; 27. (tie) Azle, Burleson High, Coronado, Wichita Falls Rider, 2; 32. (tie) El Paso Bel Air, Fort Worth Arlington Heights, 1.

Long jump: 1. Ke'Mauri Pinkard, Tascosa, 22 feet, 6 inches; 2. Dom Johnson, Birdville, 21-11; 3. Triston Johnson, Birdville, 21-9¼; 4. Gavin Parrott, Lubbock-Cooper, 21-6½; 5. Kenan Reil, Northwest, 21-5¾; 6. Ayden Thompson, Colleyville Heritage, 21-3½.

Discus: 1. Kyen Purser, Midlothian, 181-8; 2. Ryan Blake, Wylie, 172-3; 3. Garrett Finley, Colleyville Heritage, 166-7; 4. Marcus Garcia, Denton Ryan, 166-2; 5. Danny Bentley, Amarillo, 163-11; 6. Joey Haws, Centennial, 162-6.

High jump: 1. Ricardo Leyva, Clint Horizon, 6-11; 2. Brandon Infante, Monterey, 6-6; 3. Miller Schenewark, Granbury, 6-6; 4. Ke'Mauri Pinkard, Tascosa, 6-4; 5. Vincent Sipowicz, Lubbock-Cooper, 6-4; 6. Blake Courtney, Denton, 6-2.

Pole vault: 1. Gator Young, Argyle, 16-5; 2. Brad Campbell, Aledo, 15-3; 3. Eli Barnes, Argyle, 14-9; 4. Joshua Wright, Amarillo, 14-0; 5. Jaxon Salzman, Midlothian, 14-0; 6. Diego Constantino, Bel Air, 13-6.

Shot put wheelchair: 1. Zachary Carter, Monahans, 19-4¾; 2. Nathan Orcutt, Borger, 13-1½; 3. Avery Ferguson, Pampa, 11-0½; 4. Sam Watson, Pampa, 10-11; 5. Isaac Montoya, Lubbock High, 10-5; 6. Landon Underwood, Greenwood, 10-4½.

400-meter relay: 1. Timberview, 41.28 seconds; 2. Richland, 41.39; 3. Parkland, 41.58; 4. Lubbock-Cooper, 41.62; 5. Abilene 42.37; 6. Rider, 42.55.

800: 1. Andrew Lutkenhaus, Northwest, 1:53.36; 2. Seth Truax, Chapin, 1:57.04; 3. Vincent Luffey, Aledo, 1:57.06; 4. Ty Blair, Centennial, 1:58.09; 5. Noah Watt, Amarillo, 1:58.22; 6. George Simon, Argyle, 1:58.56.

110 hurdles: 1. Kenan Reil, Northwest, 13.93; 2. Cameron Bates, Timberview, 13.98; 3. Alex Moore, Timberview, 14.27; 4. Davare Payne, Abilene, 14.56; 5. Cam Manahan, Coronado, 14.94; 6. Michael Kiesel, Parkland, 15.06.

100: 1. Josiyah Taylor, Denton Ryan, 10.15; 2. Jayden Finley, Richland, 10.20; 3. Da'Marqis Lewis, Ryan, 10.38; 4. Cal Ritz, Lubbock-Cooper, 10.48; 5. Ras Ford, Burleson, 10.60; 6. Braden Regala, Wylie, 10.61.

100 wheelchair: 1. Zachary Carter, Monahans, 18.80; 2. Isaac Montoya, Lubbock High, 19.87; 3. Avery Ferguson, Pampa, 23.72; 4. Landon Underwood, Greenwood, 54.55.

800 relay: 1. Ryan, 1:24.68; 2. Aledo, 1:26.30; 3. Parkland, 1:27.06; 4. Summit, 1:27.84; 5. Richland, 1:28.45; 6. Midlothian, 1:28.56.

400: 1. Malik Franklin, Wyatt, 47.56; 2. Makya Beacham, Tascosa, 49.00; 3. Javontae McIntyre, Denton, 49.56; 4. Ethan Moffett, Timberview, 50.08; 5. Josh Montelongo, Azle, 50.27; 6. Aron Bell, Midlothian, 50.28.

400 wheelchair: 1. Zachary Carter, Monahans, 1:24.10; 2. Isaac Montoya, Lubbock High, 1:31.16; 3. Avery Ferguson, Pampa, 2:01.94; 4. Landon Underwood, Greenwood, 4:23.57.

300 hurdles: 1. Cameron Bates, Timberview, 36.58; 2. Kenan Reil, Northwest, 37.33; 3. Alex Moore, Timberview, 38.18; 4. Jaylyn Ferguson, Southwest, 39.47; 5. Zyrell Donaldson, Timberview, 40.16; 6. Josh Melson, Abilene, 40.86.

200: 1. Josiyah Taylor, Ryan, 20.93; 2. Da'Marqis Lewis, Ryan, 21.41; 3. Cal Ritz, Lubbock-Cooper, 21.81; 4. Matthew Tanner, Summit, 21.87; 5. Braden Regala, Wylie, 22.00; 6. Omari Mitchell, Timberview, 22.07.

1,600: 1. Adam Burlison, Grapevine, 4:17.46; 2. David Mora, Monterey, 4:17.87; 3. Wyatt Athey, Denton, 4:20.66; 4. Noah Watt, Amarillo, 4:23.28; 5. Tyler Westrom, Argyle, 4:23.78; 6. Alejandro Tarin, Hanks, 4:25.14.

1,600 relay: 1. Timberview, 3:15.74; 2. Aledo, 3:19.39; 3. Southwest, 3:22.00; 4. Northwest, 3:22.05; 5. Midlothian, 3:24.06; 6. Centennial, 3:25.44.

GIRLS

Team standings: 1. Timberview, 60; 2. Centennial, 58; 3. Chapin, 56; 4. Aledo, 52; 5. Ryan, 44; 6. Amarillo, 41; 7. Lubbock High, 32; 8. Northwest, 29½; 9. Lubbock-Cooper, 25½; 10. Summit, 21; 11. Midlothian, 20; 12. Arlington Seguin, 18; 13. (tie) Argyle, Burleson, 16; 15. Wyatt, 15; 16. (tie) Arlington Heights, Coronado, Midlothian Heritage, Tascosa, 12; 20. (tie) Granbury, White Settlement Brewer, 10; 22. Grapevine, 9; 23. Monterey, 8; 24. (tie) Canutillo, El Paso Burges, 6; 26. (tie) Abilene Cooper, Rider, Wylie, 4; 29. (tie) Amarillo Palo Duro, Joshua, Lake Dallas, 2; 32. Fort Worth North Side, 1.

Long jump: 1. Taylor Fingers, Timberview, 19-8¾; 2. Morgan Little, Chapin, 19-8; 3. London Tucker, Centennial, 19-5; 4. Jazlyn Hatcher, Abilene Cooper, 18-6¾; 5. Sofia De Groot, Lubbock-Cooper, 18-3¾; 6. Levariya Pinder, Northwest, 18-1¼.

Shot put: 1. Lauren St. Peters, Aledo, 47-5¾; 2. Madeleine Fey, Midlothian, 46-8; 3. Arrianna Allen, Summit, 41-1¾; 4. Kelly Mora, Monterey, 40-2½; 5. Altyn Bartley, Lake Dallas, 39-7¼; 6. Alyssa Smith, Wyatt, 37-8½.

Shot put wheelchair: 1. Kendra Murray, Tascosa, 15-9½; 2. Tahlie Brandt, Randall, 15-5½; 3. Emma Searl, Pampa, 9-10½.

Pole vault: 1. Mackenzie Blue, Northwest, 12-0; 2. Taylor Hindman, Aledo, 11-9; 3. Peyton Berry, Argyle, 11-6; 4. Maggie Kilburn, Aledo, 11-0; 5. Madeline Sumien, Joshua, 10-6; 6. Hollis Stowe, Tascosa, 10-6.

400 relay: 1. Centennial, 46.40; 2. Timberview, 46.70; 3. Chapin, 47.13; 4. Ryan, 47.15; 5. Wyatt, 47.87; 6. Northwest, 43.18.

800: 1. Sierra Cornell, Amarillo, 2:14.83; 2. Sofia Brandenburg, Aledo, 2:15.19; 3. Sarah Tillotson, Aledo, 2:15.69; 4. Zanashia Harris, Coronado, 2:17.45; 5. Natalie Rivera, Canutillo, 2:21.18; 6. Bailey Springer, Monterey, 2:23.40.

100 hurdles: 1. Kailyn Head, Ryan, 13.99; 2. Shaye Feely, Argyle, 14.70; 3. Juliana Patton, Burges, 15.19; 4. Keely Harper, Amarillo, 15.22; 5. Alleah Krote, Arlington Heights, 15.40; 6. Za'Miyah Dickson, Tascosa, 15.73.

100: 1. Morgan Little, Chapin, 11.59; 2. London Tucker, Centennial, 11.65; 3. Katelyn Haley, Ryan, 11.67; 4. Nia Trammell, Wyatt, 11.84; 5. Jayla Ford, Wyatt, 11.99; 6. Keagan Galmor, Lubbock-Cooper, 12.07.

100 wheelchair: 1. Tahlie Brandt, Randall, 22.25.

800 relay: 1. Centennial, 1:38.86; 2. Chapin, 1:39.12; 3. Timberview, 1:39.47; 4. Lubbock-Cooper, 1:41.13; 5. Ryan, 1:41.22; 6. Arlington Heights, 1:44.23.

400: 1. Angel Brefo, Midlothian Heritage, 55.72; 2. Elizabeth Florez, Lubbock High, 56.57; 3. Jayden Piper, Seguin, 57.97; 4. Trinity Avrilien, Chapin, 57.98; 5. Ja'Liyah Patterson, Argyle, 58.26; 6. Madyson Castellion, Amarillo, 59.04.

400 wheelchair: 1. Tahlie Brandt, Randall, 1:32.54.

300 hurdles: 1. Kailyn Head, Ryan, 43.89; 2. Anaya Potter, Northwest, 44.47; 3. Samahdi Foster, Chapin, 45.18; 4. Keely Harper, Amarillo, 45.31; 5. Reginae Essix, Monterey, 46.23; 6. Desiree Ingraham, Timberview, 47.48.

200: 1. Norah Nwonumah, Timberview, 23.73; 2. Niomi Wines, Lubbock-Cooper, 24.09; 3. Shaba Esther, Summit, 24.27; 4. Jayla Ford, Wyatt, 24.32; 5. Juantai Williams, Palo Duro, 24.42; 6. Hanyla Milligan, Timberview, 24.44.

1,600: 1. Reese Peña, Lubbock High, 5:09.99; 2. Zanashia Harris, Coronado, 5:17.14; 3. Ki Rendon, Brewer, 5:23.01; 4. Natalie Rivera, Canutillo, 5:28.04; 5. Adeline Turman, Amarillo, 5:28.98; 6. Janet Watson, North Side, 5:29.89.

1,600 relay: 1. Amarillo, 3:53.31; 2. Burleson, 3:56.97; 3. Seguin, 3:57.41; 4. Aledo, 3:59.25; 5. Wylie, 4:01.39; 6. Lubbock High, 4:03.04.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Region I-5A track: Monterey's Brandon Infante continues state tradition