Antonian Boys, Girls win TMI's Panther Invitational

By Jon Walk
Lone Star Christian Sports Network Correspondent

The shot you heard Saturday morning at Texas Military Institute’s Panther Invitational Cross Country Meet in San Antonio was more than just a starter’s pistol.
It was an early season warning that Antonian College Prep was ready to defend its 2011 Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) state cross country titles.
And the defending 5A individual state champion Anthony Gallardo also put everyone on notice that he plans to lead the way.
But it wasn’t without a little work from last year’s TAPPS 4A fourth place state meet finisher Chris Pietraszkiewicz, a junior this year at TMI.
The Apaches’ boys, led by Gallardo’s winning 5-kilometer time of 15 minutes, 56 seconds, scored its five runners in the top seven places for an impressive 40-point win over FEAST, a San Antonio-based homeschool – and traditionally strong cross country – program.
Pietraszkiewicz didn’t disappoint as he finished just six seconds, in 16:02, behind Gallardo.
Antonian seniors Emilio Mendoza, Aurturo Ayon and Nicholas Rodriguez finished third, sixth and seventh, while Mateo Mendoza was fourth.
FEAST’s Daniel Young broke up the Apaches’ domination with a fifth-place overall finish in 17:18.
One of the SPC’s top 25 state meet finishers Josh King of San Antonio St. Mary’s Hall was 11th in 18:01 while Boerne Geneva School senior Jack Clifford, part of the school’s 2011 TAPPS 1A state champion unit, was 16th in 18:29.
While the Lady Apaches’ margin of victory over FEAST Home School was half of that of the boys, Antonian’s girls won with a very young , yet poised squad.
Senior Bridgette Kozar, fifth at the TAPPS 5A state meet a year ago for Antonian, covered the 2-mile distance in 12:29 for the win while sophomore teammates Robin Montemayor and Rachel Frei finished second and fourth, respectively, with FEAST’s Hannah Bowden in third.
Frei was followed across the line three seconds later, in 13:39, by FEAST’s Lydia Gill.
Incarnate Word, which was third in the team scoring, was led by senior Regan O’Brien, who was tenth in 13:56.
Junior Berkeley Brown, who was 20th at the TAPPS 4A state meet for Texas Military Institute last October, finished seventh overall – one spot behind Bandera’s Karla Presa.
TAPPS 1A defending state champion Maddie Inglish, a junior from Boerne Geneva School, was 14th overall in 14:07.

Boys
Team Scoring – Antonian 21, FEAST Home School 61, St. Mary’s Hall 100, TMI 114, Houston Spring Woods 133, Cornerstone Christian 152, Hondo 184, St. Anthony 203, LaPryor 257.
Girls
Team Scoring – Antonian 27, FEAST Home School 47, Incarnate Word Academy 113, Hondo 121, Bandera 132, Houston Spring Woods 177, TMI 178, Cornerstone Christian 226, Boerne Geneva School 231, St. Mary’s Hall 235