Lytle Independent School District

“Boom, here comes the boom, Ready or not, here come the Pirates from the South, Boom, here comes the boom, Ready or not!

-from the song Boom from P.O.D 

Mrs. Cook created a YouTube video of the season and she finished with this song. This weekend at the State Cross Country Meet we accomplished a first for the history of Lytle Cross Country. Both the Girls and Boys teams stood on the medal stand. The ladies started the morning with the first race of the day. Much like the Regional Meet, it had rained the evening prior, which ushered in a cool front. The day was perfect again to run. Little wind and cool temperatures greeted the girls as they warmed up for the race. The biggest correction from last year’s State race was the start. The girls have been working on getting out quickly. At the Regional race, we ran with only six runners, sitting out Miss Samantha Mujica to help her foot to heal. Sam finished 3rd in the team and helped us finish with 122 points, 14 points behind second place Poth, to claim the first medal for the Lytle Girls. Here are the times which can also be found on the UIL state race results. 

Marissa Lopez 7th – Individual medalist 12:20 

Moriah Gomez 14th – All State 12:31 

Sam Mujica 55th 13:14 

Klayre Cook 66th 13:25 

Dez Ortega 75th 13:33 

Frankie Scotello 96th 13:51 

Eisabel Guerrero 100th 13:56 

A little about the Seniors who will always be able to claim the title of first medalist for Lytle Girls Cross Country. Much like Coach Benavides, who was the first team to claim a medal for Lytle back in 2009. 

Eisabel Guerreo 

Miss Izzy has the most experience of the Senior ladies, having run all six years in Lytle. She placed 3rd in her 8th Grade district race. This was Izzy fourth trip to the State Meet, qualifying as an individual her first two years and being part of the team the last two years. It is a grind to spend six years running and as a senior, many activities begin to make it difficult to finish well. Izzy overcame some injuries this year and was able to stand on the medal stand with a smile knowing she made a State appearance in her four years as a High School athlete. Well done. 

Dez Ortega 

Dezmarie ran a great race on her final run for Lytle. All year she balanced running and being part of an outstanding marching band. Every race this year she was the 7th girl on the team during the regular season. Those last two races she was the 5th girl for Lytle. In Cross Country, the 5th girl is the final scoring girl for the team. At the mile, she was running with Klayre Cook and Frankie Scotello, our two Freshman. She stayed with Klayre and was able to finish 75th at 13:33. Last year at the State Meet she ran 13:50. What an excellent job she did running for four years. 

Moriah Gomez 

Moriah was the 6th Grade Cross Country manager and ran in 7th Grade. She led the first 200m for the District race in Lytle but finished out of the medals by placing 13th. However, she chose not to run in 8th Grade. She did not return to Cross Country until her Junior year. She became the Senior leader of the group. She began to build the girls into a team and led them to rely on each other. Her dedication to be the best inspired the young Freshmen to believe in each other. Moriah ran her final race, finishing 14th which qualified her for an All-State honor. I know she will continue this drive during track season as the girls work to take a 4x400 relay to State. 

Marissa Lopez 

Marissa joined the Cross Country program as a Sophomore. During her Sophomore year she missed qualifying for the State Meet as an individual by one spot to Eisabel. I believe Marissa’s friendship with Moriah convinced Moraiah to return to Cross Country. Marissa ran a 12:20 two-mile time which placed her 7th overall and she became the second girl for Lytle to earn an individual Cross Country medal. Last year Marissa placed 55th to show the improvement and hard work she put in over the summer. Marissa brings a lighthearted joy to the team. This helps relax the ladies before the Meet and allows them to run at their best. 

All these Seniors will be missed and we know that they don’t ever leave but they just join that huge cloud of witnesses of alumni who have set the bar high for the girl’s program. 

On to the boys group. The boys were running to complete a perfect season. Never in Lytle can a boys team boast of winning every Meet. The first Meet the boys team won was the Floresville Meet in 2004. Since 2004 we have won many District titles, a few Regional titles and one State Championship. This team began in Floresville and won that Meet with Robert Wagner hurting his hip. During the run, we had different boys step up and allow the Lytle boys to be Meet Champions at Floresville, Medina Valley, Bandera, FEAST, Islander Splash, McNiel Invitational, Poth, District and Regional races. A State Championship would complete the perfect season. We arrived at the course on Friday, November 4, 2022, and warmed up on the course with the team who would challenge us for the title. Eustace had finished 2nd last year to our 3rd place and they were seeking the title. Coach Ruiz said as the boys eyed each other on Friday, it was like two big dogs with hair raised on the back of the neck and teeth barred. Coach Ruiz shared the live scoring that after the first mile Lytle had a one-point lead. After the second mile, we had stretched the lead to a precarious four points. When the final was verified, Lytle had 72 points and Eustace 82. This was the second State Championship for the Lytle Cross Country Boys team. 9 years ago, in 2013 we won the first title. Johnny Alvarez led the team as a sophomore and really stepped up this season. He became the 5th Lytle Pirate to earn an individual medal. He placed 9th, finishing the course in 16:26. Last year, as a Freshman he was 93rd running an 18:09. 

Johnny Alvarez 9th – Individual medalist 16:26 

Robert Wagner 19th 16:52 

Brandon Obando 23rd 17:01 

Abel Sanchez 40th 17:22 

Tristan Lopez 43rd 17:26 

Yandel Esquivez 54th 17:38 

Luke Estrada 121st 19:01 

Robert Lane Wagner 

The one senior on the team was the glue that held the team together in the midst of overcoming injuries and continuing the fight through the entire season. At the end of last season, Robert shared how he had to trust the others on the team as he battled with a hip injury. Robert joins the alumni having run for four years at the State Meet. He has earned a bronze medal last year and a gold medal this year. His first two years he played both Football and ran Cross Country. The last two years, he focused on Cross Country with the goal of being a State Champion. 

Finally, a few words need to be given in thanks. When we won the State Championship in 2013 there was no real fanfare or escorts into the city. We just ran to be the best. Robert made a statement at the District Meet that in Lytle we have a program. Many other teams are just teams. The program received so much support this year. Mayor Gonzalez sends the team off to the Regional race and State race by stretching a tape across main street. Coach Wilson fights for the team and allows the team to follow the plan set by Coach Ruiz. The whole administration was at the awards ceremony in Round Rock. Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Conover, Mrs. Stewart and Mr. Escamilla along with many others. At the Regional Meet, the Special Education department could have held a staff meeting. This means so much to the athletes as they feel this support. The team has great support from the parents. Mrs. Cook’s video highlighted the season for both the boys and girls teams. The expectations of the parents who want only the best for their children is shown in the support of meals, blankets and goody bags. It was exciting to see Sam Mujica holding the 3rd place trophy as her mom took a picture surrounded by her grandparents. I shared with Johnny’s dad how when the four Sophomores were 7th Graders, he had told them sitting on the field at Dilley after winning the District title that in four years they could be State Champions. Mrs. Olivia Martinez has been to every Meet. This Meet she gave every girl a yellow rose after they received their medals. I know the girls will always think of her highly. Having Coach Benavides added as the assistant has supplied broad knowledge of training and overcoming injuries. His insight and desire will continue to keep the Lytle program strong and take it to a new level of success. Finally, I want to thank Coach Ruiz for letting me continue to drive for the team. We knew last year that this was going to be a special year. It did not disappoint. It’s like being a chariot driver for a great general as he conquers the running teams in Texas. As we finish this special season, we wish the greatest of skill to the basketball teams and hope they will experience the joy of hoisting a State trophy. We know that with hard work it can be done. 

“Being average is to return no interest for God’s investment in you.”

- Anonymous