DALLAS -- Freddy Araujo of El Paso Lydia Patterson Institute was just unstoppable here Saturday morning.
The Lion runner sped his way to a new course record of 15:42 in winning the gold medal at the TCIL State Cross Country Championships.
His determined running and teammate Jose Carlos Ponce's fourth-place finish (15:37) enabled Lydia Patterson to take second in the team race with 60 points. Houston Strake Jesuit used group running to grab the state crown with 29 points.
"They (LPI) handled themselves beautfiully, considering we didn't know the course that well and the weather (around 45 degrees, windy and cloudy)," LPI Coach Juan Contreras said.
The Lions, making their first appearance at this state level, backed their effort with Roberto Sullivan (14th, 16:27), Ernesto Hernandez (20th, 16:50) and Manuel Portugal (21st, 16:56).
LPI had to overcome not being familiar with the grassy, hilly course because "we walked the course Friday but it was hard to tell which way the course was going to go."
Contreras added, "I'm quite proud of Freddy. George Bean (of Strake Jesuit, owns a 1:50.0 best in the 880) gave him a pretty good run. But Freddy hung in there and beat him out.
"Midway through the course there was a steep hill, that was the toughest part."
Bean went on to finish eighth while Neto Cardenas of Corpus Christi took second in 15:25.
The Lions, therefore, made a rags-to-riches climb after winning their district championship over El Paso Cathedral on Nov. 3.
TEAM SCORING -- 1. Houston Strake Jesuit 29, 2. El Paso Lydia Patterson 60, 3. Dallas Bishop Lynch 124, 4. Houston St. Thomas 124. 11 schools competing.
Source: El Paso Times, Sunday, November 16, 1980
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