Host Lions, Lionettes roar at Jim Hudson Relays

Updated: March 30, 2020

***The annual Jim Hudson Relays were run March 13-14 at La Feria High School.*** Photos courtesy of La Feria ISD Facebook page

By DAVE FAVILA
LFN

All high school athletics may be on hold in the state of Texas right now, but before restrictions were put into effect the annual Jim Hudson Relays track & field meet was held at La Feria High School on March 13-14. And the host team did particularly well as La Feria finished third in both the boys and girls divisions.

On the boys side, the Lions finished behind Lyford, which won the event, and Mission Veterans, which placed second.

Lions head coach Everardo Sanchez said some of the athletes on his squad that stood out included Santos Botello, who won the 800-meter run, and Julian Dominguez, who took bronze in the 800. Senior Ethan Padilla, who competes in the 4×100 relay, the 4×200 relays and the 200 also had a strong outing, Sanchez said.

“It was a good meet,” said “About 18 schools competed and the competition was solid all around.”

Meanwhile, on the girls side, the Lionettes finished behind Mission Veterans, who took gold, and San Benito, who won silver.

Some outstanding performers included Kaya Dickerson, who took gold in the long jump and silver in the 200-meter run, Elena Contrata, who won silver in the long jump, Analiza Rodriguez, who finished second in the 800, and Hailee Lonzano, who won gold in the pole vault.

“We had several athletes who did well and, overall, I feel like we are exactly where we need to be at this point in the season,” said Lionettes head coach Graciela Campos.

Naturally, the uncertainty of what the future holds for the remainder of the track and field season weighed on the coaches’ minds.

Shortly after the Jim Hudson Relays were run, the UIL announced that not only would it not allow any athletic contests during the coronavirus outbreak, it would also not allow any team practices of any kind.

Coach Sanchez looked at the bright side of things.

“Rest can be good and we have some athletes who could actually benefit from the rest,” he said. “Of course, we are hoping the break won’t last too long, but we’re just taking it one day at a time.”

Meanwhile, Coach Campos looked at the break as something unavoidable.

“This break affects everyone across the board, so it’s not like it just affects our team,” she said. “Of course it’s disappointing because you know how hard the athletes work and it’s frustrating that they can’t compete. But the bottom line is safety and that is what is most important, to keep the students safe.”