Princeton senior Gabriella Trejo won the girls varsity race in the Princeton Invitational with a time of 12:56. Photo by Tina Lopez / C&S Media

By David Wolman

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Hosting their home invitational last Saturday, the Princeton cross country team experienced a good amount of success on their home course. 

The Princeton girls placed six runners in the top 20, leading the Lady Panthers to second place in the team standings with 31 points, while the Panther boys had one runner finish in the top five. Whitesboro, with 26, won the team title in the girls’ division. McKinney, with 27 points, cruised to the team title in the boys division.

Princeton senior Gabriella Trejo is in search of a fourth consecutive appearance in the regional meet and a third berth in the state meet. Trejo began her final high school season with a bang. She ran to first place in the 3.2-kilometer girls’ varsity race with a time of 12 minutes, 56 seconds.

The Lady Panthers showcased their depth, with their top five placers finishing within a minute of one another.

Samantha Valdez turned in the next-fastest time for Princeton, clocking a time of 13:20, good for third place. Evelyn Escamilla placed sixth with a 13:26. Marian Valdez also cracked the top 10, capturing ninth with a 13:39. Jillian McCarthy took 12^th in 13:39. Emma Dickerson (17^th, 14:45) and Elizabeth Fontt Cox (21^st, 15:51) rounded out the efforts for the Lady Panthers.

In the boys 3.2K race, Princeton’s Jose Sanchez had a solid showing in his first race of the season, running to second place with a time of 10:51. Henery Martinez placed 22^nd with an 11:46. 

Ashton Long led the way for Princeton the boys’ junior varsity race, placing third with a time of 11:51. Eli Fisher (14^th, 12:46), Josue Silva (17^th, 12:56) and Stephen Talley (18^th, 13:00) also cracked the top 20. Samuel Robles (24^th, 13:28), Tristan Fillingham (31^st, 13:49), Jaylen Woodson (32^nd, 13:50), Brenden Vessels (40^th, 14:17), Noah Loera (41^st, 14:17), Hayden Brister (42^nd, 14:18), Thaydan Fillingham (54^th, 15:06), Derek Gutierrez-Pineda (70^th, 17:35), Alex Osornio (71^st, 17:53) and Ethan Siekei (72^nd, 18:38) rounded out the efforts for the Panthers. 

On the girls side, Brooklyn Heller turned in the top time for Princeton’s JV team, placing 13^th with a 15:14. Saumya Joshi placed 16^th in 15:46, followed by Brooke Daniels, who ran to 17^th in 15:48. Janice James (32^nd, 16:56.15), Haylee Carlson (33^rd, 16:56.82), Eliahna Pinkard (44^th, 17:35), Mitzy Pineda (48^th, 17:57), Nicole Howard (76^th, 22:08), Alondra Alonso (78^th, 23:27) and Alissa Galloway (79^th, 25:09) also ran for the Lady Panthers.