EDINBURG — Edinburg North’s San Juanita Leal broke out in a big way during her sophomore year, advancing all the way to the UIL 6A state cross country meet, where she finished 23rd.

Going into her junior year, Leal set high expectations for herself, eyeing a return to the state meet and breaking the sub-18-minute mark.

The Cougars’ junior wasted no time meeting one of her goals, finishing in 17 minutes, 46.5 seconds during the Edinburg High Invitational on Saturday at Ebony Golf Course in Edinburg, her first meet of the year.

Leal’s time makes her only the fourth girls runner in Valley history to record a sub-18 in the 5,000-meter run, according to Valley track and field and cross country historian Carlos Vela. She joins Edinburg High’s Alex Cruz, Edinburg North’s Bethany Ramos and La Joya Palmview’s Brianna Robles, all who went on to run at the college level.

“Last year at state, it was great. I learned a lot about my will,” she said. “I saw how I was willing to do all this stuff to get there and be this good. Saturday felt amazing. I wasn’t expecting to go under 18 minutes. Before I started, my goal was to get under 18 minutes by the end of the season. Now, I already did that.”

Leal made changes to her training style over the summer, opting to run with a group rather than alone. The group runs gave her a new view of the sport, she said.

“Running came to me naturally. In elementary I was just fast,” Leal said. “Then competing-wise, in sixth grade I did my first 10K and I did pretty good. I finished in less than an hour. It wasn’t until the summer that I started falling in love with it, though. I started running with a group of people, and that helped me love the sport more. Usually, I did my workouts by myself. With people it is really different and I like it.”

In addition to her group runs, Leal added a running watch to her training and raceday attire.

The two changes have helped her with her pacing this year, Leal said, something she admits to having struggled with in the past.

“It helped a lot. Me, personally, I’m not good at pacing myself. I’d go too slow or too fast. I would just go off of it. With them, it’s different,” Leal said. “I didn’t like to wear a watch to run. Now it’s really useful to see. At the same time, I don’t like it because I keep on looking at it. Also, you might disappoint yourself with a watch when you realize you’re going too slow. But it’s helped me pace myself a little more.”

While one of her goals for the season is already under her belt, Leal remains focused on the next race, gearing up for another run to the state meet.

“My goal for the end is state and hopefully place in the top 10,” she said. “Last year I got 23rd during my first time going and honestly, I was pretty shocked. Hopefully I can improve my finish and now hit a low 17-minute mark.”

Leal is scheduled to run in the 12th annual Edinburg North RGV Classic Invitational on Saturday at Monte Cristo Golf Course in Edinburg.

BEST OF THE BEST

The Rio Grande Valley Coaches Association released its top 10 team rankings for the season, with Sharyland High ranking first in both the boys and girls polls.

The teams have swept the team championships during their past two meets, coming in first during the McAllen Bulldogs Invitational (Aug. 19) and Pioneer Invitational (Aug. 27). They also came in second during the Rio Grande City Rattler Invitational, their first meet of the year.

Harlingen High and McAllen High joined the Rattlers as the only other two teams to crack the top 10 in both the boys and girls polls. The Cardinals cracked the top five in both, ranking fourth in the boys and third in the girls. The Bulldogs sit at No. 2 in the boys poll and seventh among the girls.

For full top 10 rankings and times, click here.

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