Edinburg North standouts Tristan Peña and Beth Ramos are among the nominees for boys and girls Cross Country Athlete of the Year. The winners will be announced at the 2017 All-Valley Sports Awards Banquet on June 10 at Mario’s Banquet & Conference Center in Mission.
Former San Antonio Spurs forward Robert Horry will be the keynote speaker.
The nominees for Boys Cross Country Athlete of the Year:
>> Daniel De La Cruz, Donna North: De La Cruz came in third at the Class 5A Region IV meet and led his team to a second-place finish at the UIL Class 5A state with a 14th-place individual finish.
>>Brandon Gracia, Rio Grande City: Gracia consistently had the lowest times in the Valley. He came in second at the Class 5A regional meet and finished first at the District 31-5A meet to mark his fourth win of the season.
>>Tristan Peña, Edinburg North: Peña finished ninth at the Class 6A Region IV meet and qualified for state. At the state meet, Pena picked up a 16th-place finish.
The nominees for Girls Cross Country Athlete of the Year:
>>Beth Ramos, Edinburg North: Ramos finished first at the Class 6A Region IV meet and came in 24th at state. She was plagued by injures but won all but two of the races she competed in.
>>Brianna Robles, La Joya Palmview: Robles came in seventh at the UIL Class 6A state meet, making her by far the best Valley finisher at the state meets, boys or girls, 6A or 5A. She also posted five wins and two second-place finishes on the season.
>>Tina Sierra, La Feria: Sierra capped off her high school career by winning the individual title at the District 32-4A meet. She took gold in the Class 4A Region IV meet in Corpus Christi and came in sixth place at the UIL state meet in Round Rock.
The Banquet, hosted by RGVSports.com and AIM Media Texas in conjunction with the RGV Sports Hall of Fame, will see 33 awards presented to standout athletes, coaches and teams across all 12 UIL sports. The highly prestigious Tom Landry Award of Excellence will honor a student-athlete for outstanding achievements on and off the field.
The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, The Brownsville Herald, Mid-Valley Town Crier and RGV Sports Hall of Fame will vote to determine the winners in the sports categories. While The Monitor, the Star and the Herald have previously named their All-Area teams in certain sports, the All-Valley Sports Awards Banquet will recognize the very best across all three coverage areas.
Tickets for the catered banquet, which will run 6 to 8 p.m., will be available soon at a cost of $40 per person. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. For more information, contact Marcia Kitten at 956-683-4463.
Horry won seven NBA Championships and earned the moniker “Big Shot Rob” for clutch performances during his 16-year NBA career that included stints with the Spurs, Houston Rockets, Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers.
