Start the BUS
     Monahans boys, girls qualify several entries for 3A state meet
                by Sam Waller, Staff Writer ~~- Odessa American ~~May 1, 2005

For the Monahans High School track teams the motto could well be "The More, the Merrier."

The Loboes and Lady Loboes combined to claim five berths to the Class 3A state meet including three relays as the Region I-3A track and Field Championship concluded Saturday at Ratliff Stadium.

The Monahans boys finished second in the 400 and 800 meter relays adding to Richard Covington's second place finish Friday in the long jump.

The Lady Loboes also finished second in the 400 relay while Chelsea Cartwright won the 100-meter hurdles.  It is believed to be the first time Monahans has ever qualified a girls relay team for state, Lady Loboes Coach Chris Simpson said.

The Monahans boys rode the relay success to second place in the team standings with 51 points.  Sweetwater, which won all three relays won the boys crown with 76 points.

The Lady Loboes finished fifth in the girls team standing with 42 points the best showing among girls teams from the Permian Basin.

In the first race of the day the quartet of Cassie Smalls, Chelsea Cartwright, Crystal Madrid, and Jenna Fann clocked a time of 50.05 to finish behind Gainesville.  The Lady Loboes led at the final exchange only to have Gainesville anchor Alexia Moore turn in a blazing final leg.

"The third-place teams (from Friday's preliminary heats) came on and ran a lot better," Simpson said, "but we got it around, and that's what we had to do.  Jenna held them off.

"We knew Gainesville had a faster girl on that last leg, but our first three girls got us the lead and Jenna held on.  That's what we needed."

For Fann, it resulted in a trip to state for the fourth straight year.  After qualifying in pole vault the last three years, Fann was knocked out of the event with a sprained ankle just before the District 3-3A Meet.

But advancing a relay was more than just a consolation prize, Fann said.

"This is what we've been waiting for all year," she said.  "We've been wanting to make it in the sprint relay.  It's always been our favorite, most fun event that we've done all year.  We've been working on trying to get better every time."

The excitement from the 400 relay had hardly died down when Cartwright outraced Muleshoe's Jessica Withrow in the 100 hurdles.  Cartwright, a junior ran 14.70 to Withrow's 14-83.  No other finalist broke 15.10

"I'm Excited because this is my first year to be at Regionals and I'm doing so good," Cartwright said.

The Monahans boys used the same lineup of Tyqually Fletcher, Chris Roberson, Tyson Carter and Covington in both in both the 400 and 800 relays. The foursome ran 42.88 in the 400 and 1:28.75 in the 800.

"It gives us a routine and consistency," Loboes coach Mitch Woodard said of using the same lineup for both events.  "They do it over and over and over.  They run the same legs on both, so they had it to each other all the time."

In the 400 relay, Monahans was fifth on the final exchange but Covington made up three places on his leg.  

Covington just missed adding another state berth in the 100-meter dash, an event he won at the regional meet last year.

he senior ran 10.86 to finish third behind Sweetwater's Skye Green (10.60) and Gainesville's Jerome Hewitt (10.81).

"I'd rather go in the relays because I'd like for my friends to go since all of us are seniors except Chris," said Covington, who also placed fifth in the triple jump.  "It will be a great experience.  I went individually last year and it's great to go as a relay."