Keith MacPherson, Sports Editor
Gainesville Daily Register
LINDSAY — It wasn’t his best but he’ll take it.
With bigger meets looming – regionals and state – Valley View’s Gonzo Dominguez was looking to see what type of shape he was in at the District 13-1A cross country meet on Monday.
What he found instead was a gold medal in helping pace the Eagles to a first place finish at the meet.
“I pushed as hard as I could,” Dominguez said. “Right now I wanted to just see where I’m at (physically). I’ll pick it up at my next race and see where I go from there.”
Dominguez ran at 16 minutes, 57.90 seconds in the 5-kilometer race that twisted behind Lindsay High School before finishing up on the track at Henry B. Schroeder Stadium.
“It was a little bit muggy today,” Dominguez said. “That made it hard to breath. Other than, that I was pretty happy with how I did. I felt good out there.”
The Region II-1A race will be Nov. 3 in Arlington.
Dominguez, who went with the team to state last year, has been pushed by sophomore Hunter Barnes all season long.
Barnes took second in the race with a time of 17:05.79.
“He’s the one who pushes me the whole way,” Dominguez said. “I can’t thank him enough. This being my senior year, I want to do my best and he’s always there to push me.”
Micah Davidson took third for the Eagles and Kollin Meyer was fifth at the race. Joe Don Pembroke was ninth, Austin Collett was 17th and Paril Bhakta was 26th.
With regionals looming, Dominguez is excited to compete and, perhaps, punch his ticket to Austin and the state meet soon.
“I think after last year’s trip to state it made us all realize we had a chance this year,” he said. “That’s been a big motivator for us all season.”
