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Rio Rancho Girls defend home turf by winning district title

RRHS Girls Track
The RRHS girls distance team racked up 37 points in the distance events.
RRHS District Title
RRHS track and fields coaches celebrating with the district trophy won by the girls team.
Daniel Zuniga
Daniel Zuniga Observer correspondent
Published Modified

RIO RANCHO — The Rio Rancho High School girls track and field made sure the 5A District 1 trophy stayed put and won the district title by scoring 114 points May 10 on the home track.

The Rams had quite the day with many girls setting personal records just a week before the NMAA State Championships at the University of New Mexico.

The RRHS girls were district champions in six different events, including the 3,200-meter run, the 800-meter run, the pole vault, the shot put, the discus and the javelin.

The Rams won the triple crown in all three of the throwing events: freshman Anni Presser won the shot put with a throw of 34 feet, 5 inches; senior Aubrey Pino won the javelin with a throw of 108 feet, 3 inches; and sophomore Sarah Martinez won the discus with a spin of 118 feet, 4 inches; Martinez also came in second place in the shot put with a throw of 31 feet, 11 inches.

“Today wasn't that good [for me]. I still got first in district, though … I’m just saving my throws for state,” said Presser, who is hoping to be a foundational piece of the Rams track and field team for years to come.

RRHS had an outstanding showing in the pole vault, snagging first and second place. Junior Clara Hawkins took the cake by hitting the 9 feet, 6-inch mark while junior Lily Romero took bronze with 9 feet.

The RRHS distance team was absolutely elite , contributing 37 points to the Rams' total score.

Freshman standout Mariah Galbraith dominated the 3,200-meter run, winning the longest event of the day with a time of 11:18.55. Junior Caitlynn Parsons was a couple spots behind Galbraith in third place with a time of 12:43.64.

In the 1,600-meter run, Galbraith took second place with a 5:15.11 time, and senior Abigail Beam took third place with a 5:20.15 time.

And in the shortest distance run of the day, senior Ana Zarate-Aguilar reigned supreme with a time of 2:21.82.

After winning the district title, the Rams will look to carry the momentum to the UNM track fields May 16, where they will battle for a state title.

“Expect us to chase that state title. We have amazing athletes, so watch out for us,” Presser said.

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