Men’s Track & Field Wins TAPPS 4A State Championship!

A huge congratulations goes to the St. Michael’s Men’s Track & Field team—and Coach Augie Alcala—for capturing the TAPPS 4A State Championship trophy on May 6! Not only did St. Michael’s win the entire championship, but the Relay team of Marcus Whipper, Patrick Doyle, Ricky Vargas, and Elijah Gifford won first place in the 4x400m event, with a time of 3:23.19, AND broke the TAPPS 4A state record! According to Coach Alcala, the relay team continues as the fastest in all of Austin at the high school level, including all classifications at all public and private schools.
The first place win in the 4x400m event earned the St. Michael’s team 20 points and catapulted the school into first place as a team overall. The alternates for the 4x400m relay team were Justin Mikell and Matthias Mahoney.

Mason Anderson opened the scoring by placing 6th in the discus and 9th in the shot put. Patrick Doyle had a great day jumping, earning bronze in both the high jump and long jump. Joe Lawler finished out Friday by placing 7th in the 3200m. Then on Saturday, the 4x200m relay (Kyle Lilly, Marcus Whipper, Gabriel Cascarano, and Patrick Doyle, with Malone Drewett as an alternate) placed 3rd. Marcus Whipper placed 6th in the open 400m.

The most outstanding performer of the day was Elijah Gifford. Elijah placed 2nd in the 110m hurdles. In one of the most exciting races of the day, the 300m hurdles, Elijah came from 10 meters behind and caught the reigning state champion (Tyler Hart), as they cleared the last hurdle and surged toward the finish line. Elijah was crowned state champion in the 300m hurdles and set a new TAPPS 4A state record!

We entered the final race of the day in 3rd place as a team. Our 4x400m relay team rolled out and delivered the final blow by placing 1st and earning 20 points, pushing St. Michael’s into 1st place as a team and setting a new TAPPS 4A State record.

Coach Alcala said, “My mission when I was hired was to get St. Michael’s Track & Field back to where it was when I graduated as a state champion in 2009. To be able to come back and be the person to lead us back to the top is a dream come true! There’s an unparalleled passion and sense of pride that comes with coaching the very program that molded and shaped yourself.  

“Going into the 4x400, we all knew that if won the race, we would win the meet. I was extremely impressed with the poise and focus that the 4x4 guys displayed going into such a high pressure situation. I must confess that I was probably more nervous than any of the athletes! It was a close race that was decided by only 4 tenths of a second, but when our anchor leg, Elijah Gifford, pulled ahead into 1st place coming down the homestretch, I was completely overwhelmed with emotion. All the hard work, all the dedication, all the speeches about what it means to wear the Crusader name on their chests, and understanding the true value of being a part of the ‘Crusader Track & Field’ legacy came together in one single moment of pure elation and satisfaction. With that performance, they completed the reestablishment of Crusader Track & Field to its rightful place—at the top! I love this school; I love this program; and I love this community. To be able to make Crusader Nation proud is a genuine blessing.”

Well said, Coach!

On the girls’ side, Danielle Escutia placed 6th and Alexandria Glenn placed 8th in the Women’s 3200m, while Genoveva Guerrero placed 5th in shot put, and Tara Senn placed 10th in pole vault.
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