MARFA — Marfa ISD will host a track meet for area junior high and high schools this coming Wednesday, February 26, at the Martin Field track.
High school events will kick off at 10 a.m. while junior high events will take place at 3:30 p.m.
Participating high school teams include Terlingua, Marathon, Marfa, Dell City, Sierra Blanca and Valentine. Participating junior high teams include Marfa, Dell City, Sierra Blanca, Marathon, Terlingua, Alpine Christian School, Valentine and Van Horn Junior High.
The event is free to attend and includes all standard track meet events, including the 1600-meter race, the 3200-meter race, relays, hurdles, high jump, long jump and more. There will be 21 junior high and 16 high school athletes competing from Marfa on behalf of the Shorthorns.
Marfa ISD track coaches this season are head coach Arron Luna and assistant coaches Oswaldo Luna and Kevin Pippen. The track season kicks off this weekend with a meet in Fort Stockton.
Wednesday’s Marfa track meet marks the second the district has held — the first last year featured only junior high athletes — since they installed the new track. Athletic Director Linda Ojeda said students not participating in the track meet will be able to spectate during breakfast or lunch to avoid classroom interruption.
She said it is meaningful for the always-traveling team to have a chance to perform on their home turf for friends and loved ones.
“A lot of our kids are going to actually compete in front of their parents,” Ojeda said. “That’s a big thing because a lot of our meets are out of town, just really in a place where their parents can’t get off of work to attend.”
“That’s one of the high points for me is that they are going to get to do this in front of their community,” Ojeda said. “And get to really see that their hometown crowd is going to cheer them on.”
If you are interested in volunteering to help run the track meet in Marfa on Wednesday, please contact the Marfa ISD Admin Office at 432-729-5500.