Boys track and field: Crane's Garcia gets bronze in 200

AUSTIN Isidro Garcia got a medal, which was about the best thing possible Friday for the Crane High School senior.

The color of the medal and even the race weren't necessarily to his liking, so all that there was left for Garcia to do at the end of the UIL Class 2A State Track and Field Championships was shrug.

Garcia finished third in the 200 meters at the University of Texas' Mike A. Myers Stadium, his time of 21.91 seconds about what he's been at most of the year.

The bronze-medal showing in the 200 came on the heels of a sixth-place finish for Garcia along with teammates Jordan Mendoza, Justin Mendoza and Cody Black in the 800 relay.

As a junior, Garcia had been a state champion in the 400, but he changed to the 200 so he could run on both the 800 and 1,600 relays. The 1,600 relay was disqualified at the Region I-2A Championships, though, and all the Golden Cranes could do was pick up the pieces.

"I'm not disappointed, but I had a little regret for switching from the quarter to the 200," Garcia said. "But I did that for the team. I think sacrificing for the team is better than being selfish."

The Golden Cranes were seeded second in the 800 relay but managed only a time of 1:29.54. Garcia did note Crane's best effort probably wouldn't have been able to topple the 1:26.46 - a new Class 2A record - put up by Corrigan-Camden to win the relay gold.

After getting his bronze, Garcia shared a hug with boys head coach Henry Anderson and talked with his new coaches from Angelo State University.

Even on the heels of a down day, Garcia was optimistic about what is in store for him in track and field.

"Track has been a really big part of my life," Garcia said. "I hope it is in the future, too."

>> FAST IN FOURTH: Kermit junior Trey Bale finished fourth in the 1,600 with a time of 4 minutes, 29.81 seconds that was better than his 4:36.92 qualifying time from the regional meet.

Bale finished fifth in the 3,200 last season as a sophomore and has been a two-time state qualifier in cross country, as well.

In his first attempt in the mile at the state meet, Bale ran out to the lead and was ahead for the first 1,000 meters. The pack of five other runners in the race all went ahead of Bale heading into the final lap, but he kicked back over the final 150 to knock off two places.

He was less than a second from a medal but couldn't quite catch Holliday's Hance Loyd, who was the winner in 4:29.08.