UIL boys state track and field: Martinez sixth in 800

AUSTIN Permian senior Jesse Martinez fulfilled a season-long goal Saturday by competing in the boys 800 meters at the UIL Class 5A State Track and Field Championships.

While Martinez wasn't completely satisfied with how he ran the race, he didn't have too many complaints about his sixth-place finish that scored one point in the team standings at Mike A. Myers Stadium.

Martinez finished in 1 minute, 55.83 seconds, which was slightly slower than his qualifying time. However, he ran past Dallas Skyline's Jodale Burkley and Lewisville's Joey Snelick down the stretch to earn the sixth position.

Snelick beat Martinez two weeks ago for the Region I-5A title in Lubbock.

"I kind of felt like I started off slow," Martinez said. "Then the last 400 meters, I felt like I got a boost of energy and that's when I started going and when I actually started running my race. It was like the first part was just there, basically."

Blake Shaw of Houston Cypress Falls, who had the nation's best time entering the race, won in 1:52.17.

Martinez ran around the front early before getting shuffled back and looked in danger of bringing up the rear before his strong finish over the last 150 meters.

"You're always disappointed when you're not in first place, but there's certainly no regrest because he gave it all he had," Permian boys coach Jeep Shanks said. "He came in with the mindset that he was going to leave it on the track and give it all he has and he wasn't going to settle for just finishing the race."

Martinez's time was slightly slower than his qualifying effort of 1:55.67 that got him second at the Region I-5A Championships in Lubbock to qualify for state.

Given the humid conditions and the estimated 14,000 in attendance, Martinez wasn't too hard on himself about the time.

"This crowd was just amazing -- I've never really ran with this many people (watching)," said Martinez, who has experience last summer from running at the USATF National Meet in California. "I came in and I was like, I want to get a medal, but then I was like I'd rather just PR than anything. I didn't, but I knew the reasons why so I'm comfortable with what I ran. I feel better running this 1:55 than I did in Lubbock."