Sandia CC

Welcome to Cross Country! Please check this site for updates to the schedules, forms, and other information. Official season will start in August, but volunteer practices will start in June.

8th graders will be allowed to participate, but you must meet with coach Adcox. You can call or email him with the information on the contact page.

Anyone else interested in joining, check here for meeting dates, reach out to one of the coaches, or message us on Twitter (@SandiaMatadorXC) or Instagram (@sandia.cross.country).

Also fill out the Google Form so we can add you to the email list.

Please check out the documents page for the Dragonfly signup instructions and to download the physicals.

The 2024 season was an exciting one. We were excited to continue to grow in numbers and as a team. It was another season of growth with lots of returning runners with some new faces to fill out the roster.

On the girls side, Senior Kayla Castro and Juniors Emma Babba and Isabella Costales led the team with Freshman Isabelle Maestas. It was a great core of four for most of the year, with all of them running near each other. Sophomore Holly Bustos and Senior Sophia really stepped up at the end of the year to round out our top 5. It was a frustrating 4th place finish at district, pushing us out of state by 2 points, after we were originally told that we were 3rd by 2 points. Kayla and Isabelle were our two state qualifiers, representing the team at the State Championships.

One the boys side, Sophomore Andrew Winder led the team through the year and was a top 20 finisher at state. Seniors Mason Glenn and Julius Arredondo were our next two athletes and great team leaders. Following them we had a group of great runners that were working hard and pushing eacher. Seniors Clayton Scott and Christian Clepper battled with Sophomores Bjorn Brinkerhoff, Roberto Castillo, Tristan Bernard, Zachariah Everage, Carter Martinez, and Evan Wong. We also had Freshman Sam Castro really stepped up at the end of the season and will be battling to be one of our top runners next year. The boys qualified for state by 2 points over Santa Fe and finished 12th overall with everyone running their best times at the end of the year.

It was a good year to continue to build on. Other seniors we will be missing as they move on are Astrid Quinonez, Khloei Peynetsa, and Alex Brodeur. There is a great young core that is ready for next year and the challenges of the upcoming track season.

The 2023 season started with a lot of excitement. We were able to grow the team from 35 athletes to 45. Although we had some tough injuries and didn't finish the season the way we had hoped, the core for the future is there. We will return 10 juniors for the next year to lead our team.

On the girls side, Isa was our top runner. After Emma had a season ending injury, the team stepped up, with junior Kayla leading the way after Isa. We had Freshman Holly that came in late to be a top 3 runner for the team and 8th grader Emma R having a great start to her first year in cross country. Junior Sophia and senior Ysareli Pardo also made the varsity team in their first year in cross country. Isa was our only state runner this year, but the future looks bright.

One the boys side, Thomas Winder led the team through the year being the top Sandia runner through the year. He was followed by fellow seniors Simon Totaro, Nathaniel Fitsum, and Aaron Portillo. Juniors Julius and Mason, as well as Freshmen Andrew and Tristan rounded out the rest of the Varsity team. Although we made good progress through the year, we just missed out on qualifying for state as a team, with only Thomas earning a spot.

It was a good year to continue to build on. Other seniors we will be missing as they move on are Isabella McClish, Josh Robinson, and Manager Josylin Bernard who really helped us when we needed it.

The 2022 season was one filled with hope and excitement. We were excited to be back and grow as a team with some new recruits and a great core. Although it ended a little bittersweet, it was a great year to build on.

On the girls side, two freshmen, Emma and Isa, came in strong and helped lead the team through the season. Senior Amelia Romero dealt with an injury to start the season, but came on strong to finish. Fellow seniors Pilar McCulley and Erika Simon Madero helped round out the team, along with exchange students Johanna Kern and Marina Tinajero Ortega. It was a frustrating 4th place finish at district, pushing us out of state by 3 points. Emma was a top 5 finisher at District, earning a state birth, where she placed 14th.

One the boys side, Steven West took home individual honors again, becoming the first two-time cross country champion in school history. We finished 7th as a team with Seniors Tayler Vance, Ivan Watchman, and Ian Hoffman helped round out the team with underclass men Thomas and Simon. We also had 8th grader Andrew become out first 8th grade varsity runner.

It was a good year to continue to build on. Other seniors we will be missing as they move on are Karina Padilla, Karina Rodriguez, Laney McBurney, Kassandra Carpenter, Tyler Yepa, Nathaniel Fisher, and Byron Smith. We'd also like to thank Kaien Komine, another exchange student that joined us this year.

What can be said about the 2021 season. We finally got back to normal. We were able to meet and run without pods, the team grew slowly through the year, and most importantly, the team became a team.

We dealt with some injuries on the girls side, with Tori Barreras dealing with a back injuries and two seniors (Annie Miller and Grace Smith) missing the District Meet. Through that Amelia Romero was able to qualify the the state meet, being the lone girl representative from Sandia.

One the boys side, Steven West took home individual honors as the first Sandia Individual State Champion since Cameron Clarke in 2000. Tucker Scott finished in 5th, which is the highest finish for a Matador (besides Steven) since Christian Meyer's 5th place finish in 2009. Overall, the boys finished 5th, the best since 2016's 6th place finish and matching the 2012's 5th place finish.

It was a great first year for Coach Seb and Coach Will. They will be missing seniors Tori Barreras, Annie Miller, Grace Smith, Sasha Rager, Tucker Scott, Jordan Baca, Duncan Peak, and Roland White next year, but there are great young runners, ready to pick up where they left off.

The 2020 Cross Country season was an unexpected ride. After playing can we, can't we, the state was finally given the go ahead to have a season in February. APS took a little longer, but we were able to compete at the district meet. The girls had two runners while the boys just missed out on quailfying for the state meet. That said, two seniors, Ahren Thorsen and Michael Winder placed 2nd and 4th at districts to qualify them to the run the state meet.

Coach Seb is taking over head coaching duties this year, after 6 learning from the previous amazing coaches and coaching the girls track distance team. With the help of coach Will, the boys track distance coach and Sandia grad, we hope to build the cross country community and get back to competing at a high level.

We are thankful to have an opportunity to race and are looking to bring joy and some sort of connection to the school and teammates that many of these student athletes are craving. 

In 2019 the Sandia Cross Country team ended the season with a 9th place finish for the girls and a 7th place finish for the boys at the New Mexico Cross Country Championships. Led by Seniors Cody Hepker, Zach Marshall, Devin Ritter, and Alyssa Ruiz, the team finished 2nd at Districts on the girls side and boys had an impressive perfect score.

With Coach Maestas starting his second year as the head coach, the team is looking for a strong year. But the focus will be different this year, as 2020 has been a year full of changes and adjustments.

We are thankful to have an opportunity to race and are looking to bring joy and some sort of connection to the school and teammates that many of these student athletes are craving. 

Sandia's cross country team finished the 2018 season with a 7th place finish for the boys and an 8th place finish for the girls at the New Mexico Cross Country State Championships. Led by Seniors David Stapleton, Daryl Bryant, James Winder, Carlos Ortega-Lujan, Eric Meyers, Cameron Calhoun, Celeste Rudolfo, Anistasia Baca, Reaghan Allison, and Breanna Teschner, the Matadors finished as District 5 5A Champions on the boy's side and runners up on the girl's side. Capped off by a 5th place finish by Sophomore Olivia Salter at the state meet and a 5th place finish at the Footlocker West Regionals.

With new head coach Dominic Maestas, we are looking to build on the success from Coach Curtis Williams with a strong team returning for the 2019 season.

Coach Maestas is coming off of a second place finish at the New Mexico State Track and Field Champiionships as the Lady Matadors head girls coach. He has several years of experince coaching cross-country, incuding a 2003 New Mexico State Championship for Las Vegas Robertson in division 3A.