Two Weeks to Glory
Rattlers set to compete at Region IV Track Championships
Today at Heroes Stadium in San Antonio, Texas, several student athletes from the Sharyland Rattlers boys’ track and field team will step onto the track with visions of gold on their minds and the fire of an entire community beneath their spikes. The competition of their lives is upon them. Moments as short as a quarter of a minute could change their lives forever. Six individual qualifiers and one relay team, all aiming to leave the Region IV Track and Field Championships as state qualifiers.
“I’m very proud of the kids that we have here. We have a heavy senior group. We have a good, solid foundation with our seniors, and they did a good job setting the tone for the juniors and sophomores coming up. I’m very proud of the kids, and I’m sure all the coaches on our staff feel the same way. We’re excited about Regionals. Hopefully, we can represent at the state meet three weeks from now,” Coach Saenz said, reflecting on his team’s 2026 success after 7 years as Rattlers Head Boys Track & Field coach.
The Rattlers finished inside the top three of every meet they participated in, winning the Hidalgo Bill Pate Invitational and their own Steve Stark Relays. The Rattlers performed admirably at the 31 and 32-5A Area Meet, finishing the meet with three individual Area champions, one relay Area championship, and two Area runner-ups. Their performance was the best of all Big 7 Track teams, only bested by the Sharyland Pioneer Lady Diamondbacks, who qualified nine female athletes in individual events and all three of their relays.
“We’ve got a lot of athletes that performed well at the Area meet and have very good chances of advancing, so we’re excited about that. And the kids are fired up and ready to go,” Coach Saenz said about his kids’ mentality ahead of the biggest meet of their lives.
Nathan Salinas, Mauricio Garza, and sophomore Cesar Vega all claimed individual championships at the Area meet, with Garza and Salinas cementing their status not just as Area champions, but as Region IV leaders. Salinas and Garza are projected to qualify for the state meet as the top seeds in the mile (1600-meter run) and the 110-meter high hurdles. Salinas is Region IV 5A’s fastest qualifier, running his mile in a blazing 4:17.29, nearly two seconds faster than Weslaco East’s Alexander Nava. Garza’s lightning-fast 14.44 in the 110-meter high hurdles ranks him second behind Alamo Heights’ Jack Hollimon’s 14.19. Today’s the day when they seize what they’ve been working for their entire careers.
“My 2026 season was super successful in my opinion. I opened with a 14.9 in the 110m H (high hurdles) and exceeded what I expected in the 300m H as well. Mid-season was pretty rough for me, as my times weren’t what I wanted them to be. But after all the time and work I put in, I got to show out at the end of the season, taking first in both the 110 and 300 hurdles at the meet of champions. My goal as the season comes to an end is definitely to get my shot at State, improve my times, and hopefully get to compete at the next level,” Garza, the senior hurdler extraordinaire, said about his chances of competing at the State meet and in college.
Vega, the sophomore phenom who joined the Rattlers mid-season, cleared an impressive 6’-2”, which ranks him inside the top 10 of the region’s elite high jumpers. He’s part of the Rattlers’ young core of track athletes, destined to continue the Rattlers’ ascension in the RGV track world and beyond. Along with fellow sophomore phenom Stormy Walker, the Rattlers look primed for even greater success. They’ll need Vega and Walker as their 2027 realigned area meet will be the Valley’s toughest.
“He’s doing an awesome job for us. He saw the time he’s going to compete against, and he feels he has a good chance to compete. And both those guys getting the experience and exposure of going to regionals is going to be something big for us next year,” Saenz said about the prospects of his talented sophomores.
Walker, who burst onto the scene as one of the Valley’s elite sprinters after crushing performances at the RGVCA Meet of Champions, the District Championships, where he won the 200-meter crown, and the Steve Stark Invitational, where he chased down one of the Valley’s all-time best to secure a Rattlers’ team title as the anchor leg of their mile-relay team. Walker will compete in the 200-meter dash after finishing second at the Area meet and as a member of the Rattlers’ Valley leading the 200-meter relay team, which is currently seeded fourth behind Boerne Champion, Smithson Valley, San Antonio Wagner, and Cedar Park.
“This season was full of emotions, but God got me through hard times and gave me learning opportunities to grow and learn. I honor my dad, who motivated me to never give up in hard situations, even after all his medical conditions that he overcame so he could stay with us as a family. My goals are always to improve myself and give it my all 100% of the time, not only to set a new personal record but also to create more opportunities for myself,” Walker said when describing his season success and future goals.
The tremendous growth of the Rio Grande Valley Track season has been a harsh reality for some to grasp. ‘Trackflation’ is real in an area where the total number of state qualifiers and medalists continues to balloon. Coach Saenz’s approach has evolved to match that reality, but it’s his athletes’ focus and commitment to the sport that have driven the Rattlers to this level of success.
“Getting to that Regional meet is going to be difficult next year, but I think we have the athletes to do that… I guarantee you they’ll be back fighting next year as well,” Saenz said when asked about the future of the Rattlers boys’ track program.
Here is the complete list of the Rattlers’ Regional qualifiers:
110 meter and 300 meter high hurdles: Mauricio Garcia, High Jump: Cesar Vega & Deangelo Synowiecki, Pole Vault: Jonah Driscoll, 200 m dash: Stormy Walker, 1600-meter run: Nathan Salinas; 200-meter Relay: Bruno Cavazos, Ruben Rodriguez, Jose Vega, Stormy Walker
The Region IV 5A and 6A Track and Field Championships are taking place today and tomorrow. All field events and running prelims will take place today, and all running finals will take place tomorrow. Northside Independent School District will host the track meet at Heroes Stadium in San Antonio, Texas.
