11x State Champions: Running towards history
The Varsity Cross Country team won the Class 3A State Championship on November 9 at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee. This marks the 3rd consecutive State Title for Belen Jesuit. The win also gives the school the winningest cross country program in state history.
“This season marks our 50th anniversary of the Belen Cross Country program and because of that, winning this year’s state title was very special for us,” said Cross Country Head Coach Frankie Ruiz ‘96. “I feel like it is a symbolic gift of appreciation to the 49 years of teams who came before these guys. The race may not have been a bullseye for ‘personal records’ but the young team hit the board which was enough to get the job done. I’m so energized for what the future holds for this group of young men since there are only two seniors in this year’s top 10. It might be our 11th team title but the success of the program will best be defined by how it consistently strives for the next title while making better Christian men.”
The team placed three runners in the top five scoring 48 in a field that included 32 of the top teams in Florida. Leading the pack was Diego Gomez ‘21 who finished 3rd overall, followed closely by Adam Magoulas ‘22 and Javier Vento ‘21. Rounding off the top five was Nicolas Hidalgo ‘21 and Mathew Bryan ‘20. In all, seven runners finished in the top 30 for the Wolverines.
This championship also solidifies Coach Ruiz in the history books, making him tied for the most Boys State Titles (11). The record for head coach wins was set back in 1987 by Largo High School Head Coach, Brent Haley. Up next for the Wolverines is the Nike Cross Regional National Championships to be held in North Carolina in three weeks.
BELEN JESUIT PREPARATORY SCHOOL
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
Belen Jesuit Preparatory School was founded in 1854 in Havana, Cuba by Queen Isabel II of Spain. The task of educating students was assigned to the priests and brothers of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), whose teaching tradition is synonymous with academic excellence and spiritual discipline. In 1961, the new political regime of Cuba confiscated the School property and expelled the Jesuit faculty. The School was re-established in Miami the same year, and over the next decade, continued to grow. Today, Belen Jesuit sits on a 30-acre site in western Dade County, only minutes away from downtown Miami.