3-19-2023 5:39am

Alamogordo Proud The White Sands Rolla Buck Invitational 2023

Chris Edwards Editor

The Alamogordo High School Tiger Girls under the leadership of Coach Jason Atkinson wins and the Tiger Boys were 2nd at Saturday's Rolla Buck White Sands Invitational hosted at the Robert Sepulveda Track and Field at Alamogordo High School.

The White Sands Track Meet dates back to the 1950s first hosted by Coach Rolla Buck. By the early 60s the meet was no longer hosted. During the early 70s Coach Robert (Bob) Sepulveda brought it back to life and renamed it the Coach Rolla Buck White Sands Invitational that continues to this day with Saturday’s most recent competitors.

The 1950’s was a winning period of Alamogordo High School athletics especially Football and Track and Field. The accolades in athletics of the late 40’s and early 1950’s is credited to the consistency and the coaching prowess of Coach John Rolla Buck. Coach Rolla Buck persuaded officials of the White Sands National Monument to host a first-class track meet. In those now mostly forgotten times, track teams from across New Mexico and West and Central Texas took part in the White Sands Relays and both states considered it the premier track meet of the season for interscholastic high school track and field.

Most of the high schools from Albuquerque and El Paso took part, as did Midland and Odessa and many schools far and wide. Coach Buck’s name lives on today with the Rolla Buck White Sands Invitational Track and Field Competition annual event held at the Robert Sepulveda Tiger Track & Field. This competition was brought back to life by Coach Bob Sepulveda and the Evening Lions Club during the 1970’s is considered one of the most prestigious in the state excepting for the State Qualifying Marilyn Sepulveda Track and Field Invitational.

The 1950’s proved to be a period of significant change within the city of Alamogordo and within athletics at the high school especially related to Track & Field. The decade began with integration and the coaching charisma of Rolla Buck and his memorable athletes that went on to greatness. The Rolla Buck period was considered by many locals, the greatest period in Alamogordo Athletics, up till the Coach Sepulveda years specific to track and field and the Coach Gary Hveem years when related to Football.

While at Alamogordo High School, Coach Sepulveda who the track is named after won five state track and field team championships. Only two other coaches at Alamogordo High led boys’ teams to state track titles: Coach Joe Bryant in 2006 and Coach Rolla Buck in 1951. Coach Rolla Buck also led his football team to the only state title to be won by Alamogordo in Football and several of his athletes in track and field went on to the Olympics, the NFL and other professional sports thus the Rolla Buck Invitational which was formerly the White Sands Invitational continues today.

These traditions of the past continue as does the state title wins with significant success this decade under the leadership of Coach Jason Atkinson. The 2022 season State win marked the first back to back win in the history of the girls program. The boys program won 4 back to back state titles in the Boys program under Coach Sepulveda in the 90s. Coach Adkinson is chasing that state record on the girls side winning 2 back to back state titles for the girls team with a favorable opportunity to carry a third state title this year.

Adkinson hosted a wonderful tournament this Saturday with windy, rainy conditions and yet more success. Coach Bob Sepulveda at age 87 was on hand as a special guest cheering on the Tiger traditions.

The results of this years White Sands Invitational included…

The Alamogordo High School Tiger Girls won the competition and the Boys were 2nd Place. Also locally the Tularosa boys finished tied for 9th and the Girls were 11th.

State Qualifiers -

Alamogordo - Zach Sell (300 Hurdles)

Tularosa - Koy Cojo (Shot Put, Discus)

Alamogordo next at Las Cruces meet on March 31st

Tularosa next at Zimmerly Relays in Socorro on Thursday.

Full Results - https://nm.milesplit.com/meets/520285-rolla-buckwhite-sands-invitationa…

Points scorers

Alamogordo Results

Girls

100 - Yvonne Stinson 1st (12.82), Alyssa Esquero 5th (13.74)

200 - Yvonne Stinson 2nd (27.52)

100 Hurdles - Trezure Bates 1st (17.29)

300 Hurdles - Trezure Bates 1st (52.07)

400 - Abby Vazquez 5th (1:07.02)

800 - Ellary Battle 1st (2:19.40), Adelynn DeBoef 5th (2:48.69)

1600 - Ellary Battle 1st (5:08.84), Adelynn DeBoef 3rd (6:19.25)

3200 - Kylin Starkvoich 5th (14:12.93)

4x100 - 2nd (Eniola Komolafe, Alyssa Esquero, Lynley Koehler, Yvonne Stinson - 53.33)

4x200 - 3rd (Alyssa Esquero, Lynley Koehler, Madison Shaw, Amaya Crowder - 1:55.45)

4x400 - 1st (Abby Vazquez, Amaya Crowder, Lynley Koehler, Ellary Battle - 4:26.60)

1600 Sprint Medley - 3rd (Eniola Komolafe, Geisha Davis, Elizabeth Needham, Kylin Starkovich - 4:52.34)

High Jump - Yvonne Stinson 2nd (5-00)

Pole Vault - Trezure Bates 1st (7-06), Aubrey Allen 3rd (7-00), Marie Fillmore 4th (6-06)

Long Jump - Yvonne Stinson 1st (15-11.25), Alyssa Esquero 3rd (15-02.25)

Triple Jump - Alyssa Esquero 1st (33-08.25), Lynley Koehler 6th (29-09)

Discus - Madison Gigler 6th (106-05)

Javelin - Jacqueline Vera 4th (102-05)

Shot Put - Teeya Gordon 4th (30-00), Jacqueline Vera 6th (29-04)

Boys

110 Hurdles - Zach Sell 1st (15.44), Nico Stubblefield 6th (17.65)

300 Hurdles - Zach Sell 1st (40.69), Nico Stubblefield 2nd (44.44)

800 - Omar Enriquez 1st (2:03.37)

1600 - Angel Avila 5th (4:56.96), Isaiah Dalmas 6th (4:59.31)

3200 - Omar Enriquez 2nd (10:27.97), Angel Avila 4th (10:43.99)

4x200 - 4th (Tyheed Lewis, JonHenry Sifuentes, Adam Shock, Jason Warren - 1:37.97)

4x400 - 1st (Isaiah Dalmas Omar Enriquez, Zach Sell, Adam Shock - 3:33.79)

1600 Sprint Medley - 4th (Christian Surpris, JonHenry Sifuentes, Lelan Quick, Tristan Pederson - 4:00.13)

High Jump - Zach Sell 2nd (6-00)

Pole Vault - William Ochoa 1st (11-00), Henry Koch 2nd (10-06)

Triple Jump - Christian Hicks 6th (36-08)

Javelin - Damon Mayberry 3rd (137-8.50)

Shot Put - KC Keller 2nd (41-03)

Tularosa

Girls

Triple Jump - Maycee Griffin 2nd (31-08)

Javelin - Layla Gaston 6th (97-08)

1600 Sprint Medley 6th (A. Amaya, Sailer Geoff, Randi Greene, Haleigh Voorbach - 5:27.72)

Boys

Shot Put - Koy Cojo 1st (42-00)

Discus - Koy Cojo 3rd (124-11)

Congratulations to Coach Jason Atkinson for hosting another successful meet and carrying on the traditions of Coach Rolla Buck and Coach Bob Sepulveda and keeping the Tiger spirit and momentum alive. This is Tiger Pride and this represents “Alamogordo Proud.”