All the MacArthur boys cross country team knows is winning.
Last week at the District 16-6A Meet, MacArthur - coached by Xang Chareunsab - brought home its 11th-straight district championship. Eleven!
"It means a lot, especially for the kids who spend their entire summer putting in miles for moments like this," Chareunsab said. "We always want to win district, however, our runners know that the goal is running well at regionals and potentially making it to state. We feel that our team, with the success that its had in the past decade, can be as good as anyone.
"The entire boys team, Varsity, JV and even the Freshman swept district in dominating fashion. Everyone stepped up and did their part. It was just an amazing way to finish the season and I was so proud to be a part of it. It was a great day. The kids earned this moment!"
The girls cross country team, which won the district title last year, finished in second overall right behind Spring led by Samantha Hernandez.
Chareunsab also noted Flora Gutierrez and Ashley Sosa posted personal bests, while freshman Julieta Vega in her first varsity girls race helped secure that second place finish.
"I'm really proud of our girls team," Chareunsab said. "We battled a lot of injuries this year and lost some key runners, but they believed in each other and finished the season strong."
Turning back to the boys, who have now extended their winning streak into a second decade, the top runner for the team was Giovanni Silva, who posted a 16:40.
"We expect him to go a lot faster but he ran really well given the extremely wet conditions," Chareunsab said. "However, we were extremely proud of the entire Varsity Boys who got a perfect score by getting first to fifth."
There are plenty of marquee football matchups this week in the Austin area. Plenty of folks will be curious to see how Cedar Ridge holds up against Lake Travis or just exactly how many points Cedar Park and Hutto are going to score between them in their battle for 24-6A lead.
But the vast majority of games each week slip under the radar, largely unnoticed by anyone except the teams themselves and their fans. That doesn’t make those games any less important. And this week’s VYPE Central Texas Game of the Week between McNeil and Stony Point at Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex is a perfect example.
There are similarities between these two longtime Round Rock ISD rivals. Both are operating under new head coaches. And both are trying to build new cultures around those coaches and return to playoff form.
McNeil’s journey has been the most harrowing of the two. The Mavericks (0-2, 0-6) returned to the playoffs in 2024 and were one freakish play away from repeating that accomplishment last season under former head coach Scott Hermes. The program then went through the process of replacing Hermes twice, ultimately landing Jerry Gardner from Wylie East late in the summer.
Between the late change and seriously rebuilding after losing a ton of talent to graduation, the Mavericks have gotten off to a slow start. Senior quarterback Orion Covault has worked through the air (52-100, 646 Yds., 5 TD, 3 INT – stats through 5 games) while tacking on 261 rushing yards with a touchdown. Senior Zylen Hall (48-255, 9.5 YPC, 4 TD) has provided a spark on the ground with young receivers Quincy Sampson (13-194, 14.9 YPC, 2 TD) and sophomore Jeremy Powell (12-143, 11.9 YPC, TD) emerging as his favorite targets.
It’s a similar, if more conventional story at Stony Point (1-1, 2-4). Former Hutto offensive coordinator Dustin Pleasant travelled west along Hwy. 79 to land in Tigerland, taking over from legendary head coach Craig Cheshire. Unlike McNeil’s recent playoff appearance, the Tigers haven’t been to the postseason in a minute or two. And while the path to postseason is difficult in a district with Lake Travis, Westlake, and Round Rock, the path potentially exists with a win over Cedar Ridge (or a huge upset of either “Lake” team.)
Senior quarterbacks Brady Davis (49-89, 670 yds., 5 TD, 2 INT) and sophomore Kadin Smith (29-55, 324, 2 TD, INT) have both seen time behind center while junior Aiden Lloyd (98-475, 4.8 YPC, 8 TDs) anchors the running attack. Senior Olamide Aroworade (28-456, 16.3 YPC, 3 TD) has been the Tigers’ leading receiver.
It’s easy to hype the drama between two powerhouse teams. These two – McNeil and Stony Point – each have their own goals and agendas. At the most basic level, McNeil is simply looking for their first win of the season and of the Coach Gardner era; a chance to reap the rewards after months of hard work.
The Tigers’ slender playoff path relies on winning all their game against the rest of the district while punching one of the favorites in the nose down the road.
But mostly, it’s just one of the 10 nights these kids get to experience the thrill and joy of playing Texas High School Football. The fact that it’s our VYPE Austin CenTex Game of the Week is just icing on the cake.
