Rio Rico runners Omar Hernandez, right, and Jose Luis Muñoz race to the finish line in the boys 4A-II Gila regional at Marana High School. Hernandez edged Muñoz at the tape.

JIM DAVIS / arizona daily star

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Omar Hernandez and Jose Luis Muñoz had about a mile of pounding left.

During the desert loop of Marana High School's cross country course, Muñoz whispered to his Rio Rico teammate and pacing partner.

"Let's go, baby," Muñoz said.

The two charged, and finished practically side-by-side.

Hernandez won Saturday's 4A-II Gila Region cross country championship with a time of 16 minutes 49.7 seconds; Muñoz was a half-second behind.

Teammate Alejandro Valencia finished third, leading the Hawks — all wearing tiny, brand-new black socks, a team tradition — to the title.

"That's basically how we were the whole season," Hernandez said. "In practice we work together, our whole pack.

"All of us started training in the summer, and that builds a brotherhood, a bond, that you have during racing.

"When you're about to let it all go, you try to hang on because you know your brothers are there holding the ropes for you."

Burned by the disappointment of last season's state finals, the Hawks began repeating the date of this year's state title meet last summer.

That's when the teammates began running together, telling each other that a hospital trip would be the only excuse to miss it. When runners saw each other in the halls at school, they'd say "11/8/08." They would text each other the numbers, a reminder to stay focused.

Because seven boys teams participated, the Gila Region is sending four teams — Rio Rico, Catalina, Douglas and Sahuarita — to the Class 4A-II state championship Saturday at Cave Creek Golf Course in Phoenix.

Catalina runners Alejandro Montaño and Mario Portillo finished fourth and fifth, followed by Rio Rico's Matt Diaz.

Rio Rico's girls' team won the region, paced by sophomore Aeoleone Bristow, who ran the 3.1 miles in 20:16.2. She dueled with Catalina's Magda Mankel through a mile and a half — part of Bristow's plan to save her energy for the final kick.

Mankel finished second with a time of 20:57.3. Teammate Melanie McGrath finished third.

Girls teams from Rio Rico, Catalina and Sahuarita qualified for the state meet.

The Hawks are defending state champions, and Bristow wants to repeat.

"Regionals is a big step," she said. "But we want state again. We had it last year; we want it again."

Sabino's Christina Price had a formula for defeating rival Nogales runners in the 4A-I Kino regional. Her coach, though, isn't telling what it is.

He still has to face the Apaches next week.

"This is our fourth time racing Nogales," coach Doug McSpadden said. "The girls know each other pretty well, the way they run. We made a couple adjustments in the middle of the race."

Asked specifically what they were, McSpadden clammed up.

"We're going to do it again next week," he said, smiling.

Price, a junior, said she focused in the last mile.

"I knew I could hear footsteps, and I knew I had to go," she said. "You have good days and bad days, and today's a good day for me. And I'm really thankful."

Price ran the race in 20:34.9. Nogales runners Konnie Zuniga and Zahira Jimenez finished second and third.

Seven runners — four from Sabino, three from Nogales — finished in the top eight. Sahuaro will join the two teams in the state finals.

Sabino's defending state champion boys' team was just as impressive. Teammates Steven Gregg, Alex Evans, Ian Montijo and Zach Cohen finished first through fourth, with Gregg running 17:17.8.

Sabino, Nogales and Flowing Wells finished 1-3 in the boys' team event.

Gregg got off to a fast start and led most of the way. He improved his personal best at the Marana course by 25 seconds.

"It's always fun running as a team and winning as a team," he said. "That's what we try for."

At last year's 4A-I Sonoran regional, Catalina Foothills' boys recorded the best possible team score when Falcons runners finished first through fifth.

This year, they outdid themselves. Catalina Foothills runners placed first through seventh — meaning that every Falcons runner finished before any other competitor.

"One through seven is a tremendous feat," coach Doug Keen said. "It's something we were shooting for. We thought at the beginning of the season it was something we could do."

Seniors William Harrison and Tucker Wiedenkeller — "the real backbone of the program," Keen said — finished first and second, with Harrison posting a time of 17:52.1. Wiedenkeller finished 0.7 seconds later.

Rex Woodbury, Rafael Gomez, Max Warneke, Ross Tharp and Dylan Souza rounded out the seven, crossing the finish line within 9 seconds of the winner.

Sabino, Canyon del Oro and Pueblo qualified for state on both the boys' and girls' side.

Isabel Diamond and Cari Alcombright helped the Falcons blow away the girls field, the former winning with a time of 21:33.3 and the latter coming in second 8 seconds later.

"We still have a lot to do, though," said Sabino girls coach Eric Grossman.