Three Fort Stockton athletes signed their letters of intent to compete at the next level at universities in the surrounding area on March 9 at the Special Events Center.

Eliana Mata and Isaiah Garcia will be headed to Alpine to continue their athletic careers at Sul Ross State University.

Offensive lineman Cruz Rojas signed to play football at Angelo State University this upcoming fall.

Mata will play volleyball for the Lady Lobos and head coach Troy Canaba, who has been the leader of the program since 2017.

The multi-sport standout was a two time first team all-district selection for the Prowlers volleyball team and the Co-Outstanding Setter of Fort Stockton’s district in Class 4A as a sophomore.

Mata was the team’s lone setter in a 5-1 system during the 2020 campaign before sharing setting duties in 2021 and 2022 in Gabrielle Harral’s 6-2 system. She’ll wrap up her high school career in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Permian Basin Volleyball All-Star Game on June 17.

Garcia will follow in the footsteps of his brother, AJ Garcia, when he laces it up for the Lobos football program this fall.

Isaiah was a big play waiting to happen in all three phases of the game – offense, defense, special teams.

Isaiah threw, ran, caught, and returned a kick for a touchdown in 2022 to go along with a team-high 1,452 allpurpose yards.

The senior threw for a touchdown during the Monahans game, ran for four touchdowns, caught a teamhigh nine touchdown passes, and had one kick return TD during the season opener.

Isaiah was named the Offensive MVP of 4A-2 District 1 and was selected to the 4A-2 all-state third team by the Texas Sports Writers Association.

Rojas was the centerpiece of Fort Stockton’s offensive line at the center position.

The 6-foot-3, 275-pound Rojas earned first-team all-district honors and was named to the Padilla Poll 4A-2 All State Second-Team, as well as honorable mention for the Texas Sports Writers Association All-State Teams.

Fort Stockton senior Ashlyn Foster signed with Odessa College at last Thursday’s ceremony, receiving a full ride athletic scholarship to become an athletic trainer.

According to Odessa College’s website, the institution has one of the best Sports Medicine programs in the nation for junior colleges. The Sports Medicine program at Odessa College staffs 12-16 student trainers per year. With the overall reputation the program has earned, student trainers can easily transfer to four-year schools if they choose to continue in the field.