Temple (FOX 44/KWKT) — Temple High School’s BBQ Pitmasters Team placed 2nd in its first National Championship. 2023 is also the school’s first year with a BBQ team.

The Pitmasters won grand champion honors in the pork shoulder category at the event held this week in Round Rock. They also placed fourth in chicken and fifth in steak fajita tacos.

The Temple HS team is coached by Temple alum Joe Medrano and his wife, Allison. The five-person team is made up of seniors William Hardin, Erandy Perez and Anthony Rangel, junior Jordan Magana and sophomore Reece Medrano.

The Sanger High School Smoke Signals of Sanger, Texas were named the overall grand champions.

The Temple HS Pitmasters kicked off their first ever season in the fall of 2022 with 25 students, which eventually whittled down to the five-person team. Their first competition was in December, where they secured a spot in the state championship.

Temple High School culinary arts teacher Margaret Fyffe serves as the staff sponsor for the BBQ Pitmasters this school year with Joe and Allison Medrano coaching the team at practices and competitions.