Black Diamonds runner glad to make State for 3rd straight year
For the third straight year, Sallisaw Black Diamonds cross country runner Sama Salinas qualified for the Class 4A State Meet, which will take place at 9 a.m. Saturday at North Rock Creek High School, located north of Shawnee.
Salinas was fifth at last Saturday’s Class 4A Regional Meet at Henryetta to grab one of, if not the top, individual state berth available.
“It (the Class 4A Regional Meet) was pretty good,” Salinas said. “I was really looking forward to this year. I knew I would do better. It (making state) was a good thing. Whenever I got fifth (at the regional meet), I knew I had gotten in. Now, I just have to train harder. I’m pretty excited for Saturday. We’ll see how it goes.”
Two years ago, Salinas was 54th at the Class 4A State Meet, while he was 31st at last year’s state meet. The Sallisaw junior runner said he has learned some things from the past two state meets to help him this time to help ensure that the third time will indeed be the charm.
“Usually, I’ve been trying to stay out front and lead,” Salinas said. “I think this year, I’m going to try to stay with the pack (of runners) and maybe try kicking it in at the last mile, or somewhere around there to not get too tired.”
If for nothing else, Salinas would like to do better than his 31stplace finish at state in 2024.
“My freshman year, it was like seeing where I was at,” he said. “My sophomore year, I was almost experimenting. This time, I’m going to try to get in the top 15 at least.”
If Salinas makes the top 10, he will be an All-Star — the senior equivalent of a senior making All-State. That would make him happy but still wanting more.
“It would still be pretty good, but I would be hungry for more,” he said. “It would still be a good accomplishment to get that.”
The ultimate goal is to win the state meet individually, which would quite possibly put the Sallisaw junior runner into disbelief.
“There would be disbelief really,” Salinas said. “It would feel good. It would feel good to actually win something big and great for the school. It would be a good accomplishment.”
