NATHANIEL MATA | SPECIAL TO THE MONITOR
EDINBURG — A crowd gathered inside the Edinburg High School gym on Thursday to watch one of the Bobcats’ own ink her commitment to run at the next level.
Senior Vianney Sanchez signed her letter of intent to run cross country and track for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She’ll run with a full scholarship. The university competes in the NCAA Division I Sun Belt Conference.
Former and current coaches shared stories about Sanchez and their involvement in her career.
The distance runner said the crowd on hand to watch her big day was what she came to expect.
“I felt just as much support as I’ve felt the last four years. I’ve always had a lot of people supporting me,” Sanchez said. “It didn’t take me until a couple of years ago to decide that I actually wanted to run for a college. I worked my butt off, and I’m here today.”
Her cross country coach for the last two seasons, Erin Sutton-Lawler, told the crowd about a hurdle in Sanchez’s career when she was unsure she wanted to keep running. The experience ultimately reignited Sanchez’s passion for running and resulted in a strong conclusion to her time as a Bobcat.
Sanchez is coming off of a season in which she qualified for state in cross country’s 5,000-meter run and for regionals in track’s 1,600 and 3,200 runs.
Her cross country coach was grateful that Sanchez got back to her top form. Sutton-Lawler believes that Sanchez’s success during her last two high school seasons and signing to a Division I institution can serve as motivation to Edinburg High’s returners and future runners.
“It’s such a blessing,” Sutton-Lawler said. “It pushes the girls to want to be better and to see that this is possible, so it gives them hope that this is a future in running, and it pushes them that much more. Anytime you have an athlete that’s this great, it only helps your program.”
Track coach Alicia Ramirez echoed how much Sanchez has helped the track program. Ramirez also mentioned how fortunate Arkansas-Little Rock is to welcome Sanchez.
“I think that they’re going to be blessed to have her there, and she’ll be an asset to the program simply for the fact of who she is as a person,” Ramirez said. “Her character, the fact that she works hard, she doesn’t have excuses. Academically she’s on top of her game, and athletically she’s on top of her game.”
Sanchez heard a lot from her coaches about representing her background. She said that is something she’s ready for.
“It’s something I’m proud of,” Sanchez said. “I know that I will be representing the school and the Valley. It’s who I am. It’s where I’m from. I’m going to always do my best to make sure I give a good impression.”