By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDCOUCH — Back in September, Edcouch-Elsa’s Krysta Martinez ran what coach Juan Perez would describe as “the perfect race.”
It wasn’t so much that Martinez won the Meet of Champions, but rather how she maintained a steady pace throughout and finished strong. It was a stark contrast from her first couple of seasons, when she was tempted to break from the pack early, at the risk of falling behind late.
“Now, she’s running like an experienced runner,” Perez said. “Running like a veteran.”
The change in approach is what has Martinez hopeful about her chances of medaling Saturday at the UIL state meet in Round Rock.
Despite a flawed approached, Martinez has qualified for state each season. As a freshman, she finished in the 20s. Two years ago, she placed 12th. But last season, in reverting back to her initial style, she finished in the 40s. Anxiousness got the best of her.
“I know what I have to do now, though,” Martinez said. “In this race, I’m going to have to run smarter.”
For Perez, that means emphasizing positioning as much as speed. Times and P.R.’s aren’t as much of a concern for the sixth-year coach. In fact, Martinez fell 1:40 shy of her P.R. and still placed third at the Region IV-5A meet two weeks ago.
In the weeks leading up to district, regionals and now state, Perez has continually reminded Martinez “not to get sucked into other people’s race.”
If that means letting faster runners proceed early on, Perez is OK with it. He wants Martinez to run on the outer edges and avoid a condensed group of runners in the middle.
“Sometimes if you have a young, inexperienced runner, they get boxed into the pack and they can’t move anywhere,” Perez said. “They’re stuck in a bad position and can’t move up, and they’ll use a lot of energy trying to do so.”
More than any other year, Martinez is focused on negative splits. That means running each mile faster than the previous one. By doing so, the senior was able to set a new P.R. this year, clocking in at 18:07. If she finishes around the 17:50 mark, Martinez is confident in her chances.
For the past couple of weeks, she’s worked on trying to put it all together. The course provides an interesting challenge, given the hills and expected mud. Martinez also is hoping to become the program’s first medalist at state since Maribel Villalpando in 1992.
“I know it’s going to be hard because there’s a lot of amazing runners going up there,” Martinez said. “But I know I’m going to have to push myself and not give up.”