By Cynthia Carrillo | Published Thursday, November 20, 2008
Nov. 15, 2008. What a day in my life! I don't think I slept much after 3 a.m. I tossed and turned constantly, and I thought 7 a.m. would never come. That was our wake-up time at the hotel to get ready to leave for the cross country course in Round Rock.
When I woke up I felt sick to my stomach. It hurt, and I was light-headed. I've never felt so nervous in my life.
I got up, ate breakfast, packed my stuff and got dressed. This was the last time I would wear this uniform that represents Decatur cross country.
I took a deep breath. The time seemed to be traveling oh so slow to me, but finally around 9:30 a.m. I made my way down to the hotel lobby to get my bib number and my chips for my shoes.
While I sat there listening to my iPod, I suddenly felt as if I were running in the race. I closed my eyes. I could see everyone around me. I could feel the wind, and then I heard the gun.
"Are you ready?"
Great. At the very moment I began to visualize I got interrupted.
Wow, by that time my heart was really racing. As Coach David Park gave a "pre-game" speech, I looked down at my ring. It has "Faith" inscribed in it.
At that moment, I realized something greater was out there.
"Have faith in those around you to do what's best."
I knew that because we believed in one another, we were going to be successful.
As we pulled into Old Settler's Park, I saw so many people. They made me nervous, so I chose to turn away.
The bus stopped upon our arrival. Once again, Coach Park talked to us, but I didn't listen.
I couldn't because I was preparing for the last cross country meet of my high school career. I just closed my eyes.
It was all business from that point on. We got off the bus, stopped at the restrooms and then put our bags down at our usual spot at the park near the big pond and on the edge of the course.
I pulled our team together, and we went on a long walk to get away from everyone. We went back into the trees where we found a spot to lay down.
It was just us girls. No coaches, no parents and no friends. With our heads in the middle we relaxed and mentally prepared for the task at hand.
Before we knew it, the time was 10:55 a.m., just 45 minutes before we were to run for the gold. It was time to warm up for the last time with the cross country family.
That 45 minutes went by so fast, and before I knew it, we were standing at the start line. This was it.
My heart was beating so fast. The race was about to start.
Oh, my gosh. I looked up, "ready," boom! The gun went off. I took off, but for some reason, everyone on the left of me was crowding in. I tried to keep my eyes on a fixed point, but we were too tight.
As I ran around the trees, I saw Hanna (Galloway) in front of me. I thought: Am I going too slow or is she just going really fast?
Don't worry, I told myself, just run your race. As we were running down toward the bridge, I saw a Prosper girl, an Argyle girl and Hanna. With the strong wind in our faces, I remembered that Coach Park said to not lead down this hill, so I stayed relaxed.
We crossed the bridge and hit the mile mark. The Prosper girl took off along with the Argyle girl. As I passed Hanna, I yelled, "let's go!"
By this time we were going up on the levy (in the final mile of the race), and it was time to go. I saw Colbea Harris (the Argyle girl).
I set my eyes on her and chased after her. As always, she felt me coming up behind her so she ran in front of me so I wouldn't pass her.
No, not again. I was not moving for her. I ran up beside her, and she shoved me into the ledge.
Great. I pushed myself back into her but she insisted. I let her go by, accidentally stepped on her heel and she stumbled. I went around her and never saw her again. As I crossed the finish line, I immediately turned around to see where my pups (all of my younger teammates) were at.
What do you know there was Hanna, the there was Bianca Morrison and Zuliema Palomo.
Wow. I felt a big smile upon my face. Then came Rebecca Roose, Natalie Neighbors and Veronica Torres.
I knew it then. No doubt in my mind what was about to happen.
After we all finished running, I got my team together, and we got away from everyone else. We talked about the race. We talked for a long time.
We did not know the results of the race, and it seemed like forever until it was announced. We were congratulated a lot during the long wait, and we received hugs from our huge group of fans.
Finally, I turned around only to see Coach Park and Coach Kristina Bird calling us over. A huge group of supporters that looked more like the city of Decatur walked to us and my heart started pumping.
I knew what was to come, and I was nervous all over again.
As we approached them I tried, but I didn't manage to, read their faces to see if I could tell what he was about to tell us. He looked to Coach Bird with a sad face, and he looked to the ground and was talking about Giddings possibly having a bunch of girls in the front of the race.
Simultaneously, they looked up with a smile and opened their jackets up really fast. They had on blue T-shirts that were professionally printed that read "Decatur cross country state champions."
At that very moment it didn't matter what anyone else thought about us, it was our time. We were in the spotlight and the champions of Texas.
A team of one senior (me), one junior, one sophomore and four freshmen was the state champion, and no one could take this moment away.
There are no words to describe the feelings I had running inside of me. It was a feeling that no one can take away and that I will never forget.
If I had a choice, I'd do it all over again. I love my team. We are state champions.
