Senior Armani Diaz has been in cross country for three years and has been very successful this season with a record of 16:26 and a personal record of 15:55.

Armani pushed himself to the limits and dedicated all of his time to try to qualify for State. He practices Monday-Saturday from 90 minutes to 2 hours to prepare him for his runs. Armani is very dedicated to running and his education and hopes to run for a college in the future.

“I wanted to try something new for a fall sport because I had been playing football for a long time. I originally tried out for soccer but didn’t make the team, so then I decided to do cross country,” Diaz said.
Armani prepares for a meet by eating healthy, loading up on carbs, and drinking plenty of water to stay hydrated. He then continues on doing his warm-ups and he’s ready to go. Armani uses this routine to help keep him active and to improve his mental health.

“Running makes me more strong-minded and pushes me to get through tough times,” he said.
An important moment for Armani was when he ran 3 miles in under 16 minutes and also when he got third place at Sectionals. He felt very accomplished and relieved. Those moments encouraged Armani to work even harder during the season so he could qualify for State in the future.

“The environment and the friends I made during cross country has really helped me love the sport. Plus the feeling after running a 3 mile race is amazing,” he said.

Armani hopes to run in college, but he’s not sure which college yet. He is very hopeful for the future, especially because of his opportunity to qualify for State after he was able to make it to Sectionals.