Donis wins CIF State Boys Division 1 crown
Saturday’s CIF State Cross Country Championships couldn’t have gone any better for Highland senior Matthew Donis.
Four years of hard work paid off as Donis won the boys Division 1 race in 14 minutes, 51.3 seconds to become a state champion at Woodward Park in Fresno.
“It felt nice, not as good as I thought it would feel, but I think that’s just because the job isn’t finished yet,” Donis said.
With the win, Donis qualified for the Nike Cross Nationals this Saturday in Portland, Ore.
“I’m really just excited to see what I can do at nationals,” he said. “I feel like that’s where my excitement went.”
Donis said his parents, brother, his brother’s girlfriend, uncle, Godparents and grandmother were in Fresno to cheer him on. They had enough excitement for everyone.
“They were definitely more excited than me,” Donis said. “The more and more I soak it
in, the more and more I realize it’s kind of cool. … It was a goal from the beginning of the season, so to see all the work pay off, it feels amazing.”
The second-place runner on Saturday was 12 seconds behind Donis, who said he tried to run a smart race.
“I just went out there, I knew what I wanted to do, I knew how to do it, so I just went and did it,” Donis said. “I was with the pack for the first mile and a half, two miles, because I wanted to race smart. I didn’t want to use too much energy, because I wanted to save my legs a little bit for nationals. After that, I left every behind.”
He finished 21st at the state championships last season with a time of 15:35.5.
“I think I just learned how to race better, because last year I didn’t really have a good strategy,” Donis said. “I think I might I have been able to do better last year, it’s just, I didn’t run smart at all. I’ve gotten a lot of experience over the past year. I think track season really gave me some good experience. This whole season I’ve been getting into bigger races, so I’m no longer scared about racing against big people.”
He has been determined, focused and dedicated to his goals this season.
“I am beyond proud of Matt,” Highland coach Ashley Blunt said. “This has been a dream four years in the making. He is a natural. I’ve had the opportunity to watch him grow and develop into the special athlete he is today. He is blessed with a very special gift in his running abilities.
“Matt has such a great work ethic both mentally and physically, during practice as well as the other 22 hours out of the day. He did what it took to be where he is today. It took discipline, determination and humility.”
Nike is flying Donis out on Thursday for the four-day national event. He’ll stay in a hotel with other runners, get free meals and visit with professional runners. The runners also get to tour the Nike headquarters.
“It’s going to be a pretty fun experience,” Donis said. “We’re going to be there for four days, so it’s going to be a nice thing.”
The weather forecast calls for rain in Portland, so Donis is expecting a muddy race.
“I’m not sure if I’ll run as fast because the course is going to be super muddy and tougher,” he said. “I’ve never ran in those conditions before, so something new.”
Donis, who is already an allCIF and all-State runner, wants to add All-American to his accolades. He’ll need to finish in the top 20 at nationals for that to happen.
“I want to be All-American, which is the top 20, so I’ll probably shoot for top 10,” he said. “It’ll be fun.”
His parents, brother, uncle and Godparents are going to Oregon, along with Blunt.
“I’m so happy for him and excited to watch him compete at nationals against the best runners in the country, representing not only Highland, but the state of California,” Blunt said.