Rice on career: 'It's been good while it lasted'

AUSTIN - Canyon senior Arin Rice accomplished almost every goal a high school distance runner can hope to reach and had one of the most prolific running careers in the history of the Texas Panhandle.

She won state gold medals in the 800- and 1600-meter runs and broke the state records in each event, yet she never won a race and broke a record at the same time.

Rice won the 800 as a sophomore and Friday as a senior, but she finished second in the race as a junior despite breaking the state record by less than a second with a time of 2:09.90.

She won the 1600 as a junior and broke the state record by about 5 seconds Friday, but she again finished second with a time of 4:49.08.

"I'm really disappointed," Rice said Friday after the 1600. "You don't normally think you would run a 4:49 and get beat. I knew I could run that fast; I just didn't know there was anyone else who could run that fast."

Rice lost the 800 in 2012 to state record-holder Meschelle Gillis, of Manvel, and she lost the 1600 Friday to new record-holder Madie Boreman, of Leander Rouse, who finished the race in 4:48.16.

"It's tough to go out your senior year that way, but that's what athletics are about," Canyon girls track coach Ray Baca said. "She's been one of a kind her whole career. It's been fun."

It's also been fun for her parents, her father, Darin Rice, said.

"It's just incredible," he said. "You watch them progress and have that desire to work at it and excel, and she just has a killer mentality."

Baca said he has enjoyed coaching Rice because of that mentality, and she is willing to put in the hard work it takes to compete with the best athletes in the state.

"Arin's just one of those kids that you can just push and push and push, and she just keeps getting stronger and stronger," he said. "It was always fun to just see how hard we could push her, and she would always bounce back."

But now her days of being coached and taught as a high school athlete are over.

Friday's 1600 was Rice's final high school race. She has signed to run for Texas Christian University next year.

However, she understands the value of her time at Canyon and how it has prepared her for not only higher-level sports, but also life outside of school, she said.

"I think we've all formed relationships with people, especially my coach," Rice said. "He's been a huge part of my life, and I'm thankful he came to Canyon."

And Baca said he is thankful he had the chance to coach Rice and have her be a leader in the Canyon program.

He said Rice set examples that showed younger runners on the team the amount of work it takes to be a successful track athlete.

"Our girls see how hard she works, and they realize you're not going to die from working hard," Baca said.

But hard work won't always protect athletes from disappointment.

Rice was still upset with the finish of her final race Friday night, but she said once those emotions settle she expects to look back fondly on her career at Canyon and will consider it a success.

Plus, she also has a college career on the horizon.

"It's been good while it's lasted," she said, "now on to the next."