UIL State Track Meet: Wichita Falls High's Braylon Kinzie embracing moment in Austin
The storied Coyote track program will be represented one final time Friday night in Austin.
Sixteen years since Wichita Falls High School last had a boy state track qualifier, sophomore Braylon Kinzie will compete in the 800 and 300 hurdles on the sport’s biggest stage.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, it’s crazy,” Kinzie said. “I’m excited because state is all the elite athletes from every event in 4A, 5A, 6A — all of them. I can’t wait to go out with my family and coaches and enjoy it, take it all in and get ready to run.”
The word WFHS track coach Carter Bien uses the most to describe Kinzie is “competitor.” The conditions a couple of weeks ago at the Region I-5A Meet were miserable, but that didn’t keep Kinzie from running his best times in the 800 (1:57.86) and 300 hurdles (40.01), earning a silver medal in both events.
“Braylon’s not just a stud track star, he’s a stud athlete. When the climate changes, that excites him even more,” Bien said. “That’s what’s awesome about being around Braylon, just seeing his competitiveness and wanting to challenge himself, but also looking around and being able to challenge himself against other people.”
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The last Coyote to compete at state was Wade Thornton, who earned a silver medal in the 2008 high jump with a mark of 6-foot-8. Kinzie was eight months old then.
Kinzie said it’s an honor to represent WFISD in the last year of the three high schools. His mom graduated from Rider, while his dad is an Old High alum.
“My family has been here for a while, so I think it’s kind of crazy that the last year, it was me who made it out of all three schools,” Kinzie said.
After playing four sports as a freshman, Kinzie focused on football and track this season. The future Memorial Maverick likes football the best, but he also enjoys track and trains year-round with local track coach Robert Brooks.
“Track helps with every sport,” Kinzie said. “That’s why I do it year-round. It helps me get in shape and helps knock off seconds over time.”
The combination of 800 and 300 hurdles is a unique one, but Kinzie said those were the two events he dominated in during middle school. He likes the combination of sprinting and technique that the 300 hurdles presents.
“He prides himself on being very multiple,” Bien said. “He does a little bit of everything. He wants to do decathlon in college, and that speaks to the athlete that he is and the competitor that he is.”
Kinzie qualified last year for regionals as a freshman, finishing 14th in the 800. He admitted entering this season with an open mind about working his way toward state, but still knew it’d be a difficult task.
Kinzie won’t be one of the medal favorites in either event this week, but Bien isn’t worried about that. The coach doesn’t believe the lights will be too bright for Kinzie and that he’ll PR in both races again.
“He gets to represent the Coyotes down there, and I think he can compete and go get a medal,” Kinzie said. “It’s exciting to see him take the Coyote logo down there one more time and end it the right way.”
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Wichita Falls High's Braylon Kinzie embracing moment at UIL state track
