Matthew Salaiz '18 Recruiting Profile

My name is Matthew Salaiz and I am a senior at Pflugerville High School.  I am the youngest of three boys in my family.  My two older brothers were both high school athletes but neither of them were interested in track.  Track is my passion and jumping is what I love to do most. 

It is ironic to say that track came into my life somewhat by accident.  In 8^th grade, I had a new coach who made me run track.  Once he saw me jump, he told me that I was a natural.  With his direction, I became pretty good at it and really enjoyed it.  I had not planned to join track once in high school because I didn’t feel I was good enough to compete at the high school level and at this time I still considered myself a baseball athlete.  I am fortunate, however, to have a baseball coach that was willing to allow me to try and be my best at track even if it meant he had to share me during baseball season. 

It is because of these two coaches that I have been able to continue being a two-sport athlete, although track is truly the sport that defines who I am now.   I have been able to accomplish some of my goals like breaking the Pflugerville High School long jump record as well as making the UIL Academic All District Award all while being a member of the National Honor Society and keeping my grades up.

As my high school years come to an end, I want to focus on college and being on your track and field team.  I completely understand that there are many track and field athletes that are better than me, that can jump further than me, and can run faster than me.  The one thing I can bring to the table is heart.  I am a hard worker both on and off the track and I believe that success comes through hard work.  I would love to be a part of your team.

Sincerely,

Matthew Salaiz