Spotlight: Shayla Sanders grows into 100, 200 stardom

Boyd Anderson (Lauderdale Lakes, Fla.) senior Shayla Sanders, who leads the nation in the 100-meter dash (11.3 seconds) and the 200 (23.25), was a sixth-grade cheerleader when her father asked her to to try out for track.

"It wasn't like I was forced," the 5-foot-8 star told MaxPreps, "but I wanted to give it a try. Then I didn't like it, so I quit."

Actually, she only quit for about 30 minutes, because after arriving at home she promptly was sent back to track practice.

Sanders explained that her coach started her in the 400 and 800 and it was just too long. In seventh grade she got her first taste of the sprints by running on two relays and the next year she began running the open 100 and 200 and fell in love with track. During the Broward County Championships, she won the 100 and long jump and placed second in the 200, scoring enough points to win the team title by herself.

"It was so short and fast," she said. "I wouldn't have to run around the whole track. I just had to run the straightaway."

Boyd Anderson assistant coach Damion Thomas, who watched her eighth grade performance, recalled, "She was a very good, natural runner who ran real fearless and had good acceleration."

Sickness slowed her fall development as a high school freshman. She did qualify for the Class 4A state finals in the 100, but did not place.

Thomas noted that her sophomore year is "where everything really got popping for her. She got her conditioning in the fall (after missing it as a freshman) and qualified for the state (in four events). That's how we knew she was going to be really good."

She placed third in the 100 and eighth in the long jump.

During her junior year, she was able to drop the long jump and a relay to just concentrate on the sprints. Sanders agreed with her coach's decision, because "I had to drop my times and colleges were looking at me."

During the Jimmy Carnes Invitational, she ran the 55 in 6.94, which was the No. 3 indoor clocking in the nation at the time. During the outdoor state meet, she placed second in the 100, just .04 seconds behind the champion, who passed her near the finish line. She actually had to anchor the 4x100 relay, too, because one of the regular members injured her leg. That relay brought home the gold.

"It was great because I did something good for the team," Sanders acknowledged. "When I got to the 200 I was out of breath. I was second and it was not that close. I believe I could have won (without the relay)."

Sanders later placed second in the 100 and 200 during the prestigious Golden South Invitational in Orlando, Fla.

Invited to the Dream 100 in New York City, she began to realize the educational benefits of track. It marked her first trip to New York and first airplane flight. Unfortunately, race day was filled with cold, rainy weather - the worst she ever had encountered - and she finished fifth.

Sanders also had a frustrating performance during the Myrtle Beach, S.C., trials for the World Youth Championships. She finished third in the 100 and fourth in the 200. Had she taken second in either event, she would have qualified for the finals in France.

"I was so ready for the race," she stressed. "Mother Nature got me - I was cramping. It was heartbreak."

She never tasted heartbreak during her brilliant senior year, however. She launched her final campaign with more education and a national-best indoor time during the Brooks PR Invitational in Seattle.

"I was surprised I got invited, because I never had heard about it," Sanders said. "It was something different - a very long flight. We had to stop in Minnesota. I took pictures of snow. It was drippity drop. I tried to catch it."

At the meet, she ran the 60 for the first time in her career. She was timed in 7.26 seconds in the prelims, then won the finals in a record 7.21 seconds, which was No. 1 in the nation throughout the indoor season. It also is No. 2 all-time (the record is 7.19).

She later doubled at the Jimmy Carnes Invitational, taking the 55 in 6.85 and the 200 in 23.89.

At the Sam Burney Invitational, she set records in the 100 (11.56) and the 200 (23.25). Her 200 time still is the 2012 national outdoor-best.

Her 2012 national-best 100 time of 11.33 was established during the Broward County meet. She actually ran an 11.32 into a slight headwind during the regional, but it was not counted because no wind gauge was available.

During the Class 4A state meet, Sanders overcame an ailing leg to win the 100 (11.63), 200 (23.64) and anchor the record-breaking 4x100 relay (45.71). It marked her first individual state titles.

She continued her outstanding running by winning the 100 (11.40) and 200 (23.44) during the prestigious Golden South Invitational in Orlando, Fla. Certainly a big improvement.

"I've become more humble and come closer to God. I give the glory to him. He keeps me humble on the inside and on the outside."

She added, "I love the weight room. It's my favorite place to go. You can't be girlie in track and field."

Thomas has been pleased by her performance on and off the field.

He revealed, "She's probably the goofiest girl you'll ever meet. She's always laughing and joking around and really full of life. She gets a lot of publicity for the school and we're very, very proud of what she has accomplished. I'm not surprised (by her success). I tell her all the time that if she continues to work hard, don't be surprised by what you accomplish."

Sanders agrees that she is pretty happy-go-lucky, at least outside of track. She conceded, "You look at most of my pictures and I'm laughing. But when it comes to track, I'm serious."

The Boyd Anderson star has a 3.4 GPA and chose the University of Florida over Central Florida for the next level. She plans to study pre-med and become a pediatrician.

This summer, however, she has her eyes set on the Dream 100 in New York City and qualifying for the World Youth Championships in Barcelona, Spain.

In the long-term, Thomas said, "I think she can go all the way to the Olympics gold medal. The 100 is her favorite, but she'll excel in both (100 and 200) and can make the Olympics in both. She hasn't run her best yet."