'Stanislaus State is getting a tremendous athlete.' Merced track star chooses college.
Ciara Rios Colon has loved running since third grade. It was her mom who first nudged her into track and it's been a big part of her life ever since.
Colon will continue doing what she loves at Stanislaus State after signing her national letter of intent to participate in track and cross county on Wednesday afternoon at Merced High.
"I've always enjoyed running," Colon said. "If I'm stressed out, I can go for for a run and then I'm all better. It makes me happy. Because of running, I've meet a lot of great people who are now my friends."
Many of her friends and teammates were present in the classroom of Merced High track coach Tim Hagerman as she signed her letter of intent.
Colon is a two-time state qualifier during her cross country career at Merced High. She was also part of a Bears team in 2016 that became the first team to win a Central California Conference championship since 1987. Colon and Merced made it back-to-back CCC championships this past fall.
"When I took the job four years ago at Merced, I needed a person who was willing to work hard to be successful. Someone I could build the team around. She was the first one I could do that with," Hagerman said. "I think Stanislaus State is getting a tremendous athlete with great potential."
Colon has considered other schools like Chico State, Fresno State and Sacramento State.
She likes that Stanislaus State is close to Merced.
"It had what I was looking for," Colon said. "I didn't want to go to a big school. I like that you can talk to the professors one on one. The coaches and the team are really nice. I think I can get along well there."
Colon had a 3.5 GPA last semester at Merced and plans to major in kinesiology.
With her college decision out of the way, Colon can enjoy the rest of her senior track season.
"It's less stress on me," she said "I'm just glad I made a final decision. I'm glad I chose Stanislaus State. It's not too far and it's not too close. I know people who have gone on to run at Stanislaus State and done well."
This story was originally published April 18, 2018 at 2:55 PM with the headline "'Stanislaus State is getting a tremendous athlete.' Merced track star chooses college.."