Name: Alanisse Williams
High School: Youngker
Signed With: South Dakota
South Dakota can get really cold, are you worried about running in the cold?
I'm not really worried about running in the cold . I was born in South Dakota and I lived in Iowa until we moved out here when I was eight. Is it going to be extremely cold ? Yes . But I'm very excited to just keep doing what I love no matter where I am .
The plan is obviously to repeat in the 300H this year, but if you could win another what event would it be and why?
Another event I would like to win is the 100m hurdles. I would like to win because this is honestly the first year I've actually hurdled. My freshman year I was just a kid enjoying something new and I ended up getting 4th in both the 100h and 300h and that was D3 then my sophomore year I tore my ACL on the basketball team in the first round of the playoffs so then I was just trying to get my knee back to where is was and also my confidence back. My junior year I didn't hurdle at all because I wasn't confident in my knee until the very last meet before state at the Verrado Viper last chance . I qualified for state there in the 300h and then obviously went to state to take it all home. So now I haven't ran the 100h since freshman year and I'm just really trying to be the best that I can be in that event and that is something I am really striving for.
Do you think jumping from D3 to D2 helped prepare you for the jump to college? How?
The competition was obviously a lot more difficult in D2 and I had to work harder but just as an athlete you need to be able to have that confidence and know that you can compete with a higher level and be successful . having it go towards college I think it helps more with a mental aspect more than a physical. Just knowing that you're going into more of a challenge so you have to be mentally prepared to work harder. Track is a mental sport not physical. If you believe you can then you will. If you don't believe then you won't.
What has been your favorite high school memory so far?
My favorite high school memory is tough . But I think tearing my ACL is my favorite memory. I was very depressed for about a good 5 months and the whole situation just made me choose whether I could battle this or let it beat me and I battled it . and that's something that really defines me as a person. It was something negative in the beginning but turned out to be a positive thing . if I could go back and change it I wouldn't.