LHS's 'Sami' Hicks adds NHIAA Division III cross country title to list of accomplishments

MANCHESTER — Cross-country coach Andrew Mercer was already convinced that Samantha 'Sami' Hicks was one of the greatest runners if not the fastest ever to ever wear a Laconia Sachems uniform, if not the fastest ever. On Saturday, she won the NHIAA Cross-Country Division III Meet, giving her coach another piece of evidence to support his assertion.

Hicks easily won the Division III Cross-Country Championship, completing the five kilometer course at Derryfield Park in Manchester in a time of 19 minutes, 38 seconds. Her closest competitor was Emily Calder of Hopkinton, who crossed the finish line 18 seconds behind Hicks.

This coming weekend, Hicks will face faster competition in the Meet of Champions, held at Nashua South High School, where the top finishers of all three divisions will race against each other. There, she'll be tested against Elizabeth Conway, of Manchester Central, who finished the Derryfield course in 18:45 to be the Division I champion, and Division II champ Hanna Parker of Coe-Brown, who ran 18:58.

Mercer isn't worried about Hicks's time on Saturday as compared to the other divisions, though. He said Hicks, per his instruction, was pacing herself relative to her Division III competitors, rather than attempting to set a personal best time. A week prior, at a race at Kingswood High School, Mercer noted, Hicks posted a time of 18:54.

Entering the divisional championship, Mercer said, their strategy was, "Let's be cautious, let's go through the first mile and see where we are." They didn't even have to wait that long. By the first half-mile, Hicks had steadily built a 25-meter lead, leading her coach to urge her to run a "comfortable and relaxed" run. "There were multiple times during the race that I told her to slow down," said Mercer.

The Division III title is only the latest feather in Hicks's cap. In 2010, she was the national champion in the Junior Olympic, Intermediate Division. Also in 2010, Hicks set a school record and earned fourth place with a 18:17 time at the Meet of Champions. In 2011, a year when Hicks was plagued with an injury, she won the Manchester Invitational, a race for runners in small schools.

Mercer said that Hicks, now a senior, is beginning to see if she can use her running skills to help secure a post-secondary education. A strong run at the Meet of Champions would do just that. "She's going to have to continue to do well, continue to wow people," he said. "I could definitely see her receiving some form of scholarship. She's a great athlete, a great person."

Mercer attributed Hicks's success to the positive yet fiercely competitive attitude she brings to any contest, whether it's a state-wide meet or a friendly game played at practice. "She's a gamer. It doesn't matter if we're running in a workout, playing ultimate Frisbee or this game called 'Ninja' — it doesn't matter what Sam's doing, Sam want's to be the best... She has this internal drive. You can't coach that," said Mercer. "Sam has something that not a lot of runners have."

CAPTION with SAMI AND TEAMMATES in AA:

"Sami" Hicks, shown here at left, celebrates with teammates Katelyn Bailey and Amber Gilbert at the NHIAA cross country state meet, held in Manchester. Hicks was the fastest runner in Division III and will run in the Meet of Champions on Saturday. (Courtesy photo)