Persistent would be a good word to describe the journey of Muskogee High senior track standout Diamond Lewis. She didn’t get serious about track until she reached high school, and her first two years were a struggle without winning a race, but she kept at it and last year broke through with a state championship in the 300-meter hurdles and as part of the Roughers 4X200 relay. She got second-place medals in the 110-meter hurdles and in the 4X400 relay.

“She’s learned to work consistently hard every day which I think is the hardest thing to do in our sport,” said head coach Craig Perry. “Her preparation to compete on and off the track and her work ethic are second to none. She’s obviously talented but you have to have the mindset to go with that talent to be successful.”

Diamond credits her hurdles coach Mikeus Moore (shown with her in the photo) with pushing her through those struggles.

“When I got serious about track in ninth grade, I really didn’t like it much and I got discouraged those first two years. But coach Mike pushed me when I didn’t want to be there and he’s the one who got me into hurdles. Even off the track, he cared about me as a person,” said Diamond.

Those experiences have helped her relate to the young girls as a senior leader this year.

“If I see the freshmen get discouraged or want to quit, I tell them about my early years and that if they just believe in the process and stick with it by the time they’re seniors it will be better.”

That mindset she developed was apparent last year at the state tournament. Diamond was ahead in the 110 hurdles when she clipped the last hurdle and finished second.

“I went to check on her after that race and it would have been easy for her to feel sorry for herself, but she just came back and said, ’I’m going to win the 300’ and half an hour later she came back and dominated the race,” said Perry.

The Roughers move back up to Class 6A this year so the competition will be tougher, but Diamond is ready for it.

“I want to go out with a bang my senior year, so I don’t let last year go to my head too much. I don’t want to settle but continue to push myself past what I think I can do.”