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DAVENPORT – Standout high school track, soccer and basketball athlete Darby Soliday is headed to Pocatello, Idaho to attend Idaho State University to run hurdles and similar short events. Soliday, a senior, signed her letter of intent at a ceremony at the high school Feb. 9.
"I chose ISU because it is a smaller, competitive Division I school, which would fit me better coming from a small school like Davenport," Soliday said.
ISU competes in the Big Sky Conference and has a coaching staff of five. Hillary Merkley is the director of cross country/track and field with an emphasis on sprints and hurdles. Merkley has been the ISU head coach since 2016. In 2019, the last year that a college track season was held, seven Bengals qualified for the NCAA West Region round of the NCAA Championships.
"I really liked the track coach that I was talking to and the track athletes that I got the opportunity to speak with," Soliday said.
Soliday is a two-time 300 meter hurdle champion, including the 2019 season, when she ran a personal record of 44.88 en route to the 2B girl's title. She's currently gearing up for a shortened "fall sports" season with the Davenport girl's soccer team, which is coached by her father, Monty Soliday. She'll then get ready for a shortened track season immediately following soccer season, with an eye on more league titles and preparation for college.
"It has been my goal since freshman year to run track in college," Soliday said. "This school seems to fit my expectations for my athletics and academics."
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