Rylie Brown signs with Williams Baptist University

MALDEN, Mo. - Rylie Brown’s inaugural cross country season turned out to become a historic high school career.

Over the summer, Brown aided in the addition of a cross country team at Malden High School. In just one season, Brown set multiple personal records while medaling in almost every race. To conclude her first cross country season ever as a senior, Brown qualified for the Missouri State Championships.

Her dreams did not stop at qualifying for state, however. Brown had plans of one day running in college.

On Friday, Dec.13, Brown continued to chase those dreams by singing a letter of intent to run at Williams Baptist University.

“I’m super excited about this,” Brown said. “It’s like a nervous excitement. All I am thinking about are my dreams and how they are finally coming true. All the hard work finally did pay off, all of those hard days were worth it.”

Williams Baptist is a four-year private college in Walnut Ridge, Ar. While being a private liberal arts college, Williams Baptist is known for its Christian background.

According to Brown, this was one of the biggest motivators when looking at schools.

“My faith is a huge thing for me,” Brown said. “Having the chance to run in college, which has been my dream, but also make my relationship with Jesus stronger at a private Christian college sold me. The word is getting built into my education and that’s something I really love.”

Brown produced a personal best 5k of 21:06 this season with the Malden Green Wave. This puts her right at the top of the pack for her future college.

Along with her results on the cross country course, Brown has produced some respectable times on the track as she specialized in distance and mid-distance events.

She has raced in every event from the 400m (¼ of a mile or a single lap around the track) up to the 3200m (about two miles or eight laps around the track).

As she signed to run cross country, she will also compete for Williams Baptist track and field program.

Her parents, friends and teammates came to support and watch her signing at Malden High School.

“These people mean a lot to me,’ Brown said. “A lot of them I have competed with. The three boys who are here were on the cross country team with me and got me through the toughest season I’ve ever been through.”

Along with her cross country teammates, Brown’s 4x400m relay team came out to watch her signing.

As Brown gears up for her collegiate career at Williams Baptist, she shifts her focus to her final track season in the spring.