Salisbury sophomore Shane Artis exceeded his expectations even before taking the course during Saturday’s PIAA Cross Country Championships in Hershey. Earning a trip to the state cross country meet was more than he could have anticipated at the start of the season.

Once he got on that stage, he proved he belonged with some of the top Class 2A runners in the state.

Artis, the only Falcon participant at Saturday’s meet, placed 60th out of 233 participants in the Class 2A field. He finished the race in 17:28.

“I was just trying to go for my time pretty much because this is my first time here,” Artis said. “I didn’t really know what to expect.

“At the beginning of the season I wasn’t really expecting to come here. Around the middle of the season I started realizing I could come here.”

While he thought states could potentially be in the forecast, Artis felt as if he surpassed his wildest goals when qualifying for the meet by placing ninth at the District 11 Class 2A race. Everything after that race at Bethlehem Municipal was icing on the cake.

And with the way his 2016 postseason races came to an unfortunate end, a trip to Hershey a year later was extra gratifying for Artis. He injured the growth plate in his knee when he stepped in a hole at last year’s Colonial League meet. The injury forced him out of districts the following week.

“Last year in leagues I got hurt, so then I didn’t run districts,” Artis said. “I knew I was going to come back and do something good.”

When he got his first ever chance on the district stage, however, he earned a bit of redemption. The second-year runner used his expertise during the hilly portion of Hershey’s terrain to pass a few people in the final mile or so. His place didn’t matter too much, but Artis did surpass the time goal he set for himself.

“It was a good course,” Artis said. “It was definitely challenging because there are a lot of hills in there.

“I like the hills and stuff, but it was still challenging. During the first mile, I was really far behind. The second mile I was in a place where I wanted to be in. And in the third mile I started to kick it in.”

While his second cross country season is officially in the books, Artis will take a break before he continues to stay in running shape and prepare for the spring track and field season where we plans to run the mile and two-mile races. Part of his training and preparation will be a bit different this winter, however, as he plans to sign up for the Salisbury swim team.