For Southeast of Saline High School junior Regan Duran, success in track and field is about more than medals and records. It is about growth, leadership and sharing unforgettable moments with teammates.
Duran has already built an impressive résumé across multiple sports, but her focus this spring has remained clear.
“My primary focus for this season is to make it to the state track meet in May,” Duran said. “That is my favorite part of track and the feeling when you get there with your team is unreal.”
That pursuit has helped fuel one of the best seasons of her high school career. Duran recently broke the school record in the 200-meter dash with a time of 25.9 seconds after narrowly missing multiple records earlier in the season.
“This year I have come very close to breaking the 4×8, 4×4 and 200m school records,” Duran said. “Finally breaking the 200m record last Friday at the home meet was exciting. I love getting to work at that goal of having my name added to the list every season.”
Her versatility has become one of her greatest strengths for the Trojans. After previously focusing on the 400 and 800-meter races, Duran expanded into the 100 and 200 this season and quickly found success.
“My strengths are being resilient and confident,” Duran said. “I have learned that if I focus really hard on what I want to accomplish, no goal is unreachable. It may not come overnight, but now that I’m a junior, I am really seeing my times drop.”
That flexibility has allowed Duran to contribute points in nearly every meet while also serving as a key piece of Southeast of Saline’s relay teams. She runs the opening leg on both the 4×400 and 4×800 relays, a role she embraces.
“I take pride in being able to leave my team with a great start every time we compete,” Duran said. “I am a big help with keeping my team calm and focused on our race plan before our relays.”
Her leadership extends beyond the track. Duran is a multi-sport athlete who has competed in cross country and basketball while maintaining a 4.0 GPA throughout high school. She is involved in STUCO, FFA, NHS and Science Club and has consistently ranked in the top 10 percent of her class.
In cross country, Duran helped Southeast of Saline win the 2023 Class 3A state championship and finish third at state in 2024 while earning all-league honors. In basketball, she helped the Trojans win league titles in 2023 and 2024 and reach the sub-state finals this past season.
Her accomplishments in track continue to grow as well. Duran was part of a fifth-place state finish in the 4×800 relay in 2024 and later qualified individually in the 400. This season, she helped the 4×400 qualify for state, earned a fourth-place finish in the 4×800 relay and placed sixth in the 800-meter run.
Even with those accomplishments, Duran believes mindset has been the biggest key to her development.
“My coach Luke Gleason always says, ‘The two things you can control in your race are: mindset and effort,’” Duran said. “I have really used this idea to focus on the mental parts of running.”
