Shiney a star for Oak Park High

Matt Shiney For many years, all Matt Shiney wanted was to be on the Oak Park High varsity boys' cross country team.

Ever since he was in fourth grade, Shiney and a couple of his friends would run trails in Oak Park, Agoura and Westlake. During his first two years at OPHS, Shiney ran on the frosh/soph and junior varsity teams. He even trained with the varsity squad but never competed in a varsity race.

In June 2007, Shiney was optimistic that his time had finally come. He was about to enter his junior year, and he knew his chances of making the varsity squad were high.

Life, however, can sometimes throw you a curveball.

Shiney was going through his warmup drills at Brookside Elementary School during a summer practice when he heard the sound of his dream temporarily go down a drain, or in this case, a hole in the ground.

"I just heard a loud pop," Shiney said. "I had accidentally stepped in a gopher hole, and immediately my left foot was hurting. I knew right away it was pretty serious."

Shiney broke his left foot, and he would miss the remainder of the summer and the first few months of his junior season. Shiney began running at full speed again last October, but by then the Oak Park boys' cross country team was well on its way to earning a second-place finish at the CIF State Cross Country Championships in Fresno.

"It was really hard for me that junior year," Shiney said. "I had a lot of mixed feelings. On one hand, those were my good friends out there on the varsity team, and I was very happy for them getting second place at state.

"On the other hand, I was upset because I realized that I had just missed a very special opportunity. I knew without the injury I could have been on that team."

OPHS head coach Kevin Smith did his best to cheer Shiney up.

"I tried to encourage him every day," Smith said. "I tried to also get him back to the varsity level by the end of his junior year. He came close, but he didn't quite make it. To his credit, he used that as motivation to come back strong his senior year."

A few months later, Shiney was competing at full strength for the OPHS track team. At the Ventura County Championships, Shiney posted a 9:58 in the 3,200.

Soon after the track season ended, he began training once again for cross country. Adam Kinberg, a longtime friend of Shiney's and one of the Eagles' top runners, helped Shiney in his comeback.

"Kinberg is not only a great runner, he's also a great leader," Shiney said. "I've always looked up to him, and I felt that if he could do something, I could do it, too. He pushed me most of the summer to come back strong for my senior year."

Shiney finally realized his dream last month when he competed at the varsity level during the Stanford Invitational.

"It was quite an experience for me," Shiney said. "To line up with all those top runners really felt great. ESPN was also there covering the event, so I knew it was big."

The 17-year-old posted his personal-best time this year in the Seaside Invitational at the Ventura County Fairgrounds with a 3.1mile time of 15:57.

Shiney wants to continue to improve, but his ultimate goal is to run at the state championships.

"My No. 1 goal is to help give my team the best chance of getting back to CIF and state," Shiney said. "If that happens, it would mean a lot to me after overcoming my injury."

Smith said with Shiney on the varsity team where he belongs, the Eagles have a good chance to return to the state championships.

"In a way, Shiney's season has been about revenge," Smith said. "He wants very badly to have what was taken away from him.

"This year he's matured and has accepted more responsibility. He's learned to train harder than he's ever trained before, and he's a very important part of this team."