Saliyah Rai Brooks: Preparing for a Nursing Career
When Saliyah Brooks was in the sixth grade, she wanted to be a cheerleader. After some encouragement from a friend, Saliyah decided to try wrestling, a sport she never dreamed she would do. However, after stepping on the mat, it ended up being one of the greatest decisions she could have made.
Saliyah fell in love with the sport. All four years of high school, she qualified for states, wrestling for Seventy-First High School. As a senior, Saliyah earned the title of 6A Regional Heavyweight Champion and secured the Eastern Sandhills Conference Girls' Wrestler of the Year with a 19-3 record. She was also named the 910 Preps Athlete of the Week for Jan. 26-30, 2026. Her all-time high school record is 98-21.
Not one to take all the credit, Saliyah is thankful for the coaches who have helped her along the way, including her middle school coach, Coach Gaundi Allen, and Coach Rodney Harris and Coach David Nobles who coached her to success all through high school.
“They have pushed me even when I didn’t want to push myself,” Saliyah said. “They spoke positively in the situation and were always there on and off the mat. They were like father figures to me.”
While achieving all these accolades on the mat, Saliyah maintained a 3.9 GPA and has earned over 50 college credits.
Although she wrestles at Seventy-First High School, Saliyah is graduating from Cross Creek Early College High School. Because she knew she wanted to eventually go into the medical field, she decided to go to Cross Creek Early College where she would be able to get nearly two years of college completed while in high school. The decision turned out to be the perfect one for her; the fast-paced environment has prepared her well for college.
“Challenging, accelerated, transformative,” Saliya said. “There’s so many other words to describe my school but these three are the best. My school is very accelerated and fast and that makes it pretty challenging but in the end, it’s very transformative because it helps your learning style and prepares you for the future.”
Next year, Saliyah will attend East Carolina University (ECU). Thanks to her classes at Cross Creek Early College, she will have the equivalent college hours as a second-semester sophomore. She plans to take classes this summer at Fayetteville State University so she can enter ECU as a junior.
Her dream is to become a travel nurse, where she can help people but also see the world.
“Saliyah knows being a student-athlete means growth, hard work and confidence,” said Rodney Harris, head wrestling coach at Seventy-First High School. “She is grateful for being surrounded by her teammates and coaches that show never-ending support. At the high school wrestling level, she has earned numerous achievements and opportunities to thrive in both athletics and education, as well as memories that will last her a lifetime.”