Northern Illinois track and field sophomore Megan Gregory qualified for the NCAA West Region Preliminary Round in the 100-meter hurdles after posting a strong performance at the 2010 Mid-American Conference Outdoor Championships this past weekend. The NCAA West Region Preliminary round will take place at the University of Texas’ Mike A. Myer Track and Soccer Stadium in Austin, Texas, on May 28.
Gregory qualified for the NCAA preliminary round when she raced to a second-place time of 13.75 in the 100-meter hurdles at the MAC Championships, May 15. Gregory is the first Huskie to qualify for NCAA since Jessica Statler, Margaret Gorski and Ashley Morrow took a trip to NCAA Regionals during the 2007 season.
“Megan Gregory has been a great addition to the team this year,” said head NIU track and field coach Connie Teaberry. “This outdoor season she has really put together her main event, which is the 100-meter hurdles. Her time of 13.75, has allowed her to head into the NCAA preliminary round, where she is currently sitting in 37th in the 100-meter hurdles.”
Along with qualifying for the NCAA West Region Preliminary Round, Gregory was named to the All-MAC Second Team for her performance in the hurdles this past weekend.
“Megan went into preliminaries and earned the second-fastest time at the MAC Championships, a time of 13.88, which was a school record,” Teaberry said. “She then went into finals where she ran 13.75, finishing just a few hundredths of a second shy of the winning time which was 13.71. These performances enabled her to be selected the All-MAC second team and it’s a great achievement for our team.”
Gregory’s second-place time in the100-meter hurdles was an NIU school record, and the Huskies’ top performance at the MAC Championships s ince NCAA qualifier Morrow claimed the first-place title in the shot put in 2006. Gregory’s finish at the championships marks the fifth time she has reset the 100-meter hurdles school record during the 2010 outdoor season.
“Heading into championships Megan was extremely focused,” Teaberry said. “Before she even got into her hurdle race her goal was to get on that podium, and that was exactly what she did. We are extremely proud of her and the success she has achieved this season.”
The first round of the NCAA West Region Preliminaries will begin at 5 p.m. If Gregory achieves a qualifying time she will compete in the NCAA Quarterfinals, May 29, at 7:05 p.m. NCAA Finals will take place at the University of Oregon on June 9-12, in Eugene, Ore.
