Sophomore Megan Gregory closed out the 2009-2010 Northern Illinois Athletics’ competitive season Saturday at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field West Preliminaries with her appearance in the quarterfinals of the 100-meter hurdles at the Mike A. Myers Track and Soccer Complex.
After re-setting the school record in the 100 hurdles for the sixth time this outdoor season Friday with a time of 13.70, Gregory ran a 13.77 in Saturday’s quarterfinals and was not among the 16 runners to advance to the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore. June 9-12. The slowest time to advance to Eugene from the West Saturday was a 13.37 seconds.
Although Gregory’s season came to an end Saturday, Northern Illinois head coach Connie Teaberry said the experience she gained this season, her first on the track for NIU, will pay off in the future.
“This was definitely a great experience for Megan and we’re extremely proud of her,” Teaberry said. “We’re already talking about next year. The experience has made her hungry for the future and going forward. She rose to the occasion at each turn and just didn’t have quite enough to advance to the finals of NCAA. As a staff, team, and university, we’re extremely proud of her, and looking forward to her continuing to get better over the next couple of years.”
Gregory was joined at the NCAA Track & Field West Preliminaries by NIU freshman 1,500-meter runner Courtney Oldenburg as they became the first Huskies to qualify for NCAA postseason competition since 2007. Teaberry said their appearances at the NCAA meet will benefit the entire Northern Illinois women’s track and field program.
“With Courtney and Megan making it to the qualifier level of NCAAs, it boosts the morale of team and also helps with recruiting,” Teaberry said. “The team has been watching and following as these two ladies have set the standard and inspired the rest of our team going into next year. I believe the other girls will be ready to move forward at both the MAC and NCAA levels. For recruiting, these are the meets you want to be so recruits can see the progress of the program.”
After seeing the advancements her team made after the Huskies’ first full season with use of the new NIU Soccer and Track & Field Complex, including the most points scored at the MAC Outdoor Championships since 2007, Teaberry is already looking forward to 2010-11.
“We’re extremely proud of our season and it was great to cap it off at the NCAA Preliminaries,” Teaberry said. “We want to continue to move the program forward and have a lot to be excited about for the future.”
