Carroll harrier Gregory finishes strong at nationals

Helena Independent Record

November 23, 2008

By Independent Record

Carroll College sophomore cross-country runner Taylor Gregory finished 201st in the NAIA national race Saturday in Kenosha, Wisc.

The Saints’ lone participant crossed the finish line in 26:59.3, placing in the top two-thirds of the 331-man field.

“It was a totally insane race. I’ve never raced against that many people of that caliber before,” Gregory said. “I definitely wasn’t intimidated going into it, but that first mile I did get out a little harder than I think I would’ve liked.”

With a big pack and runners on all sides, Gregory jumped out to a quick first mile, hitting the marker at 5:05, but slowed down to a 5:26 pace over the 8-kilometers.

“I think if I could do it again I would have gone out more like a 5:12 and then just hammered the last two miles,” he said. “All five miles there would be 20 guys in front of you and 40 beside you.”

With Lewis-Clark State’s men’s and women’s programs sweeping the Frontier Conference titles, Gregory had to sneak in by placing in one of the two individual spots left in the conference.

Carroll head coach Bill Ballingers sees it as a step forward for the two-year-old program.

“I think the fact that he was able to qualify as a sophomore will help us. Potential runners in the future know they can make that venue,” Ballinger said. “I think it just spoke well for our program.”

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