Gregory Grabs Third-Straight Conference Honor
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Lauren Gregory’s stellar freshman campaign continues as she has been named Southeastern Conference Freshman Runner of the Week for the third time this season, the league announced Tuesday.
Gregory joins former Razorbacks Stephanie Brown (2010), Jessica Jackson (2011) and Andrina Schlaepfer (2012) as the only runners in conference history to win the award three times in a single season. . She is the first to be honored in three-consecutive races since Jackson in 2011.
Gregory finished as the fourth fastest freshman at Pre-Nationals in Louisville, Ky. over the weekend against 288 of the nations best athletes. She finished 39th overall with a time of 20:32.70 in her second career 6K contest. She currently owns two of the three fastest 6K times by freshmen in the SEC, with fellow Razorback freshman Ashton Endsley owning the second fastest.
The Fort Collins, Colorado native was Arkansas’ fourth scorer Saturday and helped Arkansas finish in third place, ahead of five top-25 programs including No. 4 Michigan. The finish helped the Razorbacks jump three spots to No. 6 in this week’s USTFCCCA Coaches poll, its highest ranking since finishing the 2015 season ranked No. 5.
Gregory won the award following her debut at the Riverside Invitational (Sept. 16) where she finished ninth and was the top overall freshman in a field of 122 Division I runners. She was also one of only eight runners, and four Razorbacks, to go sub-20:20.00 in the race. Her second honor came following the Joe Piane Invitational (Sept. 29) where she as the fastest Razorback and 21st overall.
Team Results (Top Five)
1. No. 2 Oregon – 63 (3-5-13-14-28)
2. No. 1 Colorado – 91 (2-15-19-21-34)
3. No. 9 Arkansas – 148 (18-23-29-37-41)
4. No. 19 Utah State – 214 (7-44-47-49-67)
5. No. 4 Michigan – 235 (10-20-31-83-91)
Arkansas Results (Overall)
20. Nikki Hiltz – 20:15.20
25. Therese Haiss – 20:21.40
31. Carina Viljoen – 20:28.00
39. Lauren Gregory – 20:32.70
43. Taylor Werner – 20:39.50
55. Devin Clark – 20:47.90
56. Ashton Endsley – 20:48.70
Gregory and the women’s cross country team will return to action Oct. 27 in Athens, Georgia as the Razorbacks try for its fourth straight conference title. The women’s cross country and track and field programs have won 14 consecutive conference championships.
2017 Cross Country Schedule
Fri, Sept. 1 – Cowboy Duals (Stillwater, Okla.) 2nd of 4
Sat, Sept. 16 – Riverside Invitational (Riverside, Calif.) 1st of 29
Sat, Sept. 16 – Southern Stampede (Joplin, Mo.) 5th of 32
Fri, Sept. 29 – Joe Piane/Notre Dame Invitational (South Bend, Ind.) 4th of 20
Sat, Sept. 30 – Chile Pepper Festival (Agri Park) 1st of 45
Sat, Oct. 14 – Pre-Nationals (Louisville, Ky.) | 1st of 43
Fri, Oct. 27 – SEC Championship (Athens, Ga.)
Fri, Nov. 10 – NCAA South Central Regional (College Station, Texas)
Sat, Nov. 18 – NCAA Championship (Louisville, Ky.)
For more information on Arkansas track and field including in-meet updates, follow @RazorbackTF on Twitter.
