Williams Achieving Goals by Smashing Personal Records
10/1/2008 12:00:00 AM
Oct. 1, 2008
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Megan Williams apparently just needed one season under head cross country coach Randy Hasenbank to improve by almost a minute in her 5,000 meter and 4,000 meter times. This season, Williams has shaved 41 seconds off her 5k time and 38 seconds off her 4k time in just the first three weeks running 19:16 and 15:55, respectively. Williams attributes her early success this season to a good summer of training where she doubled her mileage.
"I think that has helped me a lot," Williams said. "I also think it helps to know what to expect and what is expected of me in return."
Williams showed promise in the sport when she was just eight years old. That is how old she was when she started running with her dad and eventually ran her first road race that same year.
"I did my first road race the same year I started running," Williams said. "I won my age group and I was hooked from that point on!"
Williams was recruited to Alabama for academics before athletics but Megan knew this was the place for her when she visited the campus and met the people around the area. This past weekend, Williams competed in the last 5k of the season at the Sean Earl Lakefront Invitational in Chicago, Ill. where she was just eight seconds off her new personal best for cross country.
Her goals for the 2008 season are to be running in the 18-minute range for the 5k and the 23-minute range for the 6k. This weekend will be her first chance at breaking 24 minutes in the 6k at the competitive Chile Pepper Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark.
If this season has shown anything, it is that Williams should have a good chance at the barrier because she is only 27 seconds off and has broken her other personal records by 40 seconds this year. She also achieved those new records on her first attempt at the distance this season.
As a team, she believes they really have a talented squad and they hope to improve on last year's SEC and Region finishes. If they can get the full squad healthy, the Crimson Tide should have a very good chance at achieving those goals as they are already ranked No. 4 in the competitive South Region.
