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Leap of faith: Plano hurdler Pegram taking first state meet in stride
BY Matt Welch, mwelch@starlocalnews.com
What a difference one year of practice can make.
At this time last year, Plano Senior sophomore Taylor Pegram hadn't even experienced the feeling of competing in the finals for a district championship.
Her ninth-place finish in the prelims precluded that.
"I'm excited, but I'm nervous as well," Pegram said. "I've never been to a state meet or a big meet like this, so it's going to be quite an experience."
An experience that fell to the wayside prematurely for the 100-meter hurdler in 2011.
"At districts last year, [Pegram] actually got stuck in the blocks," said Gene Cahill, Plano girls track head coach. "The gun went off and she literally was stuck in the blocks, which made her hesitant in getting out. It just made hurdles the emphasis going forward."
While Plano deploys Pegram's skill set in a variety of events -- including as a leg in the 4x100 and 4x200 relays, plus the long jump -- the 100 hurdles became the sophomore's signature race as the season progressed. It heightened her expectations once her second crack at the District 8-5A ranks came around April 12. One year removed from her ninth-place run (16.14), Pegram shaved a staggering 1.54 seconds off that time for a 14.60 -- good for second place.
"I was very proud of myself and expected that for myself after the work I put in," Pegram said. "I would have been disappointed if I didn't make it out."
Pegram credits her work ethic for the leap made between her freshman and sophomore campaigns, splitting her duties with the Lady Wildcats' girls basketball team during the school year offseason and training track with coach John Turek at St. Marks School of Dallas.
"I really worked hard this year," Pegram said. "I hit the weight room hard and came out here everyday prepared to work, so that really helped."
There's also been the steady refinement of her technique, some of which took center stage following her run at district.
"Usually my lead leg is in my face," Pegram said, "but we adjusted that and got it back down to where it's supposed to be, plus we worked on snapping my trail leg through."
Those preparations reached an apex April 28 at the Region I-5A Meet when Pegram punched her ticket to state by placing second in the 100 hurdles (14.49), albeit not without some initial frustrations.
"I remember shaking in the blocks and then the gun popped off twice and people false-started, so that was very emotional and I was freaking out a bit," she said. "I calmed myself down, put my trust in God and did my thing."
As brief as the race was, Pegram managed to lead most of the way until clipping the final hurdle and settling for silver by seventh-hundredths of a second to Saginaw's Lyric Lawrence. The emotions have settled since then, often wavering between excitement and nervousness for Pegram, bound for Austin in just her second year with the Lady Wildcats.
The preparations haven't been altered one bit, though.
"We're trying to keep everything the same," Pegram said. "We're trying to keep the same workouts every day. Mondays are still a hard workout day and on Friday, we set up the hurdles and race. I go against my friend India Wilson, who does the 100-meter dash, and she runs next to me during the hurdles. It helps having her push me."
There won't be any teammates to share the track with Saturday, just eight other state qualifiers, four of whom were in Austin last year. Pegram is seeded seventh in the nine-hurdler field. Houston Langham Creek's Skyler Ross Ransom leads the pack with a 13.93 seed time.
Consider state the latest in a season of firsts.
Pegram's first attempt in the 8-5A finals, that first regional qualification, the first state qualification and now her first crack at a state medal.
It all builds toward 6:25 p.m. Saturday in Austin when Pegram takes to the track for the biggest race of her career. And in a meet primarily reserved for upperclassmen, the fun may just be getting started for this sophomore.
"[Pegram is] getting better and better, and it's exciting," Cahill said. "The main thing is that we're hoping to get there and have a good experience. As a sophomore, you're young and it's all going to be new.
"She's getting faster and her technique is getting better."
Qualifiers
Plano East
4x100 Relay: Milaun Mack, Judith Imojah, Madison Hansen, Jennifer Madu
4x100 Relay: Nathan Meadors, Corey Bassett, Tre Jones, Dante Taylor
100: Jennifer Madu
100: Corey Bassett
200: Jennifer Madu
300 Hurdles: Madison Hansen
Long Jump: Jennifer Madu
Triple Jump: Jennifer Madu
Plano Senior
100 Hurdles: Taylor Pegram
Plano West
4x200 Relay: Carlos Wiggins, Jason Stephens, Matt Owoseni, Oshen Matheson
200: Carlos Wiggins
What to watch for at state
-West qualifies first sprinter, relay for state in program history
-Madu will be targeting 10 career medals at state
-Plano ISD has captured at least one gold medal at 8 of last 10 state meets.
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