Husker Track Inks 13 to Letters of Intent

Lincoln - Nebraska Head Coach Gary Pepin announced the details of a 13-athlete early signing class for the Husker track and field program Thursday. The group consists of eight women’s and five men’s athletes, including six in-state products, and appears to be another strong one in line with an exceptional 2006 freshman class.

Track & Field News magazine rated both last year’s NU women’s (No. 4) and men’s (No. 8) recruiting classes among the top 10 nationally, as Nebraska was one of only four programs to earn the honor for both squads.

"We have a good mix of athletes from Nebraska and the Midwest region in addition to other prospects spread out from around the country," Pepin said. "Our class is very indicative of how our recruiting efforts went with the needs we feel our team has. I am pleased with who we were able to have commit to us. They all seem to be outstanding young people, both athletically and academically."

While the signing class covers a wide range of events for NU, distance, hurdles, throws and the high jump were the most represented areas in the group. Four of the 13 athletes, including three of the five men’s signees, are slated to compete for assistant head coach Jay Dirksen in distance events and cross country: David Adams (York, Neb.), Matt Conahan (Omaha, Neb.), Laura Crofford (Newville, Pa.) and Brad Doering (Yuba City, Calif.). Adams and Conahan have each claimed Nebraska boy’s state titles in both track and cross country. Crofford has earned Pennsylvania state runner-up honors on both the cross country course and the track (3,200 meters), and Doering is fresh of an 18th-place finish in the 1,600 at the 2006 California state track meet.

Assistant coach Mark Colligan will have two of the future athletes competing in throwing events in Jade Hodson (Hastings, Neb.) and Sam Siegel (Lincoln, Neb.). Hodson is the reigning two-time Nebraska Class B girl's state shot put champion for Hastings Adam Central High School, while Siegel, a Lincoln Southwest product, is the Silverhawks’ boy's school record holder in both the shot put and discus.

Two of the women’s signees, Arna Erega (Rijeka, Croatia) and Karyn LaCour (Humble, Texas) will compete for assistant coach Matt Martin in the women's sprint and hurdle events. Erega, the lone foreign member of the group, will bring excellent credentials to Lincoln, including the Croation junior national record in the 100-meter hurdles. LaCour will enter her final season at Humble High School as the defending Texas 5A (largest) state champion in the 100-meter hurdles, while she may also possesses the potential to compete in several events, including the long jump.

Pepin will add another pair of jumpers to his already well-stocked group of talent in Audrey Svane (Tioga, Texas), who won the Texas 3A girl's state high jump title in 2005 as a junior at Pilot Point High School, and Paul Hamilton (Sidney, Neb.), a two-time Nebraska Class B state champ in the boy's high jump.

Rachel Butler (Mechanicsville, Va.) and Natalie Willer (Elkhorn, Neb.) will compete for assistant coach Kris Grimes in the multi-events and pole vault, respectively. Butler is a former Virginia state girl's triple jump champion who also placed fourth in the pentathlon at last year’s National Scholastic Indoor Championships, while Willer is the defending Nebraska Class A state champion in the girl's pole vault for Elkhorn High School.

Nebraska's final signee, Ashley Miller (Tipton, Iowa), will compete for assistant coach Billy Maxwell in the middle distance area. Miller has totaled 11 Iowa Class 2A crowns in events ranging from the 800 meters to 1,500-meter run during her impressive high school career, in addition to a pair of titles on the cross country course.

Women’s Signees

Rachel Butler, Mechanicsville, Va. (Lee-Davis HS); Multi-Events ? Butler won the 2006 Virginia AAA girl’s state triple jump championship in addition to finishing third in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles. She also earned fourth place in the pentathlon at the National Scholastic Indoor Championships in New York City. Butler is coached by Neil Mathews and owns personal-best marks of 40-0 1/2 in the triple jump; 5-4 in the high jump; 43.41 in the 300 hurdles; and 3,380 in the pentathlon.

Lara Crofford, Newville, Pa. (Big Springs HS); Distance ? Crofford earned silver-medal honors as a junior at the 2005 Pennsylvania Class 3A state cross country meet and in the 3,200-meter run at the 2006 Class 3A state track meet. She finished runner-up at the Pennsylvania state cross country meet for the second consecutive year in 2006. Crofford is coached by Robert Jumper and owns a 3,200-meter personal best of 10:39.57.

Arna Erega, Rijeka, Croatia (First Croation Grammer School of Rijeka); Sprints/Hurdles ? Erega reached the semifinals of the women’s 100-meter hurdles at the 2006 World Junior Championships held in Beijing, China. She owns the Croation national junior record in the hurdles of 13.68, a mark that would rank eighth on Nebraska’s all-time list. Erega also has clocked in at 8.51 for the 60-meter hurdles.

Jade Hodson, Hastings, Neb. (Adams Central HS); Throws ? Hodson has won the last two Nebraska Class B girl’s state championships in the shot put. She also placed fifth in 2004 as a freshman. Hodson is coached by Shari Conner and boasts a career best in the shot put of 43-8.

Karyn LaCour, Humble, Texas (Humble HS); Sprints/Hurdles ? LaCour is the defending Texas 5A (largest class) state champion in the 100-meter hurdles. Coached by Ken Janak and Vanita LaCour, she owns a personal best in the hurdles of 13.83, while she has also recorded a mark of 18-10 in the long jump. LaCour has the potential to compete in a variety of events at NU, including the long jump.

Ashley Miller, Tipton, Iowa (Tipton HS); Middle Distance ? Miller is an 11-time Iowa Class 2A girl’s state champion in the 400-meter dash (2005), 800 meters (2004, 2005, 2006), 1,500 meters (2006), 4x400-meter relay (2004, 2005), 4x800-meter relay (2005, 2006) and distance medley relay (2005, 2006). On the cross country course, Miller earned Class 2A state titles in 2004 and 2006 while helping lead Tipton High School to four consecutive state team titles from 2003 to 2006. She also claimed two consecutive Drake Relays high school girl’s 800-meter crowns in 2004 and 2005. Coached by Jenny King in cross country and Dave Fetterman on the track, Miller owns personal bests of 57.63 for the 400, 2:11.09 in the 800 and 4:47.06 over 1,500 meters.

Audrey Svane, Tioga, Texas (Pilot Point HS); High Jump ? Svane is the defending Texas 3A champion in the girl’s high jump. She is coached by Andrew Cook and owns a personal best in the event of 5-9.

Natalie Willer, Elkhorn, Neb. (Elkhorn HS); Pole Vault ? Willer won the Nebraska Class A girl's state pole vault championship with a height of 11-8 last spring for Elkhorn High School. She previously qualified for the Class B state meet as a sophomore in 2005 and as a freshman in 2004. Coached by Linda Gdowski, Willer owns a personal-best vault of 11-9.

Men’s Signees

David Adams, York, Neb. (York HS); Distance ? Adams has won the last two Nebraska Class B boy’s state cross country titles, including the All-Class gold medal as a junior in 2005. He added a second All-Class gold on the track last year in the 1,600-meter run after also winning the Class B title as a junior, and added Class B state titles in the 3,200 meters in both 2005 and 2006. Coached by Tom Brink and former Husker Eric Rasmussen, Adams owns personal bests of 1:59.40 for the 800, 4:23.50 in the 1,600 and 9:25.1 for the 3,200.

Matt Conahan, Omaha, Neb. (Millard North HS); Distance ? Conahan swept the 800- and 1,600-meter run events as a junior at the Nebraska Class A state meet, including grabbing the All-Class gold medal for the 800, following a Class A state championship season in cross country. He previously won the intermediate boy’s 2,000-meter steeplechase title at the 2005 USA Youth Championships. Coached by Mike Neeman, Conahan owns personal bests of 1:53.81 in the 800, 4:23.69 in the 1,600 and 9:48.99 in the 3,200.

Brad Doering, Yuba City, Calif. (Yuba City HS); Distance ? Doering earned 18th place in the 1,600-meter run as a junior at the 2005 California Division I state meet, and he has again qualified as a senior for the 2006 state meet, which will be run on Nov. 25. Coached by Mike Buzbee, Doering owns personal-best times of 4:18.19 in the 1,600 and 9:23.25 in the 3,200.

 Paul Hamilton, Sidney, Neb. (Sidney HS); High Jump ? Hamilton has claimed the past two Nebraska Class B boy's state high jump titles for Sidney High School. He won the 2006 crown with a personal-best height of 6-11, while leaping 6-8 to win as a sophomore in 2005. Hamilton, who is coached by John Ganser, also qualified for the state meet as a freshman in 2004.

Sam Siegel, Lincoln, Neb. (Southwest HS); Throws ? Siegel concluded his junior year by finishing fifth in the shot put and sixth in the discus at the Nebraska Class A state meet. He also qualified for the state meet in the shot put as a sophomore in 2005. Siegel is coached by Ryan Mahoney and owns the Southwest school records of 55-9 in the shot put and 165-0 in the discus.