Pardon Leslie Murray for not being overly excited about finishing 10
th in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA Championship and earning second-team All-American honors.
It's just that Murray, who garnered first-team All-American status as a member of the Delaware State 1600-meter relay team that finished seventh at the NCAA Championship and set a school record with a time of 3:03.42, had sights set higher, much higher.
He was sixth in the 400-meter hurdles and gained first-team All-American recognition as a freshman two years ago. His goal was to finish first this time after struggling through an injury riddled sophomore season that caused him to skip the 400 hurdles at the 2010 NCAA Championship even though he qualified.
Murray entered the 2011 NCAA Championships poised to take another step toward establishing himself as one the top hurdlers in the world after capturing the bronze medal at the 2010 World Junior Outdoor Championships.
It didn't happen, however.
But instead of complaining about what was a lackluster showing by his standards, Murray is using it as a motivational tool and learning experience.
"It's a lot of motivation,'' says Murray, who was born in the U.S. Virgin Islands and moved to the United States when he was in grade school. "I just have to train harder. I feel I can be tops in the world. I have to prove it to everybody and myself that I am a top hurdler.''
Murray qualified for the NCAA Championships by finishing second in the East Regional final with a time of 50:15.
"I thought he had a shot to win the whole thing,'' says Delaware State track and field coach Duane Henry. "He had a good season overall. He grew up little. He knows what he needs to do to come back.''
Murray and Henry consider the NCAA Championship performance a minor setback. Henry says he is looking for Murray to break the 49 second mark this summer and ultimately 48 seconds.
"He has the ability to do that,'' Henry says. "He's just got to put it all together.''
Murray's goal is to be at his peak for the World Championships in August and the Pan Am Games in October, where he will represent the Virgin Islands and put into practice the lessons that he learned from his "disappointing and humbling'' performance in the NCAA Championship.
"I know I could have done much better,'' he says. "I know I could have run a much better race. It was a learning experience. You can't underestimate the competition. Everybody is coming to run. You have to bring your A game.''
Murray brought his A game to the 2010 World Junior Outdoor Championships, running a 50.22 for third place after missing a large part of the season with hamstring and quadriceps injuries. He says that performance reassured him that despite his injuries, he was still among the elite in his event.
"The World Juniors helped me realize where I was in my career,'' Murray says. "Coming off two injuries, that built my confidence and let me know I could still run. I came into my junior season with a lot of confidence. I didn't want to lose to anyone. I felt that it was going to be my year.''
And it may well have been Murray's year had it not been for a tactical error at the NCAA Championship.
"I felt I had a secure pace,'' he says. "I guess the people behind me were using my pace. I relaxed a bit and didn't power through. I know I could have done much better. I know I could have run a much better race.''
"He had been running aggressively,'' Henry says, "but he backed off. He thought he could get them at the end, but he ran out of space.''
Henry has already begun plotting strategy for Murray to capture the 2012 NCAA Championships title. He says Murray only had a handful of races where the competition pushed him, which may have been to his detriment at the NCAA Championship.
"The plan next year is to win the whole thing,'' Henry says. "We have to get in the right scenario for that to happen. Our preparations have to be at home. He has the ability to do it. He just has to pull it all together. How we plan our season will be the determining factor.''
In addition to Murray and Delaware State's 1600-meter relay team, eight other individuals and one other relay team from the MEAC reached the NCAA Championships based on their performances in the Regional Championships.
Delaware State long jumper Kendra Mayers led the way with a career-best leap of 6.18 meters. She is the first woman from Delaware State to qualify for the NCAA Championships since Tiffany Barnes in the 400 meter dash in 2002.
Norfolk State had school record four athletes to advance. Junior Aramis Massenburg advanced on the strength of his time of 13.71 in the 110 meter hurdles. Massenburg was joined by his Spartan teammates Darris Shelton, who had a leap of 7.60 meters in the long jump; Sean Holston, who timed at 46.13 in the 400 meters, and on the women's side long jumper Champagne Bell, who had leap of 6.17 meters.
North Carolina A&T 4x100 meter relay team of Torrance Womack, Jonathan Hancock, Jarrell Elliott and Earl House advanced with a time of 40.04.
Bethune-Cookman's Kemar Clarke qualified in the men's 110 meter hurdles at 13.85.
Coppin State sophomore Jibri Victorian earned a spot in the nationals by finishing fifth in his 400-meter hurdles heat in a time of 51.17, his second-best time ever. Maryland Eastern Shore junior Ackeem Smith qualified the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 13.90.