With 'incredible' improvement, Mason's Riley Gill has turned into a top hurdler

Riley Gill has observed and noticed plenty of others who have big successes on the track. 

Gill wasn’t sure if things would get to that point for her.  

They have for the Mason sophomore, who has made a big jump this spring and emerged as one the top hurdlers in Greater Lansing. 

Gill, the latest LSJ athlete of the week winner, has seen major time drops while becoming a key scorer for the Bulldogs. 

“We've never had an athlete have this big of an improvement from one year to the next,” Mason coach David Jones said. “It's incredible actually.”

Gill’s top time in the 100 hurdles as a freshman was 18.29 seconds and her best mark in the 300 hurdles was 48.55. She has only been beat once in those events this season while boosting her times and closing in on Mason’s school records.  

Gill set personal records in both events during the Greater Lansing Honor Roll meet, finishing in 15.44 while winning the 100 hurdles and 46.89 on her way to taking third in the 300 hurdles.  

The time drop Jones attributes to Gill combining technique with her speed and her attention on the little things.  

“My steps in between my hurdles was a big thing, Gill said. “I three-step now and I couldn't do that last year. That really makes a difference.”

Recent LSJ athlete of week winners:East Lansing's Drew Miller cementing his place among state's top golfers

How Isabel Thelen has made her mark as lone underclassman singles player for St. Johns tennis

With the way her times have dropped this spring, Gill has been motivated to see how low they can go. 

And winning in a competitive field that included Michigan State-bound hurdler Grace Hungerford at the Honor Roll meet has added confidence for Gill in what more she can accomplish.  

“It gives me more confidence to keep going and that I can get better and to a higher level,” Gill said. 

Jones said Gill's accomplishments this year has been indicative of his program’s success. Mason went unbeaten during the season to win the CAAC Red and won a Division 2 regional last month. 

“We knew we were going to be good this year, but her evolvement has really taken us to the next level and her improvement," Jones said. "We thought we'd be good but we had no idea we would be this good consistently. Her and some of the new girls we got have really surpassed all our expectations that we had coming in.

"Her improvements have really propelled us forward and taken us to the next level. We're half a second off of the school record in the 4x400 as well and she's a part of that. We're on the cusp of a lot of good things right now."

Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @brian_calloway.