Hall hopes to pick up where she left off

USC redshirt sophomore, who hasn't raced since July 2015, returns to hurdling competition at Rod McCravy Memorial Invitational following torn left ACL injury

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Dior Hall hasn’t raced in more than 17 months and has only been training over hurdles since November.

But the return to the track by the USC redshirt sophomore to compete in the indoor 60-meter hurdles is one of the most intriguing storylines Saturday at Kentucky’s Rod McCravy Memorial Invitational at Nutter Field House in Lexington.

Hall captured the Pan American Junior gold medal in the 100-meter hurdles July 31, 2015 in Canada, her last competition before tearing her left ACL during practice that December.

More than 54 weeks after surgery and nearly six months since she resumed running on the track with spikes, Hall will get an early indication as to how her form, speed and step pattern match up with the rest of the country.

Along with teammates Anna Cockrell and Jasmyne Graham, Hall is entered in a 60 hurdles field that includes two athletes – Illinois sophomore Pedrya Seymour and Purdue senior Devynne Charlton – ranked in the top five nationally, in addition to former Kentucky star and 2015 NCAA indoor champion Keni Harrison. Nine of the 29 entries will advance to the final scheduled approximately 45 minutes after the preliminary heats.

“I’m super excited to race this weekend. I can’t wait to see where I’m at after the surgery and fall training,” Hall said. “My expectations for Saturday are to get through the race clean and come out injury free. I’m also hoping to reach where I left off my freshman year indoors.”

Hall last raced indoors in the 2015 NCAA final, won by Harrison, who went on to place second in the 60 hurdles in a personal-best 7.77 seconds at last year’s U.S. Indoor Championships, one-hundredth behind Brianna Rollins.

Hall ran a PR of 8.01 in NCAA qualifying two years ago, before placing eighth in the championship.

A showdown involving Harrison, representing adidas, and Hall would match the world record holder in the 100 hurdles (12.20) against the athlete with the fastest all-time world junior performance (12.74).

“I would love to run against Keni in the finals this weekend,” Hall said. “She’s a great competitor and she had an amazing season this past year, so if I get to race against her, I know she’ll bring me to a PR for sure.”