Abby Heinold and Maureen Nelligan have signed National Letters of Intent to continue their athletic and academic careers at Illinois State as members of the Redbird track and field team next year.
Local product Heinold, a native of Eureka, Ill., will fill more than one role on the team. At Eureka High School, she competed in sprints as well as the pole vault and relays. Her best times include 12.9 seconds in the 100-meter dash and 58.1 in the 400-meter dash. Heinold was the 2002 State Champion in the 400-meter dash and was a member of the 4x400 relay team that also captured the state title last year.
Heinold holds the record in the pole vault (96), 400-meter dash (58.1) and 800 medley relay (1:49.7) at Eureka High School and plans on pursuing a degree in education.
Abby is a very multi-talented athlete, Redbird head coach Elvis Forde said. I dont know exactly where we will put her as a specialty but with her athleticism, she can compete at a lot of different places. She brings qualities to this program that we are looking for; leadership, commitment and the drive to be successful.
She has done well in high school and I know she will do the same thing at Illinois State, Forde said. If she stays healthy and works hard, she is capable of doing a tremendous job for our program.
Nelligan, a native of Orland Park, Ill. and Carl Sandburg High School, finished 26th in the state cross country meet last fall while her high school team placed third. She was the 2001 regional and sectional champion in cross country.
The middle distance runner also qualified for the state track and field meet in the 1600 meter run last year while she qualified in 2001 for the state meet in the 3200 meters.
From a cross country standpoint, Maureen is going to bring the depth we need to make us a deeper, stronger team next year, Illinois State distance coach Chris Bailey said. She is going to contribute to our workouts and play a big part in the program. The main thing she can contribute is her depth as we look to win a womens championship.
