All-American Bryan Steele Takes Second Place at NCAA Track & Field Championships

6/10/06 --All-American Bryan Steele (Gaithersburg, Md.) established a personal-best time and set a Long Island University record at the 2006 NCAA 400-meter hurdles Championships Saturday afternoon at the Alex G. Spanos Sports Complex in Sacramento.

Steele crossed the line in 49.02, capturing second place and shaving .17 seconds off of his personal-best time established Friday at the semifinals. Recently named Northeast District Division I Athlete of the Year by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, he posted first place showings in the 400 hurdles at the prestigious Penn Relays, Northeast Conference Championships and the NCAA East Regional Championships. He also helped the 4x100-meter relay team to an ECAC crown.

The Maryland native capped off a stellar collegiate career with eight All-NEC awards and seven school records. He was a two-time LIU Male Athlete of the Year winner (2004, 2006) and received a degree in Psychology this past May. Steele’s second place showing this afternoon is the highest finish in an NCAA Championship event by an LIU track and field athlete.

Classmate Michael Hillian (Voorhees, N.J.) ended his collegiate career Friday afternoon after finishing the 400-meter dash in 46.84. Hillian, also a member of the Northeast Conference Champion 4x100 and 4x200-meter relay teams, was named NEC Outstanding Performer for the second consecutive year. He captured the 200 and 400-meter titles at the conference finals and posted a season-best 400-meter sprint time at the NCAA East Region Championship (46.33).

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