By
Francisco Merced
Arizona Daily Wildcat
UA sprinter celebrates birthday, No. 1 ranking today
She owns four UA records and shares another. She is the reigning Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Women's Athlete of the Year, two years running. She has been named All-American five times.
Brianna Glenn - UA's top female athlete - turns 21 today. In terms of experience, however, she might as well be a grizzled veteran.
But for all the accolade, Glenn isn't done - not by a long shot.
"Competing is what drives me, what makes me perform my best," Glenn said. "It's hard for me to be satisfied."
Drive and determination have taken Glenn to the top, but high expectations follow close behind.
"She's one of the finest female athletes we've ever had at this school in any sport," UA head coach Dave Murray said about the junior star.
Coming out of La Mirada, Calif., Glenn was considered a good sprinter and, in fact, the school's top athlete.
During her 2 1/2 years at the UA, Glenn's career has blossomed, taking the competitive junior into the national spotlight.
But the most noticeable changes in Glenn began off the field, said associate head coach Fred Harvey
"The biggest growth has been in her maturity," Harvey said. "She's learning how to handle competition, how to deal with the expectations of a great athlete."
Now Glenn is compared to the likes of Southern California's Angela Williams, one of the nation's elite runners.
"My philosophy is that you can't be the best unless you beat the best," Glenn said.
For most of this season, Glenn has set her sights on knocking off Williams, considered the nation's top sprinter.
The two-time defending NCAA champion in the 100-meter dash hails from the same area as Glenn and has established a prolific career at USC.
But Glenn's victory against Williams in last weekend's Brutus Hamilton Memorial Invitational proved that she belongs among the nation's elite.
"I enjoy competing against her because I know she's a good athlete and there's not that intimidation like there was in high school," Glenn said. "I've closed the gap."
By closing that gap, Glenn has earned a spot among the great sprinters in Pacific 10 Conference history.
"She's now established herself as one of the best all around sprinter/jumpers in the country," Murray said.
The hard work has apparently paid off - Glenn holds the No. 1 time in the country in the 100-meter.
"Brianna continues to get stronger and stronger and will be a very prime contender come the first week in June," when the NCAA Outdoor Chamopionships are held, Murray said.
If history is any indication of how well Glenn will perform, she'll be atop the leaderboard, just as she has been all season.
"'Bri' is a big meet performer," teammate Mike Kenyon said. "When it comes to big competition, she steps it up."
At this year's National Indoor Championships, Glenn finished third in the 60-meter and fourth in the long jump, helping the women's team to a third-place finish overall.
While those feats garnered Glenn an All-American award, the finish left her with the desire to accomplish more - something Harvey knows she can do.
"You have to be impressed with how she placed in both events, but we thought she could do better," Harvey said.
Glenn agrees with her coach.
"(This year's Indoor Championships were) hard because I knew I could beat the people who beat me," Glenn said. "I expect more from myself and a lot of other people do too."
Behind the accolades is the hard work, the relentless training that separates the elite from the typical college athlete. Glenn owes most of her endurance and superior conditioning to Dawn Mortensen, UA's sprints coach.
"She's obviously a phenomenal athlete, and she continues improving season to season," Mortensen said. "(Glenn's) a pleasure to work with, and that always makes it better."
The work ethic, Mortensen says, is what has taken Glenn to where she is now.
"She's definitely putting in the workout here," Mortensen said. "She gets more dedicated every year and she's loving it more."
While Glenn continues to grow so do the expectations of people around her. Last year, the junior wasn't exactly a prominent figure in NCAA track. This year is quite different.
"Last year everything came rapidly and I put myself out there," Glenn said. "People didn't really know of me or expect me to be up there, and now they do."
The chance of being overlooked is gone forever. Glenn will now be hunted the same way she once gunned Williams.
"When Brianna Glenn is in the starting blocks, everyone knows who Brianna Glenn is," Murray said. "She's that great sprinter from Arizona."
