Sophomore track and field athlete Ally Henson is an up-and-comer on the NC State track team who is looking to continue to establish her presence in the collegiate track and field community. Her journey to where she is now has certainly not been without its fair share of adversity, but Henson continues to hurdle over all obstacles in her path.
As the 2018 USA Track & Field Athlete of the Year, Henson developed quite the reputation as one of the premier high school hurdlers in the country. That has not stopped her continuous quest for improvement, however, as she made it clear that there is always something else to improve upon. Coming out of high school, Henson believed the best place to make that improvement was here at NC State.
Her recruiting process was characterized as “pretty routine” by assistant coach Allen Johnson, who met Henson at a New Balance meet in Greensboro. That routine recruiting process is a fond memory for Henson, who can remember how it all kicked off.
“I had just run my 100m hurdle race and didn’t run well because of outside circumstances at what was one of the first national meets I had been to,” Henson said.
Making her way to the stands, she unknowingly found herself next to Johnson, who inquired about how Henson felt about her performance.
Henson told him “I didn’t perform as well as I wanted to,” which sparked a conversation that ultimately led to an exchanging of information. Her recruiting was almost wrapped up right then and there, but a visit to NC State’s campus really sealed the deal for Henson.
Since making the decision to make Raleigh her collegiate home, Henson has not had the same opportunities as other athletes in the past. As is true with many athletes over the past year, COVID-19 has played a large role in her ability to develop and progress as an NCAA athlete.
“We still have a lot of things that we need to accomplish, especially with her freshman year being cut short last year due to COVID,” Johnson said. “Her development has been very much interrupted.”
Despite such an unforeseen situation arising to put a quick halt to her first year as a member of the Pack, Henson managed to always keep a positive attitude in a not-so-positive situation.
“When you show up to training, no matter what, she’s always smiling and bubbling,” Johnson said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen her in a bad mood, and everyone is in a bad mood at least once.”
When asked about whether Henson tends to express herself as more of a vocal leader or the lead by example type, coach Johnson says that it’s “a little bit of both, with her having such a bubbly personality, she’s always engaging the other athletes on the team with her happiness.”
That radiant energy is something Henson tries to carry into other aspects of her life, including her hobbies. She is an avid music enthusiast who enjoys listening and dancing to music whenever she gets the chance.
“I do it a lot because I feel like I can just let out positive energy that can just radiate around me,” Henson said.
As many athletes experience, Henson’s family was one of the biggest influences into her selection of sport; however, she started track later in her life than top athletes normally do.
“I didn’t start hurdling until my sophomore year of high school because I just wanted something new to do,” Henson said. “My little brother was also a hurdler, and he would say that I started hurdling because of him, but my dad was a hurdler in high school and college, and he was the one that put me in track.”
As far as Ally Henson the athlete goes, she had one specific mechanic to improve on that she believed was important to her success in the upcoming year.
“Coach told me there’s one thing I need to focus on and one thing only, and that’s the direction of my push into the hurdle,” Henson said. “My practice with it has been good, but in my outcomes from races, it hasn’t really shown. After my indoor season this year is when it kind of clicked for me.”
Improving on such a meticulous mechanic is far easier said than done and is one of many goals Henson has established for herself for the remainder of this track season. Other goals on this list included making it to ACC competition and placing before heading on to place at NCAA Regionals.
As she prepares for her first collegiate outdoor meet, which is scheduled for March 25-27 at Raleigh Relays, she expressed how she is feeling about participating outdoors for the first time.
Henson feels like she has prepared as best as she could have coming into this event, where she is looking to make a statement on her ability to perform in the outdoor environment, but didn’t want to set a cap on expectations.
“I expect to at least run 13.50; anything lower than 13.50, I will be happy with,” Henson said. “That is the max that I should be running.”
As such a goal-driven individual who radiates positivity, it is easy to want to pull for her success as a collegiate athlete and as an individual. Any collegiate track and field enthusiast or fan of NC State’s programs should certainly keep an eye out for Henson as she begins her collegiate outdoor track and field journey this spring.
