The NCAA National Champion and three-time All-American is one of two Longhorns (combined events' competitor Shawn Schmidt) who competed at the 2006 USA Junior Track and Field Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., and the 2006 World Junior Championships in Beijing, China, during the summer.

How were you selected for the American junior team? First, I qualified 100-meter during the season, based on time. Then I competed in Indianapolis (at U.S. Junior Track and Field Championships) at the end of June. (The USA Track and Field Association) took the top two finishers in the 100-meter dash and the next fastest runners were put in an at-large relay pool. I won the 100 and also ran on the 4x100-meter relay.

Did you compete in other meets before you went to Beijing for the World Junior Championships? Before we went to China, we ran in Oregon for a day. We competed at the (Nike) Road to Eugene '08 Meet as a pre-race before we went overseas. I really enjoyed it because we saw the top pro athletes race in a few events.

What was the atmosphere like when you made it to in Beijing? They treated us like kings and queens. The U.S. team stayed in one of the best hotels and had some of the greatest food. I had a great time it but I wouldn't trade it for my home here in Austin.

How was the track at the stadium? The track was a good and fast track. I didn't pay too much attention to it though. It is not the track they will use for the Olympics but it's a similar style and stadium build.

How were you able to adjust to running with some of your teammates who you compete against in college? A lot of the people on my team were in high school. I ran against them two years ago (before I graduated). But we also knew that it was the past and we wanted a unified team so we could win. Even though we came from different backgrounds, our attitudes clicked and we were able to have a good time.

What did you miss while you were gone? I missed the food here in Austin, but I tend to be able to adapt to my surroundings quickly. I had a couple of friends there from teams I ran on before. Plus I was just happy to have such a great experience. I traveled across the country and overseas, and got to meet so many new people.

Are you happy to be back on a familiar track at Texas? Yes, I am so ready for this season. Our team has been training hard and we're all ready to go out there, and run, jump and throw. I've got to step up and know what to do going into the season. We want to win another national championship.