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After winning three consecutive NCAA national titles in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase, Boise State great Allie Ostrander will forgo her final season of eligibility and turn pro.
The Alaska runner hired agent Ray Flynn of Flynn Sports on Sunday to represent her, and she is in the process of negotiating a professional contract.
“I think she just wanted to prepare for the Olympics and become professional,” Flynn told the Idaho Statesman by phone on Tuesday. “... She has great love for Idaho and Boise State, and I’m sure it was a very difficult decision for her, and she did say that.”
3️⃣x NCAA Champion
— Boise State Broncos (@BroncoSports) July 2, 2019
2️⃣x NCAA Elite 90 Award winner
2️⃣x @CoSIDA Academic All-American
1️⃣3️⃣x NCAA All-American
8️⃣x @MountainWest Champion
1️⃣ 🐐
Thank You, @allie_ostrander #BleedBlue pic.twitter.com/SZH40J0GOc
Flynn said Ostrander, a Kenai Central graduate, has not yet decided what event she will pursue at the professional level. Ostrander won her third straight national championship in the steeplechase last month in a school-record time of 9:37.73. She also finished the year with a nation-leading time in the 10,000 meters and ranked among the top 20 nationally in the 1,500 and 5,000.
“She’s so versatile. She can run so many different events,” Flynn said. “I think she has the potential in probably several events.”
Ostrander graduated from Boise State in May with a degree in exercise science and a 4.0 GPA. She was recently named a first-team CoSIDA Academic All-American for the second year in a row.
On Sunday, after she established a huge personal-best while finishing 13th in the steeplechase at the Prefontaine Classic at Stanford’s Cobb Track & Angell Field, Ostrander posted a photo on Instagram with the caption “One last run as a bronco.”
Ostrander placed 13th at the Prefontaine Classic in a time of 9:31.44 while competing against the top steeplechase runners in the world.
She racked up an extensive list of accomplishments during her time at Boise State. In addition to her three steeplechase titles, she is also a two-time national runner-up with second-place finishes in cross country in 2015 and the indoor 3,000 meters in 2018.
She has eight Mountain West titles and two Mountain West Athlete of the Year honors. There are more than 70 accolades listed on Ostrander’s bio at BroncoSports.com. In 2016, Ostrander competed at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials, placing eighth in the 5,000. She was the only collegiate runner in the field of 16.
Rachel Roberts is a sports reporter for the Idaho Statesman.