Weber State University Athletics
Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 2001
- Class:
- 1989
Teri Okelberry was one of Weber State’s most versatile athletes and earned the distinction as the first Wildcat female to compete in the NCAA Championships in two different sports in the same year.
Teri came to Weber State from Weber High School. The Pleasant View native was heavily recruited in softball, volleyball and track and field. She initially planned to attend another school to play softball, but finally decided to come to Weber State.
Okelberry competed in the hurdles, the triple jump, the heptathlon, and her specialty, the javelin. She proved to be a valuable scoring asset to Coach Jim Blaisdell’s squad. When her collegiate career was over, she held school records in the javelin, triple jump, 400-meter hurdles and the heptathlon.
Still, her top priority was the javelin. In 1987, Teri qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, finishing eighth to earn the school’s first NCAA Division I All-America award. Okelberry repeated the feat in 1988 and 1989, with fifth being her highest overall finish.
Okelberry qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in 1988. She finished sixth overall against the nation’s top javelin throwers.
Okelberry walked on to the WSU volleyball team and earned significant playing time. In 1988, the Wildcats won the Big Sky Conference Championship, and went on to compete in the NCAA Tournament.
Following her own playing career, Okelberry Spiers became a successful high school volleyball coach. In 1992, she joined the Weber State volleyball coaching staff. She continued to work on her sociology degree while coaching and caring for daughter Bailie.
After seven years, Okelberry Spiers desired to come out of retirement to compete in the 1996 U.S. Olympic Trials. Teri qualified and eventually finished 10th overall to complete her successful comeback.
She was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 2021.
