by JEN DIEFENDERFER
GoPSUsports.com
| James Cook |
early 11 years ago, Penn State hosted its first Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championship. With the 2007 Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships fast approaching, former women??s coach Terri Jordan and recently retired men??s coach Harry Groves take a look back at the 1996 championships.
??The Big Ten is one of the premiere track conferences in the country and year in and year out if you can do anything in it, you are really proud of yourself,?? said Groves. ??It??s a big time conference and a big time track meet.??
A lot has changed since 1996, but one of the biggest changes to the Big Ten Championships is the amount of time coaches spend administrating the event. In 1996, coaches spent a great deal of time running the event. Jordan and Groves made sure the hurdles were in the correct place and that the officials were in the correct spot. Today, coaches are able to focus on their team and strategize more during the event instead of worrying about running the event. Now, an officials group handles the logistics portion of administrating and running the event.
??When Harry [Groves] and I hosted the 1996 Big Tens, we as coaches spent a great deal of time officiating the meets or finding people to fill in where needed,?? said Jordan. ??We didn??t have time to focus on the team as much as we would at a regular season meet.??
| Erica Bosler |
Helping the team to a third place finish, three men stood out at the 1996 Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships, with each capturing first place finishes and going on to garner All-America accolades. After winning the decathlon (7,448) and capturing sixth in the javelin (193-11) at Big Tens as a sophomore, Jamie Cook later went on to set the second-best performance in the decathlon at the 1996 Penn Relays. Cook later became an assistant men??s track and field coach at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds many memories from the Big Ten Championships, but the decathlon stands out as one of his greatest achievements.
??My favorite memory is probably running the 1500 meters at the end of the decathlon and trying to soak up the atmosphere,?? said Cook. ??At that point I had pretty much won the competition so I tried to enjoy the moment and acknowledge all of the people [at the meet] supporting me, especially my Mom and Dad.??
As a sophomore Carl Wolter set a new Big Ten record in the javelin, taking first in the event (233-8). Wolter still holds the second-best mark in the outdoor javelin. Wolter, an avid golfer, went on to become the 2002 World Long Drive Champion.
| Carl Wolter |
Stephen Pina now works as a lawyer out of Philadelphia, but in 1996 he captured a first place finish in the long jump (25-9 1/2) as a freshman for the Nittany Lions. To this day he holds the third best performance in the outdoor long jump.
After 38 years with the Penn State Track and Field program, Groves retired last spring but continues to remember his former athletes well. Not only proud of their performances at the 1996 championships, Groves is proud to have met and worked with a phenomenal group of coaches throughout the conference.
??After many, many years of coaching in the Big Ten I found the coaches to be ??straight up.?? They don??t mess around,?? said Groves. ??If they beat you, they beat you head on and you might walk away defeated but you felt proud that it was done the right way. In essence that is the Big Ten.??
After finishing fourth at the Big Ten Indoor Track and Field Championships, the women??s team was looking for success outdoors as well. Although they finished eighth overall at the 1996 Big Ten Outdoor Championships, the women??s cross country team had recorded a second place finish in the Big Ten that fall. Kim McGreevy and Erin St. John were team captains of cross country and went 1-2 in the Big Ten. The team went on to place 11th nationally. Heading into the 2006 outdoor season, McGreevy, St. John, Erica Bosler and Sue Huelster finished fourth in the distance medley relay at the 1996 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, leading all four to become All-Americans. ??We did not have a good outdoor meet as we had to run the meet ourselves,?? said Jordan.
| Erin St. John |
The Lions?? 1995-96 captains were chosen from a team vote: Kim Harrity, Kim Hicks, Tamara Scott and All-American Huelster. All-American Bosler finished third in the 400 meters (54.49). Huelster, Bosler, McGreevy and St. John garnered All-America honors during the indoor season and finished 30th at the indoor nationals. All four garnered Academic All-America honors as well. Becky Gusic and Denika Kisty went on to grab All-America honors in the outdoor season. Gusic also garnered Academic All-America honors during the outdoor season.
Jordan began her tenure with Penn State in the fall of 1984, becoming the head coach for the women??s track and field team. She stayed with the program through the 1999 outdoor track and field season when Beth Alford-Sullivan took over as the head coach for the women??s track and field team. Since 1999, Jordan has been the director of the Disability Recreation Program and the Ability Athletics Coach. She is also the assistant coordinator of the Multi-Purpose/Ashenfelter Track facility, which means she assists with the hosting of the annual State College Area High School indoor track and field meet.
Jordan and Groves can??t say enough about how well the event is run today. Plenty of individuals volunteer their time to aid in the hosting of the event and today??s technology allows coaches to worry less about officiating and results.
??A lot of good memories and a lot of good associations. Whenever you get together you just go at it,?? said Groves. ??It??s an exciting track meet in every respect.??