| Beth Alford-Sullivan |
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.: June 4, 2007 ?C Junior Shana Cox (Westbury, N.Y.) and senior Allen Pettner (Mercersburg, Pa.) have been recognized as Mid-Atlantic District Athletes of the Year, announced by the United States Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) on Monday. Nittany Lion Director of Track and Field Beth Alford-Sullivan was also recognized, earning District Women??s Coach of the Year honors.
Cox, who won the same award last spring, is a six-time All-American, coming off a second-place finish in the 400-meters at the NCAA East Regional Championships. Her season-best 51.38 is the second-fastest seed time among this weekend??s NCAA Championship field. Cox, who finished third in the event last year, will also run the 4x400-meters after anchoring the team to a school-record 3:31.75 to win silver-medal honors at the regional meet. A nine-time Big Ten Champion, Cox took second in the quarter at the 2007 conference meet and assisted in Penn State??s fourth-straight mile relay title. Cox was twice named Big Ten Athlete of the Week this season, and also won the Tony Wilson Award at Sea Ray Relays ?C given to the top track and field athletes in the competition.
Pettner, coming off his second-consecutive Big Ten javelin title, finished third in the East Region in the event, securing his first-career bid to the Division I Championships. The senior is ranked third in the NCAA going into the weekend with a personal-best 239-9 (73.09), which is also a Penn State and a Big Ten record. Throughout the season, Pettner has recorded wins at the Stanford Invitational, Auburn Tiger Classic, and Bucknell Team Challenge, as well as the conference meet, setting three facility records on the way.
Sullivan has now won a grand total of 14 Coach of the Year awards in her illustrious career ?C three coming from the Mid-Atlantic district. Sullivan??s Nittany Lion women finished third at the Big Ten Championships last month, and fourth at the East Region meet last weekend. The Penn State women earned their fourth-straight Big Ten 4x400-meter title last month, while redshirt freshman Aleesha Barber (Decatur, Ga.) won an individual conference title in the 400-meter hurdles. Sullivan also led freshman Bridget Franek (Hiram, Ohio) to Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors. Franek is just the third woman in program history to earn the first-year honor. Under Sullivan??s watch, the Lion women have also claimed three school records this season. Leading the Nittany Lion men and women in their first year as a combined program, Sullivan has overseen 11 athletes to NCAA bids.
The Lions begin competition at the NCAA Championships on Wednesday, June 6, starting with the men??s javelin at 10:30 a.m. PST. Fans can follow the action at www.GoPSUsports.com.