| Allen Pettner finished 10th in the javelin at the USATF Championships on Thursday. |
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.; June 21, 2007 ?C Nittany Lion athletes Shana Cox (Westbury, N.Y.) and Bridget Franek (Hiram, Ohio) advanced through the opening rounds of their respective events, Thursday at the USATF National Championships. Also competing were Briene Simmons (Decatur, Ga.) and Allen Pettner (Mercersburg, Pa.), who both closed out outstanding 2007 campaigns.
Cox clocked 52.20 to breeze through the preliminary round of the 400-meters, advancing to tomorrow??s semi-finals with a second-place finish in her heat. Franek also ran a composed race in the 3000-meter steeplechase, running 10:06.33 to finish fifth in her heat and qualify for the final. Franek is one of just three collegians to move on to the championship round.
| Bridget Franek advanced to final, running 10:06.33, Thursday at the USATF Championships. |
Simmons ran a season-best 2:06.69 in the 800-meters, finishing just two spots shy of moving on to the semi-finals. Pettner also just missed making the final, throwing 234-06 (71.48) to finish 10th overall, barely a foot out of the nine-man final.
Competition continues Friday morning with volunteer coaches Ryan Olkowski and GiGi Johnson and Gayle Hunter (Riverside, Calif.) begin action in the multi-events.