March 2, 2008
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn - Behind a pair of individual wins from senior Shana Cox (Westbury, N.Y.) and a victory in the 4x400-meters, the Nittany Lion women's track and field team totaled 121 points to finish third overall, Sunday at the Big Ten Indoor Championships at University Fieldhouse. The Nittany Lions held their own in a conference that features three teams ranked in the top ten nationally, taking bronze medal honors behind host Minnesota (136 pts), and Michigan (128 pts). Cox has now won an impressive 12 conference titles in her decorated career, adding gold medals in the 200-meters, 400-meters, and 4x400-meter relay.
Cox led an impressive Lion contingent in the 400, taking first place honors over conference rival and 2006 NCAA Champion Kineke Alexander, breaking the tape in 53.40, which is also a Minnesota Fieldhouse record. Dominique Blake (Bronx, N.Y.) also made the medal stand, finishing third in 54.63, while Fawn Dorr (Akron, N.Y) gave a tremendous 55.17 effort for fourth place.
Cox carried the momentum over to the 200-meters, winning in a provisional 24.06, and once again bettering Alexander in second. Junior Aleesha Barber (Decatur, Ga.) turned in a fifth-place effort in 24.64, while Shavon GReaves (Lakewood, N.J.) added a seventh-place finish in 24.86.
The senior wasn't finished, however, anchoring the winning 4x400 relay, which cruised to a 3:40.43 victory, bettering the field by four seconds. The relay included Briene Simmons (Decatur, Ga.), Dominique Blake (Bronx, N.Y.), Barber, and Cox, all of whom who have been members of the victorious relay for the past three years. Barber would also record a silver-medal finish in the 60-meter hurdles (8.29), while Simmons nabbed fourth-place honors in the 600-meters, finishing in 1:31.97.
In the distances, sophomore Bridget Franek (Hiram, Ohio) ran another outstanding race, finishing fourth in a blistering 5,000-meter field, which went nine deep in NCAA qualifiers. Franek's 16:10.99, which was good for fourth place, was not only the fastest time of her career, but also an NCAA provisional qualifying mark. Classmate Leah Rosenfeld (Ridgefield, Conn.) managed her first-career conference scoring performance in the mile, posting an eighth-place effort in 4:50.87. The Big Ten distance races were some of the best on record, as nearly 25 NCAA marks were recorded in the mile, 3,000-meters, and 5,000.
Junior Gayle Hunter (Riverside, Calif.) added her third bronze medal of the weekend to the Nittany Lion medal count, this time, taking third-place honors in the triple jump. Hunter's leap of 41-7.25 (12.68m) was a personal best, as well as a provisional qualifying mark in her first appearance in the event this season. Teammate Lena Bettis (Riverside, Calif.) followed in fourth place, posting a leap of 40-11 (12.47m).
Also notching a scoring finish in the field was senior Helen Higgins (Waynesburg, Pa.), who recorded a seventh-place effort in the weight throw with a mark of 56-10.25 (17.33m) - the sixth conference scoring performance of her career.
With one weekend remaining before the NCAA Championships, the Nittany Lions will send some athletes to the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame and the Virginia Tech Last Chance in hopes of qualifying for the national meet. Both competitions are scheduled for Saturday, March 8.