May 27, 2009
Penn State Schedule of Events | East Regional Information
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.: May 26, 2009 - Hoping to continue their already successful 2009 campaigns, the Nittany Lion track and field teams will travel a record total of 39 athletes to the NCAA East Regional Championships, set for May 29-30 in Greensboro, N.C. The NCAA Regional Championships will determine who advances to the national meet next month, as the top five finishers in each event will receive an automatic bid, while the sixth-through-twelfth place finishers will be eligible for at-large spots.
The Nittany Lion women - who are coming off their second-straight Big Ten outdoor title - will look to use the momentum from their conference crown for another high regional finish. The Lion women took second at the East Regional last season, finishing a single point from the team championship. A total of 17 women will travel to the championships, including junior Bridget Franek (Hiram, Ohio), who is the top seed in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Franek, who owns the second-fastest performance in the NCAA this season, will vie for her third-straight trip to the NCAA Championships in the event and look to follow up her gold-medal performance at the 2008 regional. Franek - the Penn State record holder at 9:43.57 - placed third in the steeplechase as a sophomore - one of her five career NCAA All-America finishes.
Also entering the weekend with shots at a top regional finishes are senior Gayle Hunter (Riverside, Calif.) and sophomore Shavon GReaves (Lakewood, N.J.). Hunter - already a lock in the NCAA heptathlon - will aim to make her second-straight trip to NCAAs in the long jump, coming into the regional with a season-best 21-00.75 (6.42), which ranks fourth among regional competitors. Greaves, who made her first NCAA appearance indoors this year, is seeded third in the 200-meters at 23.35. Greaves will also run the 100-meters, where she ranks sixth overall at 11.49. The sophomore took conference titles in both events at the recent Big Ten Championships.
Ryan Fritz |
Junior Fawn Dorr (Akron, N.Y.) is also well on pace to advance in the 400-meters hurdles as she owns a personal-best 57.55 in the event - the fifth-fastest seed time in the field. Hunter, Greaves, and Dorr are certainly no strangers to high level competition, as Hunter owns a total of seven All-America titles, and Greaves and Dorr have two apiece.
A pair of Lions sit atop the standings in the javelin throw, with sophomore Kim Hanslovan (DuBois, Pa.) leading the region at 178-4 (54.35), and classmate Karlee McQuillen (Johnstown, Pa.) at 175-11 (53.62) - the third-best mark in the region. McQuillen is the defending regional champion in the event, and went on to a ninth-place finish and All-America honors as a sophomore in 2008.
Senior Emma Schmelzer (Bloomington, Ill.) will also be looking to make a return trip to the NCAA Championships, where she was a finalist in the discus last year. Schmelzer, who qualified for the regional meet in the shot put, discus, and hammer, will focus on the shot put and discus this weekend, after a sensational performance at the Big Ten Championships. Schmelzer closed out her conference career winning Co-Big Ten Field Athlete of the Meet honors thanks to a fourth-place finish in the shot put, and silver-medal efforts in the discus and hammer.
The Nittany Lion men will travel a grand total of 22 athletes - the most since the inception of the regional system in 2003. Among the top qualifiers are sophomore Ryan Foster (Tasmania, Australia) and seniors Tanner Evak (State College, Pa.) and Clarence Smith (Coatesville, Pa.). All three Lions are coming off gold-medal finishes at the Big Ten Championships.
Evak will look to repeat his 2007 performance when he finished fourth at the regional meet, and advanced to the NCAA Championships. Evak has been in top form this spring, claiming gold-medal honors at the prestigious Penn Relays prior to his first-career Big Ten title. Evak's PR toss of 233-4 (71.13) is ranked fourth in the east region.
Foster has made quite a name for himself in his first year with the Nittany Lions, taking conference 800-meter titles at both the indoor and outdoor championships and claiming Mid-Atlantic Region Track Athlete of the Year accolades indoors. Foster's 1:48.79 for the 800 is ranked seventh among east region entrants. Foster will be joined by teammates Owen Dawson (Coatesville, Pa.) and Lionel Williams (Staten Island, N.Y.), who were both top four finishers in the Big Ten 800.
Smith is another Lion hoping to punch his ticket to the NCAA Championships for the second-straight year, after posting an All-America finish in the triple jump as a junior. Smith bounded to his third-career conference title two weeks ago, posting a season-best 52-10.75 (16.12). Smith enters the weekend as a third seed in the triple jump after claiming bronze-medal honors a year ago. Smith and teammates Jay Pagana (Selinsgrove, Pa.) and Hanif Johnson (Harrisburg, Pa.) provided a one-three-four finish at the Big Ten meet. Both Pagana and Johnson will also compete at the regional championships.
Seniors John Vellenoweth (Wheeling, W.Va.) and Ryan Fritz (Parkesburg, Pa.) will also vie for slots at the national championships, as Vellenoweth enters the weekend as the fourth seed in the pole vault, while Fritz is ranked seventh in the high jump. Vellenoweth recently set the Penn State record in his event at 17-5.50 (5.32). Fritz - an All-American indoors - won the regional meet in 2007 and looks to be back in top form after a redshirt season in 2008. Fritz's top clearance this year is 7-1 (2.16).
The NCAA East Regional Championships begin on Friday, starting with the men's javelin competition at 11 a.m. Log on to www.GoPSUsports.com for complete Penn State recaps following both days of competition.