June 11, 2010
EUGENE, Ore.: June 11, 2010 - Paced by fourth-place efforts by seniors Fawn Dorr (Akron, N.Y.) and Ryan Fritz (Parkesburg, Pa.) both the Nittany Lion men's and women's track and field teams are on the board in the team scoring, Friday at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the University of Oregon. Dorr's All-America finish was the sixth of her outstanding Nittany Lion career, while Fritz earns his fourth All-America certificate.
Dorr crossed fourth in the 400-meter hurdles, upping her 2009 NCAA finish by two spots and becoming the highest-ever finisher by a Penn State women in the event at the national championships. The senior, who is now a two-time NCAA All-American 400 hurdles at the Division I level, crossed the finish line in 56.75, earning the fourth All-America effort in the event on the women's side. Dorr, who becomes the 80th All-America in Penn State women's outdoor history, would impress in an outstanding field, including eventual winner Queen Harrison of Virginia Tech, who finished in 54.55, followed by Miami duo Ti'erra Brown and Tameka Jameson, who placed second and third in 55.22, and 56.37, respectively.
Fritz was outstanding in his final NCAA appearance, remaining clean over the first five bars of the competition, with clearances at 6-8.75 (2.05), 6-10.75 (2.10), 7-0.25 (2.14), and 7-1.50 (2.17), before topping out at 7-2.50 (2.20), which matches his 2010 outdoor best. Fritz's early success proved fruitful in the latter stages of the event, as the senior would wind up standing alone in fourth place, to finish ahead of several athletes who had missed earlier in the competition. Big Ten rival Derek Drouin on Indiana won the event title with a clearance of 7-5 (2.26).
Historically, Fritz earns the second All-America finish in the outdoor high jump, bettering his own previous-best ninth-place effort from the 2007 campaign. Along with classmate Tyler McCandless' (Bath, Pa.) All-America standing on Thursday night, the Nittany Lions have now earned a grand total of 107 All-America finishes in outdoor track and field. Fritz ends his career as a four time All-American, with a pair of efforts coming during the indoor season.
The Lions have a full schedule on the docket for Saturday's fourth and final day at Hayward Field, with Penn State set to be represented in a total of eight events. Individually, Lions ready to compete include Bridget Franek (Hiram, Ohio) in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, Shavon Greaves (Lakewood, N.J.) in the 200-meters, Karlee McQuillen (Johnstown, Pa.) in the javelin, and Bianca Fung (North Babylon, N.Y.) in the long jump, along with the 4x400-meter relay on the women's side. For the men, Blake Eaton (Allegany, N.Y.), and Joe Kovacs (Nazareth, Pa.) will enter the shot put competition, coming off All-America finishes indoors.
Action at Hayward Field is set to start at 9:30 a.m. PDT on Saturday morning, with coverage set to appear on CBS beginning at 10 a.m. PDT (1:00 p.m. EDT).