June 17, 2011
Complete John McDonnell Program of the Year Release
Complete Terry Crawford Program of the Year Release
NEW ORLEANS, La.: June 16, 2011 - The Nittany Lion men's cross country/track and field program received national recognition this week, finishing 11th in the United States Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) John McDonnell Program of the Year standings. Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions women's squad ranked 17th - the highest of any Big Ten program - in the USTFCCCA Terry Crawford Program of the Year. The rankings are based on overall finishes of men's and women's cross country and track and field programs that qualified for the NCAA Championships in cross country, and indoor and outdoor track and field. The Nittany Lions were also one of just six programs to make both the men's and women's rankings.
The Nittany Lions recently tied for 20th on the men's side at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at Drake University last weekend, thanks to All-America efforts from redshirt-junior Joe Kovacs (Nazareth, Pa.), who placed third in the shot put, and sophomore Casimir Loxsom (New Haven, Conn.), who tallied a fourth-place standing in the 800-meters in a school-record 1:45.31. Penn State's final standing was the highest since the 1993 season, when the Nittany Lions also tied for 20th.
Indoors, the Nittany Lions placed 11th overall, which was the highest team effort since 1995. Individually, the squad enjoyed third-place efforts from both freshman Brady Gehret (Altoona, Pa.), and senior Ryan Foster (Tasmania, Australia). Penn State also turned in a fifth-place standing in the 4x400-meter relay with the quartet of Aaron Nadolsky (Altoona, Pa.), Lionel Williams (Staten Island, N.Y.), Loxsom and Gehret. The Nittany Lions - led by a 64th-place finish from junior Kyle Dawson (Coatesville, Pa.) - also qualified as a team for the NCAA Cross Country Championships this past fall, marking the squad's second appearance in the last three years.
Florida State won the overall men's title, thanks to a second-place finishes in cross country and outdoor track and field, to go along with a fifth-place finish indoors. The Nittany Lions were one of just two Big Ten programs in the rankings, with Indiana placing fourth.
Ije Iheoma |
The John McDonnell Program of the Year Award is named after USTFCCCA Hall of Famer and former Arkansas head coach John McDonnell. McDonnell's Arkansas teams won a combined 40 National Championships and finished in the top ten in cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field in 24 of his 36 seasons in Fayetteville. Five of his teams won the NCAA Triple Crown.
The women's team enjoyed outstanding finishes from women's 4x400-meter relay -including sophomore Doris Anyanwu (Beltsville, Md.), junior Ije Iheoma (Holland, Pa.), and seniors Shavon Greaves (Lakewood, N.J.), and Megan Duncan (North Huntingdon, Pa.) - at both the indoor and outdoor championships, with the Nittany Lions claiming fourth place last weekend, and sixth indoors. The Nittany Lions combined to run a season-best 3:30.35 - the third-fastest time in school history - to record their fourth-straight top four finish in the women's 4x400 at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
On the course, the Nittany Lions advanced a team to the NCAA Championships for the second-straight year, via a third-place effort at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships. At the regional, the Nittany Lions turned in a total of five all-region efforts, including senior Maura Ryan (Doylestown, Pa.), juniors Caitlin Lane (Greenwich, N.Y.) and Kara Millhouse (Boiling Springs, Pa.), and sophomores Natalie Bower (Pleasant Unity, Pa.) and Brooklyne Ridder (Cincinnati, Ohio).
Oregon was named Program of the Year, via an NCAA title at the NCAA Indoor Championships, a second-place effort outdoors, and a 12th-place standing on the course.
The Terry Crawford Women's Program of the Year Award is named after USTFCCCA Hall of Famer and former Cal Poly head coach Terry Crawford. Crawford has won five NCAA National Championships, and over 20 Conference Championships. Her 1986 Texas squad remains as the only NCAA women's program to ever win the Triple Crown (cross country, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field titles).