Jan. 30, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
Penn State Track & Field is hosting the Penn State National, the team's most prestigious indoor meet, this weekend. The events begin at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 31, and will continue at 10:15 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 1.
"This is going to be one of the best indoor competitions of the year, hands down," said Director and Head Coach Beth Alford-Sullivan. "We're going to have some of our best performances of the season come out of this meet."
On Friday night, senior Will Barr (Urbana, Ohio) will look to supplant his school record in the weight throw, while junior Sancho Barrett (Amityville, N.Y.) looks to continue his strong performances in the 60-meter hurdles. On the women's side, senior Mahagony Jones (Cleveland, Ohio) seeks to continue her climb up the Penn State all-time leaderboard in the 60-meter dash and 60-meter hurdles. She currently ranks third and tied for third, respectively, in Penn State history in those events.
"I think we should definitely be paying attention to records," added Coach Alford-Sullivan. "Our fields look tremendous...it's going to be very exciting."
Saturday's events commence with the 400-meter dash, where senior Bernard Bennett-Green (Elkins Park, Pa.) and junior Dynasty McGee (Flint, Mich.) have posted times good enough for second and fifth on Penn State's all-time standings.
Records are in danger in the 1000-meter run, as well. Junior Robby Creese (Mount Airy, Md.) has held the collegiate record in the event since 2012, and his time at the Nittany Lion Challenge was the fastest time posted since he set the record two years ago. As for the ladies, senior Marta Klebe (Chesterbrook, Pa.) and sophomore Sarah Jane Underwood (Alexandria, Va.) are ranked second and third in Penn State history after their performances at the Nittany Lion Challenge.
Senior Jon Hendershot (Nazareth, Pa.), who set a personal record in the high jump on Jan. 18 at the Nittany Lion Challenge, looks to continue an impressive start to indoor season. Sophomore Amenah Richardson (Philadelphia, Pa.) will attempt to improve upon her strong performance at the Nittany Lion Challenge, where she tied for fifth all-time on Penn State's all-time leaderboard.
Teams participating in the Penn State National include: Stanford, Villanova, Georgetown, Syracuse, Dartmouth, Pittsburgh, Iowa State and West Virginia.
The entire meet can be viewed via live stream on FloTrack. Follow the link above for viewing.
All events will occur on the Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Track at the Multi-Sport Facility at the corner of University Drive and Dauer Drive on campus, behind the Penn State Lacrosse Field. Admission is free.