April 6, 2015
NEW ORLEANS -- Following the season-opening Florida Relays this past weekend, the Penn State men's track & field team moved up one spot to No. 14 in the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Computer Rankings. The Nittany Lions tallied three scored performances at the Florida Relays.
On Friday, Robby Creese (Mount Airy, Md.), Brannon Kidder (Lancaster, Ohio) and Robert Rhodes (Brooklyn, N.Y.) all tallied scored performances in the men's 800-meter run. After the weekend, Kidder is tenth (1:47.14), Creese is 37th (1:48.54) and Rhodes is 54th (1:49.04). Creese and Kidder also have scored performances in the 1,500-meter run.
In the 1,500-meter run, Kidder is second (3:38.82) and Creese is 11th (3:41.03).
In the field events, the Nittany Lions have six marks ranked in the USTFCCCA National Computer Rankings. The triple jump duo of Steve Waithe (Parkville, Md.) and Brian Leap (Bellwood, Pa.) rank 10th (52-11.50) and 32nd (51-6.50), respectively.
Senior Darrell Hill (Philadelphia, Pa.) currently has the fourth-best scored mark in the shot put (67-6) and javelin throwers, Michael Shuey (Johnsonburg, Pa.) and Cole Proffitt (Manheim, Pa.) rank 13th (238-6) and 41st (224-4), respectively.
Robert Cardina (Lancaster, Pa.), a sophomore, is seventh in the decathlon with his score of 7,666 points. Cardina also ranks 39th in the high jump with his height of 7-0.25.
Last year at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Cardina placed eighth in the decathlon (7,666 points), Kidder finished 12th in the 1,500-meter run (3:44.30), Hill placed 15th in the shot put (62-9.50) and Waithe and Leap finished fifth (52-11.50) and 16th (51-6.50), respectively, in the triple jump.
The Nittany Lion men opened up the 2015 outdoor season ranked 15th; their highest ranking is 11th, a feat they achieved twice in 2013.
Penn State is slated to compete at the Bucknell Classic in Lewisburg, Pa., April 11-12.
For more on Nittany Lion track & field, log onto www.GoPSUsports.com or follow the team on Twitter @PennStateTFXC.