Sept. 30, 2015
Saturday, October 3
9:30am ET - Men's Gold 8K
10:15am ET - Women's Gold 5K
MEET HOME | MEN ENTRIES | WOMEN ENTRIES
MEET PREVIEW
| Nationally Ranked Teams | |
| Men | Women |
| #4 Wisconsin | #6 Iowa State |
| #8 Iona | #8 Michigan |
| #10 Michigan | #11 Wisconsin |
| #13 Mississippi | #13 West Virginia |
| #22 Iowa State | #19 Penn State |
| #28 Eastern Kentucky | #23 Minnesota |
| (RV) Eastern Michigan | (RV) Lipscomb |
| (RV) Kentucky | |
| (RV) Louisville | |
| (RV) Minnesota | |
| (RV) Penn State | |
2015 National Results Wall
2015 National Results Wall (Mobile)
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - After not competing since the Harry Groves Spiked Shoe Invitational (Sept. 11), the Penn State cross country teams are back in action this Saturday at the Greater Louisville Classic in Louisville, Ky. The Greater Louisville Classic features nationally-ranked teams in both the men's and women's races.
"I'm excited to get back out and race this weekend," said head coach John Gondak. "It's been three weeks of fantastic training with the squad and I feel like we've put in the work necessary to go to Louisville and have a great performance this weekend."
"The meets that we'll compete in from now on, you can earn points towards qualifying for the National Championships, so I'm looking forward to going and having a good performance this weekend and hopefully coming away with a few points is something that we're looking to do," said Gondak.
"The only minor adjustment we've made to our training during this break in between meets is we've done some higher quality intervals, doing an interval or two at a faster pace to simulate what it's going to be like getting out in a field like this filled with 30 teams. Getting off the line will be important in positioning yourself early in the race this weekend."
The Meet
The Men's Gold 8K is slated for 9:30 a.m., while the Women's Gold 5k race is scheduled for a 10:15 a.m. start. The meet is held at the E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky.
This weekend will prove to be an early test for both Penn State cross country teams as six top-30 teams headline the field at Louisville, including No. 6 Iowa State, No. 8 Michigan, No. 11 Wisconsin, No. 13 West Virginia, and No. 19 Penn State in the women's race.
In the men's race, there are six ranked teams (No. 4 Wisconsin, No. 8 Iona, No. 10 Michigan, No. 13 Mississippi, No. 22 Iowa State, No. 28 Eastern Kentucky) and five teams receiving votes (Eastern Michigan, Kentucky, Louisville, Minnesota, Penn State).
This will be the first opportunity of the year for the Penn State cross country teams to earn points towards qualifying for 2015 NCAA Cross Country Championships in November.
USTFCCCA National Results Wall
While the NCAA Championships are still two months away, the road to Louisville begins this weekend and the USTFCCCA wants to keep you up-to-date on the nation's top collegiate cross country action - LIVE! After a successful debut in 2014, the USTFCCCA National Results Wall is back in 2015 to bring you live coverage of the year's biggest and most nationally intriguing XC meets as they happen.
Last Time Out
The then-No. 23 Penn State women's cross country team collected their second win of the season claiming the Harry Groves Spiked Shoe Invitational title lead by senior Tori Gerlach (Perkasie, Pa.) who claimed the individual title for the Nittany Lions. The Nittany Lion women scored 21 points, placingfive runners inside the top-seven, to take the team title over then-No. 10 West Virginia, then-No. 17 Syracuse and Grove City.
Led by Gerlach's first-place effort (21:02), the Lions would close fast as Elizabeth Chikotas(Hellertown, Pa.) (21:17), Jillian Hunsberger (Pittsburgh, Pa.) (21:37), Tessa Barrett (Waverly, Pa.) (21:43), and Greta Lindsley (Lancaster, Pa.) (21:49) would claim third, fourth, sixth, and seventh-place, respectively, to round out the scoring.
Last Time at Greater Louisville Classic
This is the first time Penn State will compete in the Greater Louisville Classic since September 29, 2012 when the Nittany Lions, led by top-20 performances from Rebekka Simko (Mentor, Ohio), and Victoria Perri (Philadelphia, Pa.), helped the No. 17 Nittany Lion women's cross country squad placed fifth overall knocking off No. 8 Vanderbilt, as well as No. 29 and conference rival, Wisconsin.
The men's squad go on to post a solid effort, placing 10th in the team standings, thanks to a 17th-place finish from Sam Masters (Columbia, Mo.), individually.
USTFCCCA Rankings
The Penn State cross country teams enter this weekend with the women's team ranked No. 19 in the land and the men are currently receiving votes (8). The Penn State women's cross country team is ranked second in the Mid-Atlantic region, while the men's team ranked third.
USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Week
Tori Gerlach received USTFCCCA Division I National Athlete of the Week honors for her performance at the Spiked SHoe Invitational. Gerlach, a senior from Perskasie, Pennsylvania, made it look easy, winning the women's race by nine seconds ahead of Syracuse's Margo Malone. The victory also paced Penn State to a team title as well as move up the Regional Team Rankings (No. 4 to No. 2).
B1G Honors
Tori Gerlach and junior Ean DiSilvio have each earned Big Ten Athlete of the Week honors. DiSilvio recieved the honors following his performance at the Dolan Duals Sept. 4, while Gerlach received the accolades after a dominate Spiked Shoe Invitational on Spet. 11.
Looking Ahead
The Penn State men's and women's cross country teams will travel to Madison, Wisconsin Oct. 16 to compete in the Wisconsin Adidas Invite, before hosting the Penn State Open at the Blue-White Golf Course in University Park Oct. 17.
For more on Nittany Lion cross country, log onto www.GoPSUsports.com or follow the team on Twitter @PennStateTFXC.