RESULTSMay 28, 2016
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Penn State qualified four more athletes for Eugene on the final day of the NCAA East Preliminary on the campus of the University of North Florida at Hodges Stadium to bring the weekend total to seven athletes that will represent Penn State in Oregon.
"Our athletes who advanced to Eugene had excellent weekends," said head coach John Gondak.
"The exciting thing is that the athletes that we have advancing to the NCAA Championships all have a legitimate chance to be All-Americans and score points for us which is a great feeling. We're going to be represented by a very talented crew of seven individuals in Eugene."
Brian Leap qualified for the NCAA Championships with his performance in the men's triple jump, finishing the day with a new personal best in the event.
"It was great," said Penn State jumps coach Kevin Kelly. "He put a little pressure on himself, his family and friends, along with me by fouling his first jump, but the most impressive thing to me was the second jump. He was really conservative down the runway and jumped almost 16-meters (15.99) and I felt like that would be good enough to get through; he went for it on the last jump and he had a big one. I think 54 feet is definitely on the horizon and a good time to do it would be in two weeks at Eugene."
"After fouling my first one I was obviously pretty nervous," said Leap. "I usually like to get that one in to be safe. The next jump we moved the mark back - I was already three feet back than I usually am - and just tried to get one in. I was a little slow on my approach but I got it in and it ended up being right around 16-meters which I felt like was a safe jump. From there I got after it on the last one and put a big one out there. I'm glad this wasn't my last meet, this is my senior year and I'm excited about one last go around, I've got some unfinished business there so hopefully we can finish in the top-eight."
Dannielle Gibson qualified for her second NCAA Championships adding to her NCAA Indoor Championships experience by finishing third in the women's triple jump recording a personal best mark of 13.63m (44'-8.75") along the way.
"It's an amazing feeling right now," said Gibson.
"During the entire meet it was a little nerve racking, but at the same time it was liberating because I know I can harness the nervousness and build and feed off of it. I didn't make it to the finals during indoors, so I have something to shoot for during the outdoor championships. It's all about keeping my techniques sound, staying focused on the mission and going after it."
"I think Dannielle performed real well today," said Penn State jumps coach Fritz Spence.
"She did everything I asked of her as far as making adjustments during her warmups and so forth, the only thing I'd change about today is I wish the wind had been legal but it was still a great performance on her part. I think she has a lot more inside her, I've seen her jump up to 13.80m so I know it's there. I think this was a great to continue to let her confidence continue to grow and I'm looking for some really good performances in Eugene in a few weeks."
Gibson's mark of 13.63m would have been a new school record if the recorded wind of 3.0+ had been below the legal limit of 2.0+ allowed by the NCAA, but still stands as the No.1 performance under all conditions by a Nittany Lion in the event besting the mark of Chi-Chi Aduba (13.58m/44'-6.75") set in 2004.
Senior Brannon Kidder punched his ticket to Eugene by way of an automatic "Q" by finishing in the top-three of his heat while turning in the No. 2 time in the event on the day clocking 3:43.46 over the 1,500-meter discipline.
"I felt pretty good," said Kidder.
"I figured I would be a little more conservative than leading it like I did Thursday. I kind of wanted to hang out in the middle and save it for the finish. I think Gondak and I both thought it would be a tactical race, we didn't think that anyone would take it out. I just stayed in position, stayed out of trouble and stayed off the rail to set myself up for the finish. I'm excited about one last opportunity to wear the Penn State uniform and try to get a title."
Tessa Barrett, a redshirt-freshman, qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 5,000-meters with the third-best time of the night running 16:12.87 to pick up the auto "Q" and punch her ticket to Eugene.
"I felt really good," said Barrett.
"it went out fine, the girls from West Virginia took it out, which was great. It was a pretty honest race, I just worked together with the girls around me until the end when it's always a dead sprint, but it was a great learning experience. My indoor performance was a bit of a letdown so I think going into the outdoor championships I'm feeling a lot stronger than I did then and I'm looking forward to going out on the track and having some fun, it's a great track and there will be some good competition."
Also competing in the women's 5,000-meters was Jillian Hunsberger who pieced together a 33rd-place performance in the NCAA East quarterfinals finishing with a time of 16:58.87.
Narrowly missing a trip to Eugene in the women's shot put were Alyssa Robinson and Rachel Fatherly.
Robinson, a junior, finished 13th - the first non-qualifying spot - with her mark of 15.95m (52'-4"), while Fatherly, a senior, took 15th-place with her best mark of the day at 15.85m (52'-0").
Obeng Marfo finished 17th in the women's shot put finishing competition with a best mark of 15.65m (51'-4.25").
Fatherly finishes her career having captured both the indoor and outdoor school records in the women's shot put as well as having earned All-American honors during the 2016 indoor season.
In the men's shot put, Jon Yohman finished 14th recording a best mark of 18.35m (60'-2.50").
The men's 4x100-meter relay of Xavier Smith, Anton Porter, Malik Moffett, and Cody Minnig clocked a time of 40.04 seconds in the event to take 17th-place.
Chisom Ifedi, a true freshman, finished 15th in the men's high jump with a best clearance on the day of 2.13m (6'-11.75") for the Columbus, Ohio native.
Wrapping up the weekend action at the NCAA East Preliminary were the quartet of Sam Reiser, Alex Shisler, Robert Rhodes, and Isaiah Harris who finished fourth in their heat and 15th over all with their time of 3:08.02.
Penn State will compete in the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships Jun. 8-11 in Eugene, Ore.
For more on Nittany Lion track & field, log onto www.GoPSUsports.com or follow the team on Twitter @PennStateTFXC.