July 13, 2017
FULL SCHEDULE
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Head coach John Gondak announced the 2017 cross country schedule Thursday afternoon with several key meets slated for the Nittany Lions.
The Nittany Lions are set to compete in four regular season meets followed by the Big Ten Championships in Bloomington, Ind., the Mid-Atlantic Regional hosted by Lehigh in Bethlehem, Pa., and the NCAA Championships in Louisville, Ky. to wrap up the postseason competition.
The 2017 campaign begins for Penn State as it traditionally does when they travel 45-minutes north to Lock Haven, Pa., for the Dolan Duals against Lock Haven University on Friday, Sept. 1.
Following the season opener, The Nittany Lions will return home to host the annual Spiked Shoe Invitational in University Park a week later.
The Harry Groves Spiked Shoe Invitational is slated for Sept. 8 at the Blue-White Golf Course. Last year at the Spike Shoe Invitational the Nittany Lion women's team brought home a first-place finish for the fifth year in-a-row.
After the Spiked Shoe Invitational, the Nittany Lions take three weeks off before traveling to Stillwater, Okla. for the Cowboy Jamboree Invite on Sept. 30.
Following the meet in Oklahoma, Penn State will take a two-week hiatus wrapping up the regular season as they host the Penn State National on Friday, Oct. 13 in University Park.
This year's Big Ten Championships will be hosted by Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind. on Oct. 29 where the Penn State women's team will look to reclaim the Big Ten title after capturing the crown in 2015 and finishing runner-up at last year's meet in Minneapolis, MN.
Following the Big Ten Championships, the Nittany Lions will travel to Bethlehem, Pa. for the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships hosted by Lehigh on Nov. 10. At the 2016 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships hosted by Penn State, the Penn State women's team captured the regional championship and the Nittany Lion men's team finished fifth.
The 2017 cross country season comes to a close on Nov. 18 with the NCAA Cross Country Championships in Louisville, Ky. Last year, Elizabeth Chikotas and Jillian Hunsberger were NCAA Cross Country All-American finishing 15th and 36th at the championships in Louisville, Ky. while the women's team recorded an 18th-place finish - the third highest finish since 2012.
For more on Nittany Lion cross country, log onto www.GoPSUsports.com or follow the team on Twitter @PennStateTFXC.