March 30, 2018
Florida Relays Results | Stanford Invite Results
GAINESVILLE, Fla. & STANFORD, Calif. - The Penn State track & field program tallied three top-five performances in program history, including the women's 1,500-meter run school record, Friday at the 2018 Florida Relays held at the Percy Beard Track. In addition to the three top-five performances at Florida, senior Jillian Hunsberger (Pittsburgh, Pa.) ran the No. 4 time in the women's 5,000-meter run in school history at the Stanford Invitational at Cobb Track and Angell Field in Stanford, California.
"It was a very exciting second day here for the team at the Florida Relays," head coach John Gondak said. "Yesterday was our travel day and our indoor weight throw NCAA Champion David Lucas made his hammer debut for the outdoor season.
"We use the Florida Relays as the opener for the student-athletes that competed at the indoor national meet for the most part and today did not disappoint. All across the board from the guys in the 100-meters that got things going in the rain, a seasonal-best in the 400-meters from Kier Miner to Terrance Laird running the No. 2 time in the NCAA this season in the 200. It was great stuff on the track this afternoon. Morgan Shigo basically opened up with his personal-best in the hammer throw and then we wrapped things up in the women's 1,500-meter run with outstanding efforts from Danae Rivers and Marissa Sheva."
In the final race of the day for the Nittany Lions at the Florida Relays, sophomore Danae Rivers (Derby, Conn.) dropped almost six seconds off her personal-best time in the women's 1,500-meter run.
Rivers finished third in the race with a personal-best, and school record time, of 4:10.82. The previous school record of 4:15.20 was set in 2014 by Marta Klebe. Heading into the meet, Rivers held a personal-best, and No. 2 time at PSU, of 4:16.33 - a time she set last year at the 2017 Florida Relays.
"Six-hundred meters into the race I really did feel it, but at that point, it is mind over matter and I was just telling my body to breathe," Rivers said. "…It feels pretty good [to get the school record]."
The Nittany Lions began the day with freshman Terrance Laird (Coatesville, Pa.) clocking in at 10.42 in the men's 100-meter dash. Laird's time on Friday ties teammate Malik Moffett (Erie, Pa.) for the No. 4 performance in program history.
Along with Laird in the men's 100-meter dash, Xavier Smith (Douglassville, Pa.) ran 10.46 and Moffett went 10.54. In men's 100-meter dash standings, Laird tied for sixth, Smith tied for 10th, and Moffett finished 17th.
"The weather wasn't the best today but I felt like I left something out there," Laird said of his day. "I executed the best I could today and there is some more I can give. It was the first real meet of the season for me and we'll see what we have in the 4x100-meter relay tomorrow and get ready for next weekend at LSU."
Later in the afternoon, the trio went back to the track for the men's 200-meter dash. In the 200, Laird set the No. 2 time in program history with a run of 20.41. In addition to Laird, Moffett ran 20.66 and Smith ran 20.99. In the standings, Laird finished second overall followed by a sixth-place finish from Moffett and a seventh-place finish from Smith.
Also on the track for the Penn State men, sophomore Kier Miner (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) clocked in with a collegiate personal-best of 47.36 in the men's 400-meter dash to finish first in his heat and 19th overall, while the men's 800-meter run saw Isaiah Harris (Lewiston, Maine) take second with a time of 1:47.90.
Competing as the lone Nittany Lion thrower on Friday, Morgan Shigo (Blandon, Pa.) opened up his 2018 outdoor season with a toss of 222 feet, 2 inches to place sixth. Shigo's mark on Friday is nine inches shy of his personal-best, and school record, throw of 222-11 - a mark he set at the 2017 Big Ten Outdoor Championships.
In the open section of the men's hammer throw on Thursday afternoon, junior David Lucas (Lititz, Pa.) went 191-8 to place seventh.
Along with Penn State competing at Florida, a quartet of Nittany Lions competed at the Stanford Invite in Stanford, California, with Hunsberger's performance in the women's 5,000-meter run capping off the day for the Penn State track & field program.
For Hunsberger, she finished eighth in the invite section of the women's 5,000-meter run with her personal-best time of 15:55.27. Heading into the day, Hunsberger ranked sixth all-time at Penn State with a time of 16:04.24.
"Breaking the 16-minute barrier has been a goal of mine for a while and it was a great opportunity," Hunsberger said of her race. "I feel very strong in my training and we have been having some really great consistent workouts. I'm very happy with my overall fitness at this point of the season and I'm excited to keep building from this race as the outdoor season continues."
The Nittany Lions got things going at Stanford with Greta Lindsley (Lancaster, Pa.) running 10:27.27 to finish ninth in her heat of the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase.
In the men's 5,000-meter run, Timothy McGowan (Northport, N.Y.) ran 14:01.80 and Colin Abert (Easton, Pa.) clocked in at 14:19.83; both finished 12th in their respective heats.
The Nittany Lions conclude the 2018 Florida Relays on Saturday, March 31, starting at 11 a.m. with Lucas competing in the invite section of the men's discus throw.