UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State cross country program is set to host the annual Harry Groves Spiked Shoe Invitational on Friday, September 13 starting at 10 a.m.
Both cross country programs are coming off a win at the Dolan Duals last week at Lock Haven University. This is the first of two meets the Nittany Lions will host on the Blue-White Golf Course this season.
THE FIELD
Penn State, Georgetown, Saint Francis, University of Guelph, West Virginia (W).
DOLAN DUALS REWIND
The Nittany Lion cross country programs are coming off a clean sweep of the Dolan Duals last week. The men's team finished with a perfect score of 15 points led by Billy McDevitt. McDevitt and the Nittany Lions lead pack set the pace from the opening gun and controlled the race the entire way. McDevitt finished with a time of 18:15.36 to win the meet. McDevitt was followed by Owen Wing who placed second (18:16.00) and Ben Bumgarner who placed third (18:16.42).
Brandon Hontz placed fifth with a time of 18:17.29 and Andrew Sell finished sixth with a time of 18:18.15 to complete the scoring for the Nittany Lions.
This was the third straight season the men's cross country team won the Dolan Duals with a perfect score.
The Nittany Lions No. 14 women's cross country team also captured the Dolan Duals with 20 points.
Jordan Williams was the top finisher for the Nittany Lions, finishing second in the women's 4k run. Williams competed the course with a time of 14:30.03. Megan Ciasullo finished right behind Williams in third place with a time of 14:34.11.
Julia Guerra (14:42.48), Andrea Demko (14:49.46) and Natasha Fedkina (15:01.47) placed fourth, fifth and sixth respectively to round out the scoring for Penn State.
LAST SPIKED SHOE
The women's cross country team captured its seventh straight and 12th overall Spiked Shoe title. Julia Paternain paced the women's team with a first place finish and second-straight win in 2018. The Nittany Lions won the event with a team score of 32 points.
Colin Abert defended his title in 2018 by crossing the finish line first in a time of 25:25. With Abert's title win last year, he became the first Nittany Lion to win the Spiked Shoe Invite in back-to-back years on the men's side since Eric Carter won three straight titles from 1985-87.
COACH GROVES LEGACY
The event is named after long-time Nittany Lion men's track & field and cross country coach Harry Groves. Groves spent nearly 40 years at the helm of the men's program, beginning in 1968 until retiring at the conclusion of the 2006 track and field season. Groves is a 2001 USTCA Hall of Fame inductee, was named National Coach of the Year on five occasions and is a 26-time Regional Coach of the Year honoree.
Throughout his Nittany Lion career, Groves coached 11 American record holders and 21 national champions. On the international level, 14 Groves-coached athletes made Olympic teams. Groves has also made countless international appearances of his own, including a trip to Barcelona, Spain, where he served as an assistant coach of the 1992 Olympic staff.
HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS
The Nittany Lions host half of their regular season meets at the Blue-White Golf Course this season. Including the Spiked Shoe, the Nittany Lions run on their home course again on October 18 for the National Open.
NEXT STEP
The Nittany Lions have a two-week break between meets following the Spiked Shoe Invitational. The Nittany Lions travel to Columbus, Ohio, for the Ohio State Invitational. The Big Ten Championships will be run on the same course as the Ohio State Invitational.
For more information on Penn State cross country, visit gopsusports.com.