UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State cross country program hosted the annual Harry Groves Spiked Shoe Invitational on Friday, September 13. Highlights of the meet included the men's team claiming victory in the event and a fifth consecutive individual title for the women's team.
RECAP
The women's 6k race began the annual event. Kathryn Munks and Alison Willingmyre set the tone immediately following the starting gun. Munks and Willingmyre paced the pack through the first mile and a half of the race. Munks consistent pace allowed her to maintain her lead over the rest of the field.
Crossing the second mile mark, Munks began to exert her lead over the rest of the field. She continued to increase the size of her lead during the final portion of the race. Munks comfortably cruised to a final time of 20:42.3 to win the women's 6k race and won the race by over 11 seconds over the next finisher. Munks is the fifth consecutive Nittany Lion to win the Spiked Shoe individual title.
Alison Willingmyre finished third for the Nittany Lions with a time of 21:03.1. Danae Rivers (21:34.4), Jordan Williams (21:37.7) and Megan Ciasullo (21:47.5) each turned in top-20 performances for the Nittany Lions. Penn State finished second in the event with 41 points.
On the men's side, Penn State won the team portion of the Spiked Shoe event. The Nittany Lions won with a team score of 36 point and it was the first time since 2014 the Nittany Lions have won the team event at the Spiked Shoe Invitational.
Ben Bumgarner and Andrew Sell took the early lead through the first half mile of the race. Sell continued to lead the race through the first two and a half miles of the race. Sell was accompanied by numerous other Nittany Lions and other runners as the lead pack remained tight halfway through the race.
The final half of the race saw a strong team finish by the Nittany Lions which led to the team win. Ben Bumgarner led the way for Penn State, finishing third in a time of 25:46.6. Brandon Hontz (25.49.6), Owen Wing (25:55.0), Andrew Sell (26:01.1) and Billy McDevitt (26:03.3) rounded out the scoring for the Nittany Lions. A full team effort secured the win for Penn State as Georgetown finished just four points behind the Nittany Lions.
The Nittany Lions take a few weeks off before traveling to Ohio State for the Ohio State Invitational on September 28.
For more information on Penn State cross country, visit gopsusports.com.
