UNIVERISTY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State cross country program toed the line of the Blue/White Golf Course for the first time this fall on Thursday afternoon for the Harry Groves Intrasquad Cross Country Meet.
The Nittany Lions were divided into two teams for the 6k and 8k races on a perfect fall afternoon in Happy Valley. Thursday's race provided the Nittany Lions a tremendous opportunity to run on their home course which will host the Big Ten Cross Country Championships next fall. The last time the Nittany Lions hosted the Big Ten Cross Country Championships was in the fall of 2009.
"With us hosting Big Ten's next fall, we wanted the newcomers to come out and get a chance to learn the course…That's what today was all about, giving them the chance to compete by breaking the team up into two teams and racing each other…It's good for us to be able to test ourselves running 6k and 8k and be better prepared for whenever we get the chance to race again this winter season. Overall, it was a really great day. They ran really well, they pushed themselves and competed nicely." Associate Head Coach Angela Reckart said of the team's competition.
On the men's side, it was a tight race from start to finish. The Pink & Black team narrowly edged the Gray team by just one point to claim the victory on Thursday afternoon.
Another strong performance by Evan Dorenkamp led the Pink & Black team to victory. Dorenkamp claimed his second win of the fall season on the men's side as he clocked 24:36 for his first-place finish. Dorenkamp's strong kick on the final straightaway guided him to victory.
Dorenkamp was followed closely by two-time All-Region performer Alex Tomasko, who finished second and was the top finisher for the Gray team with his time of 24:40. Ben Bumgarner rounded out the top three finishers behind Tomasko as a member of the Pink & Black team, running 24:45.
"It was great (to compete again) and a good changeup from the track. We'll go back to the track for the next two weeks, but it was good to get out here. The course is great, it was a beautiful fall day to race." Dorenkamp said following his winning performance on Thursday.
On the women's side, the Gray team claimed victory behind another strong effort by freshman Faith DeMars.
Cross country veteran Katie Munks claimed the individual title with her time of 21:10 on Thursday. Munks was followed by DeMars, who finished first at the Blue/White Two-Mile Meet, who turned in a time of 21:26 in her first-ever race as a Nittany Lion on the Blue/White Golf Course. The entire top-seven finished within one minute of Munks, with five of the individuals being freshmen or redshirt freshmen.
"It felt really good (to race) and get to know the course for when we host the Big Ten Championships, so it was a really good learning experience.", DeMars said.
The cross country programs will be back in action next Friday, October 16, for the Penn State National Two-Mile Tune-Up and will conclude their fall intrasquad schedule on October 30 with the Happy Valley 5k Time Trial.