UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State track and field teams return to the Sunshine State this weekend as the Nittany Lions are set to compete in the annual Florida Relays hosted by the University of Florida Friday and Saturday.
Collegiate competition in Gainesville is set to begin at 5 p.m. on Thursday, 11:30 a.m. on Friday, and 11 a.m. on Saturday. Penn State athletes will kick off weekend action at 5 p.m. Friday with the women's 1,500-meter race. The team resumes competition at noon Saturday, starting with the women's 100-meter hurdles prelims.
With 17 runners set to compete, it will mark the first time the Nittany Lions have attended the Florida Relays since the 2019 outdoor season.
HOW TO FOLLOW/LIVE RESULTS
WATCH – SEC Network+: https://www.espn.com/watch/player?id=b49f5d5d-7cf1-460d-8405-5fb3369d7866
LIVE RESULTS: https://live.deltatiming.com/meets/14150
A LOOK BACK
The Nittany Lions return to action at the Florida Relays after a successful split-squad weekend action at the Raleigh Relays and the UCF Knights Invite last weekend. Penn State wrapped up the weekend with 12 total event victories and six different breakthroughs in the program's all-time outdoor top 10 performance lists.
Knights Invite
The Nittany Lions dominated the field events at the UCF Knights Invite, with the team sweeping three separate field events throughout the weekend.
All Big-Ten second team selection Tyler Merkley led the way with first-place finishes in discus and the hammer throw. His winning distance of 52.11m (170-11) in discus led the way in Penn State's first sweep of the weekend. Freshman Collin Burkhart spearheaded the second field event sweep shortly after, when he won men's javelin with a toss of 68.19m (223-09). Mallory Kauffman posted the third-best women's shot put throw in program history with a distance of 16.82m (55-2.25).
Senior Breana Gambrell was dominant in the women's long and triple jump, securing two top-10 jumps in program history. Her mark of 6.24m (20-5.75) in long jump now ranks eighth all time, and her distance of 12.57m (41-3) in triple jump ranks ninth. On the men's side, Lance Hamilton led a Nittany Lions sweep in the triple jump with a leap of 15.63m (51-3.5). His winning distance not only marked a new personal best, but also now sits ninth in Nittany Lion history.
On the track, Ka'mere Day had a standout weekend, collecting a pair of first-place sprint finishes in the 100 and 200-meter dashes. The sophomore posted personal-best times in both races.
Raleigh Relays
Madaline Ullom represented Penn State on the track at N.C. State, finishing with a time of 4:20.27 in the women's 1,500 meter, the ninth best in program history.
Senior Connor McMenamin posted a personal best time of 9:03.26 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.
HIGH-RANKING NITTANY LIONS
Following last weekend, here are the Penn State athletes currently ranked among the top ten in the nation for their respective events, via TFRRS and the USTFCCCA:
- Tyler Merkley- ranked fifth in men's Hammer Throw.
- Cecelia Bacon- ranked ninth in women's High Jump.
- Mallory Kauffman- ranked tenth in women's Shot Put.