CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Penn State track & field team completed the Virginia Challenge on Saturday afternoon, finishing with multiple personal-best marks in a solid conclusion to the event.
"Another productive weekend for Penn State Track and Field at Virginia," said head coach John Gondak. "We dealt with some weather delays today but still had some great performances. The staff is very proud of the team's competitiveness this weekend as we continue to build toward the Big Ten Championship."
Following a weather-related delay that postponed competition for over two hours, the Nittany Lions got things going. Highlighting the track events was Maddie Ullom's 2:06.19 personal record in the 800-meter run. In the field events, three top-three finishes for Nittany Lions in the men's and women's shot put events capped off a solid weekend for the team.
Altogether, Gondak's group had an excellent weekend of competition. Six top-ten program standings and a litany of top Big Ten marks showcased the Nittany Lions' ability to perform well as the squad gears up for its final two meets of the regular season.
TRACK EVENT SUMMARY
The Nittany Lion women's 4x100-meter relay group ran a 46.18 right out of the weather delay to start things for Penn State on the final day of competition. Zoey Goldstein followed with a season-best 24.54 in the 200, finishing 12th overall. Savion Hebron also placed 12th with his wind-aided 21.49.
In the 800m, Penn State posted three top-five finishers with Hayley Kitching running a 2:06.19 to claim second place, Ullom cruising to a 2:06.33 PR for third, and Allison Johnson clocking a 2:06.61 for fifth.
FIELD EVENT SUMMARY
Duane Knisely earned a personal record of his own in the men's shot put, finishing third overall with a 59-3 (18.06m) effort, his first 18-meter throw of his career. Lucciano Pizarro claimed second place with a 60-5.25 (18.42m) and Dylan Lambrecht finished ninth. Mallory Kauffman also earned second place in the women's shot put competition, posting a 55-6.5 (16.93m) throw.
In the high jump, Cecelia Bacon returned to action and cleared 5-7 (1.70m) to finish fourth, while freshman Timothy Watson cleared a personal-best 6-6.75 (2.00m) for a seventh-place standing.
UP NEXT
The Nittany Lions travel to Philadelphia next weekend for the 2023 Penn Relays.
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Follow along with the team on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateTFXC) and Twitter/Instagram (@pennstatetfxc).
