UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Nationally-ranked Penn State track & field hits the road once again this weekend, splitting its squad for competition at Duke on Friday, April 7, and LSU on Saturday, April 8.
Head coach John Gondak's group used an excellent weekend at the Florida Relays to secure a top-25 spot in the USTFCCCA Natinal Rankings for both the men's and the women's teams. It is the first time both squads cracked the top-25 in the same week since the end of the 2018 season, with the men's squad currently at No. 22 in the nation (No. 3 Big Ten) and the women coming in at No. 23 (No. 3 Big Ten).
THE COMPETITION
Duke Invitational – Friday, April 7
The Nittany Lions will travel 22 members of their track squad to Durham to compete on day two of the Duke Invitational. NCAA top-15 Nittany Lions Evan Dorenkamp and Faith DeMars are set to compete at Duke.
Nittany Lion events: M/W 800m, M/W 1500m, M/W 5,000m, M/W 3,000m Steeple
Lloyd Willis Invitational – Saturday, April 8
38 others will head down to Louisiana for the Lloyd Willis Invitational, hosted by LSU. Although official entries for this meet have not yet been posted, the Nittany Lions plan to feature NCAA No. 6 Tyler Merkley in the men's hammer throw to highlight field events. On the track, the squad is also set to feature Darius Smallwood and Callum Dodds for the men, and Rachel Gearing and Hayley Kitching for the women, all of whom rank inside the top ten in the country in the 800-meter run.
NITTANY LIONS IN THE RANKINGS
Penn State has 12 top-25 marks in the NCAA and 30 top-ten marks in the Big Ten conference as it makes its way into an important weekend of competition. The Nittany Lions also have four event squads ranked inside the top ten in all of Division I by the USTFCCCA.
NCAA Top-25
No. 22 Men's Team
- 4 – Evan Dorenkamp – 1500m: 3:40.30
- 5 – Darius Smallwood – 800m: 1:47.67
- 6 – Callum Dodds – 800m: 1:47.80
- 6 – Tyler Merkley – Hammer Throw: 234-8 (71.53m)
- 18 – Handal Roban – 800m: 1:48.63
No. 23 Women's Team
- 4 – Rachel Gearing – 800m: 2:03.92
- 7 – Hayley Kitching – 800m: 2:04.33
- 9 – Cecelia Bacon – High Jump: 5-11.25 (1.81m)
- 11 – Faith DeMars – 5000m: 15:44.98
- 16 – Mallory Kauffman – Shot Put: 54-11.5 (16.75m)
- 17 – Allison Johnson – 800m: 2:05.28
- 19 – Maddie Ullom – 1500m: 4:16.75
Big Ten Top Ten
No. 22 Men's Team
400m
- 3 – James Onwuka – 46.91
- 6 – Callum Dodds – 47.36
- 7 – Handal Roban – 47.37
800m
- 1 – Darius Smallwood – 1:47.67
- 2 – Callum Dodds – 1:47.80
- 3 – Handal Roban – 1:48.63
- 10 – Carter Fitzgerald – 1:50.50
1500m
- 2 – Evan Dorenkamp – 1500m: 3:40.30
- 7 – Drew Maher – 1500m: 3:44.11
Javelin
- 8 – Kevin Bartosh – 218-8 (66.65m)
- 9 – Collin Burkhart – 217-5 (66.28m)
Hammer Throw
- 2 – Tyler Merkley – 234-8 (71.53m)
- 8 – Collin Burkhart – 209-3 (63.77m)
Discus
- 8 – Tyler Merkley – 180-8 (55.06m)
Shot Put
- 8 – Lucciano Pizarro – 60-8 (18.49m)
4x400m
- 4 – Smallwood, Dodds, Roban, Desmeules – 4x400m: 3:08.57
No. 23 Women's Team
400m
- 9 – Rachel Gearing – 54.54
800m
- 1 – Rachel Gearing – 2:03.92
- 2 – Hayley Kitching – 2:04.33
- 3 – Allison Johnson – 2:05.28
- 10 – Maddie Ullom – 2:08.46
1500m
- 2 – Maddie Ullom – 4:16.75
5000m
- 2 – Faith DeMars – 15:44.98
- 10 – Sophia Toti – 16:27.10
High Jump
- 1 – Cecelia Bacon – 5-11.25 (1.81m)
Pole Vault
- T-6 – Hailey Zurich – 12-9.5 (3.90m)
Shot Put
- 1 – Mallory Kauffman – 54-11.5 (16.75m)
Discus
- 4 – Mallory Kauffman – 172-8 (52.64m)
Hammer Throw
- 7 – Jean Starr – 183-2 (55.84m)
Javelin
- 6 – Audrey Friedman – 151-9 (46.26m)
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Follow along with the team on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateTFXC) and Twitter/Instagram (@pennstatetfxc).