UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State track & field team finished its first home indoor meet of the season with an excellent outing, both on the track and in the field. Penn State athletes set seven top-five performances in school history, highlighted by Hayley Kitching’s 1,000m performance that ranks third in collegiate history.
IN THE RECORD BOOKS
Kitching’s 1K mark, in addition to being the third-fastest ever recorded by a collegian, surpassed her own No. 2 mark in school history. With a 2:39.86, Kitching trails collegiate record holder Danae Rivers on Penn State’s all-time list. Allison Johnson also improved her own third-fastest 1K in school history, finishing second to Kitching with a 2:43.05.
The women’s 3K featured seven Nittany Lions within the top ten. The bunch was fronted by race-winner Florence Caron, who won the race with an phenomenal mark of 9:06.90, the second fastest time in program history, a spot previously held by Tessa Barrett. Maddie Ullom placed second in the race, notching her own top-five program mark. Ullom’s 9:09.97 is the third-fastest time in school history.
Two more Nittany Lions entered the record books in the men’s 800m, as Darius Smallwood (1:46.55) and Olivier Desmeules (1:46.97) both clocked sub-1:47 marks to enter the top five. Smallwood now stands second in school history, behind only NCAA champion Isaiah Harris. His mark also set the facility record on the Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Track. Desmeules leapfrogged Nittany Lion All-American Casimir Loxsom on the list and now sits fourth all-time.
Ryan Henry placed second in men’s shot put, and first among collegians in the competition, setting a PR with a 19-meter throw (62-4). Henry’s 19.00-meter mark is the fifth-longest in program history and, based on marks entering competition on Saturday, is top ten in the NCAA this season.
The Nittany Lion Challenge also saw the collegiate record in the men’s 1K fall as Georgetown’s Tinoda Matsatsa clocked an otherworldy 2:16.84 to claim the new top mark. His teammate Abel Teffra also finished under Matsatsa’s previous record time in 2:17.39.
TRACK EVENT SUMMARY
Nick Sloff marked the Nittany Lions’ first win of the day when he placed first in the men’s mile, finishing in a personal-best 4:05.37. Four teammates finished behind him to round out the overall top five. Ryan Watson (4:05.85), Jake Allen (4:05.98), Justin Healey (4:07.12), and Caiden Leen (4:07.81) finished second through fifth, respectively.
In the women’s 60-meter hurdles, multi-event athlete Allison Spalding collected a PR of 9.03 to finish eighth overall.
Dani Prunzik took the last qualifying spot in the 60-meter finals, where she finished fifth at 7.62 to set a new PR. Freshman sensation Ajani Dwyer finished first for the men, collecting a 6.68 to qualify for the finals, where he subsequently won the race with a blazing 6.59, his second sub-6.6 of his freshman season.
Ashley Pines finished sixth in the women’s 600 meters, setting a new PR of 1:36.77. On the men’s side, Jesufifunmi Olugbenga finished fourth in a personal-best 1:19.98.
The women’s 300-meter dash had four Nittany Lions finish within the top ten, with all four setting new PRs. Zoey Goldstein finished in second place with a time of 37.95, followed by Meghan Quinn (39.06, fifth), Ryleigh Heran (39.73, eighth) and Mimi Duffy (40.05, tenth). James Onwuka took first place for the men with a time of 34.00, also setting a new PR.
Austin Gallant placed third in the men’s 400-meter with a time of 47.65. To begin her collegiate career, Harriet Healey finished sixth overall for the women with a time of 58.52.
Kitching and Johnson’s historic performances in the 1K followed, as Penn State finished first through fourth. Freshman Ada Rand took third in 2:45.15, while Hannah Boyle placed fourth.
A trifecta of Nittany Lions rounded out the top three in the previously-mentioned historic men’s 800m race. Smallwood won the event with a time of 1:46.55, Desmeules finished second, and Antonio Abrego finished third with a 1:49.78.
Lauren Princz placed third in the women’s 200m, running a 24.84. Damoy Allen won the men’s 200-meter, finishing with a time of 21.19 in his first race as a Nittany Lion.
Penn State finished with a whopping seven out of the top ten finishers in the women’s 3K, with Caron and Ullom taking first and second followed by Kileigh Kane (9:20.80) in third, Sophia Toti (9:26.77) in fourth, Claire Daniels (9:32.56) in fifth, Claire Zubey (9:33.07) in sixth, and Katie Dallas (9:40.43) in tenth. On the men’s side, Hayden Healey finished third overall with an 8:15.73 PR.
In the women’s 4x400, Penn State’s A group (Mimi Duffy, Kitching, Quinn, and Goldstein) came in third overall, finishing in 3:40.05, while the B group (Healey, Addyson White, Princz, Hearn) finished fifth in 3:49.03. The men’s A group (Jake Palermo, Onwuka, Max DeAngelo, and Gallant) placed second overall, finishing in 3:08.74.
FIELD EVENT SUMMARY
Penn State’s field events kicked off with women’s shot put as multi-event athletes Maddie Pitts (41-1 ½, 12.53m) who finished 12th, and Spalding (40-0, 12.19m) who finished in 14th. Henry’s 19-meter toss finished second for the men (first among collegians), while Dylan Lambrecht posted a 58-6 (17.83m) toss to finish fifth overall and second among collegians.
Gabriella Reece won the women’s long jump with a 18-9 ¾ mark (5.73m) and Spalding finished 12th overall (17-4, 5.28m), both of which are PRs. The men’s long jump saw Emi Erekosima (23-3 ¼, 7.09m) and Joe White (23-1 ¼, 7.04m) finish third and fourth, respectively.
Penn State swept the top three spots in the men’s pole vault. Tristan McGarrah and Mason Bucks tied with the top clearance (15-11, 4.85m) with McGarrah earning the win due to missed attempts. Jonathan Petersen placed third (15-5, 4.70m). Reece took second overall in the women’s pole vault (12-11 ½, 3.95m) after winning the long jump earlier in the day.
In the throws circle, Gabrielle Deglau (54-11 ¼, 16.74m) and Alex Pancoast (54-7 ½, 16.65m) placed third and sixth in the women’s weight throw. Nathan Williams won the event for the men, recording a PR with a huge 68-9 ¾ (20.97m) throw while Collin Burkhart placed third (61-11 ½, 18.88m).
Elizabeth Schreiber earned her second win of the early season in the women’s triple jump, leaping 41-6 (12.65m), notching a PR. Erekosima finished first on the men’s side, also reaching a PR with a 50-6 ¾ (15.41) mark.
Isaac Osifo won the men’s high jump, leaping 6-11 (2.11m). Robert Allen placed third and Timothy Watson placed fifth to round out the top five overall. A pair of Nittany Lions tied for second on the women’s side, as Hannah Riolo and Gwen Cudmore both recorded best jumps of 5-8, (1.73m).
UP NEXT
The Nittany Lions pay their second visit of the 2025 to the Ott Center for Track & Field when they travel to Philadelphia for the Penn Invitiational on Saturday, Jan. 25.
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