UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State will send 33 athletes to the first round of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, scheduled for May 27-30, in Lexington, Kentucky. The list includes nine in the combined men’s and women’s 800-meter run events and two competing in two events each.
Allon Clay headlines the five Nittany Lions competing in the men’s 800-meter run. The Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan native returns for another season after advancing to the Outdoor Championship final round in 2025. Clay also earned First-Team All-Big Ten honors after taking the men’s 800-meter run Sunday during the conference championships. He will be joined in the event by Niko Schultz, Andrew Regnier, Yukichi Ishii and Kaleb Nastari.
The women’s 800-meter will feature Hayley Kitching, who prevailed in the women’s event Sunday as well to earn First-Team All-Big Ten honors. This will be Kitching’s third appearance in the NCAA First Round and her first since 2024. Allison Johnson, Tayissa Buchanan and Boh Ritchie all will join her in the event, with Ritchie being one of six freshmen to earn a spot.
A pair of sprinters earned spots in two events each. Marie-Eloise LeClair qualified for the women’s 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash after an impressive season with the Nittany Lions. LeClair’s times of 11.25 in the 100-meter and 23.14 in the 200-meter are both among the five fastest in program history.
On the men’s side, Jake Palermo earned a spot in the first round for the second consecutive year. The Rochester, New York native qualified in the 400-meter dash and the 4x400-meter relay and holds program Top-10 marks in both events. This includes a 45.22 in the 400-meter dash, which moved him into a tie for second.
WHICH EVENTS WILL FEATURE A NITTANY LION?
- Marie-Éloïse LeClair (women’s 100m and 200m)
- Hayley Kitching (women’s 800m)
- Allison Johnson (women’s 800m)
- Boh Ritchie (women’s 800m)
- Tayissa Buchanan (women’s 800m)
- Lea Hatcher (women’s 1500m)
- Claire Daniels (women’s 10,000m)
- Allison Dougherty (women’s 3000m steeplechase)
- Hannah Riolo (women’s high jump)
- Skye Petrie-Cameron (women’s shot put)
- Sasha Garnett (women’s shot put)
- Alex Pancoast (women’s hammer)
- Audrey Friedman (women’s javelin)
- Ajani Dwyer (men's 100m)
- Jake Palermo (men's 400m and 4x400m)
- Allon Clay (men's 800m)
- Niko Schultz (men's 800m)
- Andrew Regnier (men's 800m)
- Yukichi Ishii (men's 800m)
- Kaleb Nastari (men's 800m)
- Nick Sloff (men's 1500m)
- Ryan Watson (men's 3000m steeplechase)
- Carter Fitzgerald (men's 4x400m)
- Matt DeMatteo (men's 4x400m)
- Peyton Sommers (men's 4x400m)
- Trip Campbell (men's high jump)
- Robert Allen (men's high jump)
- Tristan McGarrah (men's pole vault)
- Ryan Henry (men's shot put)
- Dylan Lambrecht (men's shot put)
- Bryce Thompson (men's shot put)
- Collin Burkhart (men's hammer)
- Nolan Carey (men's javelin)
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Follow along with the team on our social media pages: Facebook (PennStateTFXC), X and Instagram (both @pennstatetfxc). Live updates on meet day regarding weather, start times and other important notes will be posted on X.