CAREER AT A GLANCE
· John Gondak enters his 11th year at the helm of the Penn State cross country/track and field program in 2024-25.
· Overall, Gondak is in his 19th season on staff at Penn State and his 29th season in collegiate track & field coaching.
· Gondak’s resume with the Nittany Lions, both as a head coach and assistant coach, includes 61 first-team All-Americans, 111 Penn State records set, 13 Big Ten Freshman of the Year honorees, 14 Penn Relays victories, and six sub-four-minute milers. He has also been a part of 11 Big Ten team titles and four regional cross country championships during his time with Penn State. For his efforts, he has earned 12 regional coach of the year honors and three Big Ten coach of the year awards.
· Penn State has had a long run of 800m success under Gondak’s watch, as the Nittany Lions have won the men’s Big Ten 800m championship in 13 of the past 17 indoor seasons and the women’s 800m championship in eight consecutive indoor campaigns.
GONDAK SEASON BY SEASON AS A HEAD COACH
2023-24
Overall
· In 2024, Gondak’s Nittany Lions produced their first individual NCAA champion since Danae Rivers in 2019 when sprinter Cheickna Traore won the outdoor 200-meter dash. Traore set four school records during his graduate season with Penn State and continued on to represent his home country of the Ivory Coast at the 2024 Paris Olympics after running the Olympic standard in the 200m with Penn State.
· As a group, the Penn State women placed 20th in the final USTFCCCA Track & Field/Cross Country Program of the Year rankings under Gondak’s guidance. This marked the first time the women’s team appeared in the final rankings since the 2017-18 school year. The group earned their spot by scoring points at each one of the contested NCAA Championship meets in a full academic season: cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field. Led by Gondak and his coaching staff, Penn State’s women’s team finished ahead of cross country team title winner NC State and cross country team runner-up Northern Arizona in the final rankings, highlighting the well-rounded aspect of the Nittany Lion women’s group through the course of the season.
· At the indoor Big Ten Championships, Gondak’s Penn State team was the only group in the conference in 2024 to place both its men’s and women’s teams inside the top three, with the women’s team finishing second and the men’s team snagging third.
Cross Country
· Penn State’s women’s cross country qualified to the NCAA Championships in 2023 for the first time since 2019. Led by Mid-Atlantic All-Region honorees Florence Caron, Maddie Ullom, Sophia Toti, and Kileigh Kane, the Nittany Lion women finished second at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships. Evan Dorenkamp and true freshman Brian DiCola earned All-Region honors for the men’s team.
· Ullom finished sixth overall at the Big Ten Cross Country Championships, earning Penn State’s first First Team All-Big Ten honor since Jillian Hunsberger in 2017. The women’s group finished fourth while the men placed sixth.
Indoor Season
· Under Gondak’s oversight, Penn State’s men’s team finished 21st in the nation at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Traore placed second in the 200-meter dash and seventh in the 60-meter dash, while Handal Roban recorded a seventh-place result in the 800-meters. Traore became the first Nittany Lion ever to win First Team All-America honors in two individual track events (excluding relays) at a single indoor NCAA meet.
· The Nittany Lion men placed third at the indoor Big Ten Championships with a program record 88 points, thanks in part to a herculean effort by Traore. The grad student won three conference titles (60m, 200m, 4x400m) and earned Big Ten Men’s Track Athlete of the Championships honors in his first taste of Division I postseason action. The 200-meter title was Penn State’s first at the Big Ten indoor meet. Roban also earned his first career conference crown, taking the top spot in the men’s 600-meters. Traore toppled two Penn State school records during the indoor season, setting top marks in both the 60 and 200-meter sprints.
· The Nittany Lion women finished 31st as a group at the NCAA level, their first scoring outing at the NCAA indoor meet since 2019. Hayley Kitching earned First Team All-America status for the first time in her career with a fourth-place finish in the 800-meters. The Penn State women’s DMR team also earned First Team All-America recognition for its seventh-place standing in the country.
· At the conference level, Kitching won the women’s group’s eighth-straight Big Ten title in the 800-meters. The win was one of two for Kitching, who also won the 600-meter crown on her way to Big Ten Women’s Track Athlete of the Championships honors. As a team, the women placed second in the conference, the squad’s best finish since it won the conference title in 2017.
· Kitching was a part of all three school records set by Penn State during the indoor season. She herself took down the Nittany Lions’ 600 and 800-meter records while also running the 800-meter leg of the record-setting women’s DMR team that included Zoey Goldstein, Ullom, and Kane.
Outdoor Season
· Traore’s 200-meter NCAA title highlighted the outdoor season for Gondak’s Nittany Lions. The win was Penn State’s first individual outdoor crown since 2018 and its first win in the 200-meter dash since Barney Ewell in 1941, when the event was still contested as the 220-yard dash. At the NCAA East Prelims, Traore achieved the Olympic standard in the 200-meter dash with a 19.93 school and Ivory Coast record-setting performance. During the outdoor campaign, Traore added the 100-meter school record to his resume and clocked a 44.00 split on the No. 2 4x400-meter relay team at Penn State.
· The Nittany Lion women produced two outdoor All-Americans in 2024, with Kitching placing fifth in the 800-meters and Florence Caron coming in 14th in the 10K at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. The team also claimed three Big Ten titles at the conference meet, with Kitching winning the 800 in meet record time and Caron earning gold in both the 5K and 10K on her way to Big Ten Women’s Track Athlete of the Championships honors. She became the first Nittany Lion ever to win both the 5K and 10K titles in a career, let alone the same championship meet. The women’s team set school records in the 800m (Kitching), 5K (Caron), hammer throw (Samaria McDonald), SMR, and 4x1500-meter relay during the 2024 outdoor season.
2022-23
Overall
· Under Gondak’s leadership in 2023, Penn State became the first school in Big Ten history to sweep both the men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor Big Ten Freshman of the Year awards, with Roban and Kitching claiming the honors for the men’s and women’s squads, respectively, during both seasons.
· The Nittany Lions also performed well outside of in-season competition, with Roban earning a berth in the 2023 World Athletics Championships, running the 800 representing St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
· Roban became just the fifth Nittany Lion to run a sub-1:46 800m with his 1:45.93 win at the Central American & Caribbean Games.
· At the USATF National Championships, Rachel Gearing lowered her own outdoor 800-meter school record with a 2:01.24.
Cross Country
· Three Penn State cross country student-athletes earned Mid-Atlantic Region honors during the 2022 season under Gondak’s direction.
· Faith DeMars and Kane both posted top-25 finishes at the regional meet for the women while Brandon Hontz earned the recognition for the men’s team.
Indoor Season
· Gondak mentored Roban to an NCAA bronze medal in the 800-meter run, securing six points for the Nittany Lions, as Penn State’s 37th-place finish at the indoor meet was the squad’s best since 2018.
· Both the men’s and women’s teams dominated the 800-meters at Big Ten Indoors, securing 1-2 finishes in both races. Olivier Desmeules and Roban took the top two spots for the men while Gearing and Kitching claimed gold and silver for the women.
· Gearing’s title became Penn State’s seventh-straight indoor 800-meter title on the women’s side.
· DeMars took home the 5K title at the indoor conference meet as well, while also setting a new school record in the 3K during the regular season, as she took down Tessa Barrett’s old mark by nearly seven full seconds.
· High jumper Cecelia Bacon tied Penn State’s school record in the event in 2023.
· In total, 13 top-five program marks were achieved during the 2023 indoor season under Gondak’s guidance, including Penn State’s sixth sub-4:00 miler, Hontz.
Outdoor Season
· Roban claimed his second NCAA Bronze Medal of his freshman campaign, this time in the outdoor 800.
· The Nittany Lions finished with four first-team All-Americans at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with Roban (800, 3rd), Tyler Merkley (hammer throw, 7th), and Dorenkamp (1500, 8th) representing the men’s squad while Mallory Kauffman (shot put, 6th) posted a school record throw to score three points for the Nittany Lion women.
· DeMars defended her indoor 5K Big Ten Title with a win at outdoors as well, becoming the first Penn State woman to win a Big Ten Title in the event at the outdoor conference meet.
· Merkley achieved the second school record for the 2023 Nittany Lions with his silver-medal finish at the Big Ten championships.
· During the regular season, the Nittany Lions’ women’s 4x800 group won the Penn Relays Championship of America in school record time for the second-straight season.
2021-22
Cross Country
· At the 2021 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Meet, Dorenkamp earned the first of his two-career all-region honors.
Indoor Season
· Penn State’s women’s team claimed third place at the 2022 Big Ten Indoor Championships.
· Senior sprinter Yasmin Brooks won a pair of Big Ten titles in indoor 60m and outdoor 100m hurdles while freshman Allison Johnson was named the Big Ten Indoor Freshman of the Year after winning a gold medal in the 800.
· Chloé Royce won the Big Ten Indoor title in the pentathlon to bring Penn State’s Big Ten title total to four.
Outdoor Season
· Merkley capped off his outstanding outdoor campaign with a silver medal in the hammer throw at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
· The Nittany Lion thrower also won the Big Ten Men’s Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year following his fantastic season.
· Gondak’s Nittany Lions set four school records during the outdoor campaign, highlighted by Merkley’s hammer throw mark, which he would break again one season later.
2020-21
Overall
· The Nittany Lions had an accolade filled year in 2021, highlighted by two first-team All-Americans and six combined Big Ten champions.
· Competing at her 10th combined NCAA Championship, Danae Rivers closed out her final season at Penn State by becoming a first-team All-American for the seventh time.
· Maddie Holmberg paired a Big Ten Heptathlon championship with her fourth combined first-team All-America honor.
· Penn State posted three Big Ten Champions in both the indoor and outdoor seasons, with Holmberg, David Lucas and Mark Porter claiming outdoor honors and Domenic Peretta, Sincere Rhea and Victoria Vanriele winning indoor championships.
· Five current Nittany Lions went on to represent the program at USATF Olympic Trials, with Holmberg, Lucas, Merkley, Porter and Madison Smith competing at the event in Oregon.
2019-20
Overall
· Rivers was awarded All-America honors in the mile event by the USTFCCCA with the NCAA Indoor Championships being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cross Country
· In the fall of 2019, Gondak was named the Mid-Atlantic Region Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year, his fourth Coach of the Year honor, as the squad won its fourth regional title in the past five years.
· The women’s program finished 18th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, marking the fifth-straight year the Nittany Lions placed in the top 20, one of only seven programs to do so over the same time frame.
Indoor Season
· Gondak mentored three more Big Ten Champions during the COVID-19 pandemic-shortened indoor season.
· Seniors Billy McDevitt and Rivers continued the Nittany Lions’ dominance of the men’s and women’s 800-meter event at the Big Ten Championships.
· McDevitt captured the men’s 800 crown and became the fifth consecutive Nittany Lion to win the event title.
· Rivers became the only female-student athlete in Big Ten history to win four consecutive 800 indoor Big Ten titles.
· Rivers followed up her 800m title with the Big Ten indoor mile championship.
2018-19
Overall
· Gondak mentored Rivers to new heights during the 2019 indoor and outdoor seasons. Rivers won the first women’s indoor individual NCAA National Championship in Penn State history, finishing first overall in the 800-meter run.
· Along with her national title, Rivers won her third consecutive 800m indoor Big Ten title, second consecutive outdoor 1500m Big Ten title and second outdoor 800m Big Ten title.
· Rivers’ 2019 list of accomplishments also included, at the time: 1,000m collegiate record (2:38.58), 800m indoor school record (2:02.94), mile indoor school record (10th fastest collegiate time ever - 4:29.47) and third consecutive Mid-Atlantic Region Women’s Track Athlete of the Year award.
Cross Country
· Penn State women’s cross country program earned its fourth consecutive top-20 finish at the NCAA Championships under Gondak.
Indoor Season
· Along with Rivers in 2019, Perretta won Penn State’s fourth-straight indoor Big Ten Title in the 800.
· The Nittany Lions earned five first-team All-American honors and the women’s program finished 11th at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, a result highlighted by Rivers’ 800-meter national title.
Outdoor Season
· Morgan Shigo earned his second-straight First Team All-America nod in the hammer throw, highlighting competition for the men’s team at the NCAA Championships.
· Penn State earned four Big Ten titles in 2019 under Gondak’s guidance, including 800-meter and 1500-meter wins by Rivers.
· During the regular season, the Nittany Lions’ women’s sprint medley relay team earned the women’s team’s third-ever Penn Relays Championship of America wheel with their 3:45.25 win.
2017-18
Overall
· Isaiah Harris, a junior at the time, wrapped up his Nittany Lion tenure following the NCAA Championships as he signed a professional contract with Nike and finished second in the 800-meter run at the USATF Outdoor Championships.
· Harris concluded 2018 with a school-record 800-meter time of 1:44.42 in the Paris Diamond League meet.
Cross Country
· The Penn State women ran to its third-straight Mid-Atlantic Regional title and advanced to the NCAA Championships for the eighth time in 10 seasons.
· Following the regional meet, Gondak was named the Mid-Atlantic Regional Women’s Head Coach of the Year for the third-straight season.
· At the NCAA Cross Country Championships, the Nittany Lion women finished in the top 20 for the third straight season.
· On the men’s side, Colin Abert and Timothy McGowan advanced to the NCAA Championships, which marked the first time since 2011 that the Nittany Lion men had two competitors at the NCAA Championships.
· Abert, Timothy McGowan and John McGowan all brought home NCAA Mid-Atlantic All-Region honors as well.
· At the Big Ten Cross Country Championships, Abert (second team) and Jillian Hunsberger (first team) were honored with All-Big Ten plaudits.
Indoor Season
· The Penn State men recorded the best finish among Big Ten programs at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships with a 10th-place final tally.
· Individually, David Lucas became the first Penn State men’s track & field student-athlete to win an indoor national title since 1990 with his school-record mark of 78-9.75 in the weight throw.
· Along with Lucas, Holmberg, Harris and Rivers all posted first-team All-America finishes in their respective events.
· At the Big Ten Indoor Track & Field Championships, Harris won his fifth-straight combined 800-meter title and Rivers defended her 800-meter run title from 2017.
Outdoor Season
· Harris became Penn State’s first 800-meter run national champion in 95 years with his first-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
· Along with Harris, Holmberg, Lucas, Megan McCloskey, Rivers and Morgan Shigo all posted first-team All-America finishes in their respective events.
· As a team, Penn State was the only Big Ten program in 2018 to have both its men’s and women’s teams finish in the top 25.
· At the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Michael Biddle won the men’s javelin, Harris completed the 800 sweep, and Rivers captured the first 1,500-meter run crown in program history.
2016-17
Overall
· Overall, 2016-17 saw 15 school records broken, 10 top-five indoor marks set, as well as 34 top-10 outdoor marks hit.
· Between cross country, indoor and outdoor, Penn State had 14 athletes honored as All-Americans.
· The Nittany Lions captured two Big Ten conference team titles, the only school in the conference to do so during the 2016-17 year.
· Gondak himself earned four Coach of the Year honors across the three seasons of competition.
· The women’s Big Ten Championship paired with the men’s second-place finish remains the highest combined finish in Penn State track & field history.
Cross Country
· The Nittany Lion women competed at the NCAA Championships for the seventh time in the last eight years, where Elizabeth Chikotas and Hunsberger teamed up to become the first Penn State duo to earn All-American honors at the championships in the NCAA era.
· The Penn State women finished in the top-20 in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2011 and 2012.
· Gondak collected his second-straight Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Women’s Head Coach of the Year honor following the season.
Indoor Season
· The women’s team captured its fourth Big Ten Indoor Championship in program history (2004, 2010, 2014), scoring 96.5-points.
· The men’s team recorded its highest finish in program history, taking second place with a total score of 84 points that included a Big Ten-record performance in the 4x400-meter relay as the combination of Dan Chisena, Xavier Smith, Sam Reiser and Harris ran 3:04.80.
· At the Indoor Track & Field National Championships, the women’s team posted its second-highest finish at the indoor championships ever (10th) and its first top-10 finish since the 2009 season.
· Indoor All-Americans included: Danae Rivers (mile, 3rd), Isaiah Harris (800, 4th), Tessa Barrett in the (5K, 5th), the women’s DMR (6th) and Dannielle Gibson (triple jump, 8th).
· Gondak claimed both Mid-Atlantic Region and Big Ten Women’s Indoor Head Coach of the Year honors at the conclusion of the 2017 indoor campaign.
Outdoor Season
· At the NCAA Championships, the Nittany Lions saw four athletes finish the season with All-America honors including Harris (800, 2nd) Tori Gerlach (steeplechase, 3rd), Michael Shuey (javelin, 3rd), and Dannielle Gibson (triple jump, 3rd).
· Serving as the host for the Big Ten Outdoor Championships for the third time since joining the conference in 1992, the Penn State men’s team won its first title in program history, scoring 117 points while the women finished third, scoring 101 points.
· Tim McGowan and Hunsberger posted runner-up finishes in the 10K to start the weekend.
· The meet featured five Big Ten Champions for the Nittany Lions, including sweeps of the men’s and women’s 800m by Harris and Rivers.
· Malik Moffett, who was named Big Ten Field Athlete of the Championships, captured titles in the long jump and the 200-meters with the former being a school record at 26-3 (8.00m) and the latter being the eighth-fastest wind-aided time in NCAA history at the time (19.87, +5.7).
· Gondak won the Big Ten’s Men’s Outdoor Coach of the Year title following his team’s victory.
2015-16
Cross Country
· Barrett became Penn State’s first cross country All-American since 2011, and Gondak’s first as a head coach, with a 38th-place finish at NCAAs.
· Led by Barrett, the women’s group finished 16th in the nation, its sixth top 25 result in its last seven seasons.
· The Nittany Lion women captured their first Big Ten Cross Country Championship of Gondak’s head coaching tenure as well, the group’s first since it won the triple crown in 2009-10.
· The Nittany Lions had four All-Big Ten honorees and Gondak was named the Big Ten’s Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year for his efforts, his first Coach of the Year honor from the conference since being named Penn State’s head coach and program director.
Indoor Season
· Penn State scored points at the NCAA Indoor Championships on both the men’s and women’s side for the third-straight season.
· Rachel Fatherly (shot put, 7th) and Brannon Kidder (800m, 7th) each earned first-team All-America honors at the NCAA meet.
· The Nittany Lions earned three individual Big Ten Titles: Harris in the 800 (Big Ten Championships record 1:46.24), Kidder in the mile, and the men’s DMR squad, which won the title for the Nittany Lions in the fourth consecutive season.
Outdoor Season
· For the second consecutive outdoor campaign, the Penn State’s men’s team finished in the top 25.
· Led by first-team All-American finishes by Harris (800, 4th), Kidder (1500, 4th) and Brian Leap (triple jump, 6th), the Nittany Lions placed 17th at the NCAA Championships.
· Harris, Kidder and Leap also earned Big Ten Titles in their respective events, leading the Nittany Lions to a fifth-place finish in the conference.
2014-15
Cross Country
· Gondak’s squads sent two individual qualifiers to the NCAA Cross Country Championships.
· Matt Fischer represented the men’s group, marking the seventh straight season, and 11th out of the last 12, Penn State sent at least one member of its men’s group to the national meet.
· Hunsberger qualified for the women’s team, marking the ninth-straight season Penn State sent at least one member of its women’s group to the NCAA Championships.
· At the Big Ten level, the Nittany Lions earned one All-Big Ten honor, with Glen Burkhart claiming Second Team plaudits for his effort on the men’s side.
Indoor Season
· The Penn State men earned a 12th-place finish at the NCAA Indoor National Championships in Gondak’s first season as the head coach.
· Behind All-American performances by Darrell Hill (shot put, 4th), Kidder (mile, 7th) and the DMR group (2nd), Gondak’s group scored 15 points at the national meet, its third-highest team tally ever.
· The squad finished fourth at Big Ten Indoors, boasting four individual conference title winners. Robby Creese took home two wins, in the mile and the 3K, Hill won the shot put crown, and the DMR group took home the title as well.
· Gondak earned Mid-Atlantic Region Indoor Men’s Head Coach of the Year following the outstanding year by his squad.
· The women’s team finished 53rd at NCAA Indoors, marking the second-straight season that both programs scored at the national level.
· The Nittany Lions’ 4x400 group finished eighth in the nation, earning the Nittany Lions’ tally.
· The women’s team also finished tied for third at Big Tens with Gerlach (5K) and Kiah Seymour (400m) collecting Big Ten titles.
Outdoor Season
· Gondak helped the men’s group continue its stellar season through the 2015 outdoor campaign.
· The squad finished tied for tenth in the NCAA at the Outdoor National Championships, scoring 17 total points, thanks to a pair of silver medals from Hill (shot put) and Kidder (800m), along with an eighth-place result by Steve Waithe (triple jump).
· Both marks were the best achieved by Penn State’s men’s team since it scored 20 points in an eighth-place finish at the championships in 1966.
· Both Hill and Kidder won Big Ten titles in their respective events as well, with Michael Shuey earning the win in the javelin.
ASSISTANT COACHING SUCCESS AT PENN STATE
2013-14 SEASON
· The USTFCCCA honored Gondak with Mid-Atlantic Region Men’s Indoor Coach of the Year honors in what ended up being his final campaign as an assistant coach before he took the head coach position in the summer of 2014.
· At the national level, Gondak mentored middle-distance runner Za’Von Watkins to a First Team All-American finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
· Gondak’s distance squad helped the Penn State women’s team secure Big Ten team titles in both indoor and outdoor seasons in 2014. Titles from Kidder (indoor 800), the men’s DMR team, and Gerlach (indoor 3K) highlighted conference competition.
2012-13 SEASON
· Gondak earned Mid-Atlantic Region Men’s Outdoor Assistant Coach of the Year recognition for his work with an outstanding Penn State men’s squad.
· National success began with a 12th-place finish by the women’s cross country squad in the fall of 2012.
· Gondak’s distance group claimed a pair of NCAA silver medals (Loxsom, 800m and men’s DMR) as the men’s group posted a program-record 19 points at NCAA indoors and recorded a ninth-place finish in the nation, the school’s best since 1975.
· During outdoor season, Loxsom (2nd) and Kidder (3rd) became the first teammates since 1945 to finish inside the top three in the 800-meter run at the outdoor championships as the Nittany Lion men placed 14th in the country. With Creese’s sixth-place finish in the mile, Gondak’s group scored all 17 of Penn State’s points at the championship meet.
· Individually, Loxsom’s 2013 campaign went down as one of the greatest in Penn State history and helped Gondak’s name become recognized among the best middle-distance mentors in the country.
2011-12 SEASON
· A 13th-place team finish at the NCAA Championships for the Nittany Lion women, including two All-Americans and a Big Ten Cross Country Athlete of the Year, highlighted cross country season for Penn State.
· Loxsom’s All-American finish in the outdoor 800 highlighted national competition for the distance squad in 2012. Six of Gondak’s events yielded Big Ten titles across the 2012 indoor and outdoor seasons.
2010-11 SEASON
· Both the men’s and women’s cross country squads made trips to the NCAA Championships during the fall 2010 season.
· During indoor season, Gondak’s distance athletes helped the men’s team finish 11th at the NCAA Championships, tying the program’s second-highest finish ever at the time (currently fourth-highest ever). Before his All-American mile run at NCAAs, Gondak mentored middle-distance star Ryan Foster to his school record-setting third-straight indoor 800-meter Big Ten title. Penn State’s men’s squad also finished top-20 in the country during outdoor season behind an All-American result for Loxsom in the 800-meters.
2009-10 SEASON
· 2009-10 was a historic season for Penn State track & field/cross country. The women’s team earned the Big Ten Triple Crown, collecting team titles in cross country, as well as indoor and outdoor track & field. Both the men’s and women’s track & field teams finished top-14 at the NCAA Indoor Championships and top-25 at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, with multiple athletes earning historically significant All-America finishes at both meets. Gondak earned Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year honors after the cross country season and after the outdoor season, both of which were conference title-winning efforts for the Penn State women’s team.
· Gondak won his first Mid-Atlantic Region Assistant Coach of the Year award in his Penn State tenure following an excellent 2009 cross country season in which the women’s team won the Big Ten and placed 14th nationally. Bridget Franek earned Big Ten Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Year and was named an All-American under Gondak’s guidance in 2009.
· At the NCAA Indoor Championships, Gondak’s 800-meter squad dominated, with three Nittany Lion men earning All-America honors in the event, the first Nittany Lions to be named indoor All-Americans in the 800 since Randy Moore in 1985. Franek also earned a pair of All-America finishes in the 3K and 5K as she led the women’s team to a 13th-place finish nationally. At the conference level, the women’s squad won its second of three Big Ten titles of the 2009-10 season and Foster won his second of three-straight indoor 800-meter titles on the men’s side.
· Gondak mentored Franek to an NCAA Title in the steeplechase as she propelled the women’s team to a fourth-overall finish at the national meet, Penn State’s highest final standing in the NCAA era. She also earned Big Ten Athlete of the Championships at the conference level after claiming the steeplechase title and leading her team to a title, completing the conference triple crown.
2008-09 SEASON
· Penn State’s men’s cross country team qualified to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 1994 under Gondak’s tutelage. Franek collected an All-American finish on the women’s side.
· Gondak mentored Franek to a fourth-place finish in the 5K at the NCAA Indoor Championships, as she helped the women’s team place seventh overall. At the conference level, Foster earned his first of three-straight indoor 800-meter titles.
· Penn State’s women’s team won its second of three consecutive outdoor Big Ten titles in 2009 and Franek advanced to the NCAA Championships once again, finishing fourth in the 5K.
2007-08 SEASON
· Gondak mentored Franek to a pair of All-American finishes at the NCAA Indoor Championships in the 3K and 5K. At the conference level, Mark Miller’s 800-meter title was the first men’s 800-meter Big Ten win of Gondak’s tenure at Penn State. The Nittany Lion men have won 13 indoor Big Ten 800-meter crowns in the 18 seasons that Gondak has been at Penn State.
· During outdoor season, Gondak’s distance athletes recorded historic performances. Franek’s bronze medal in the steeplechase helped the Nittany Lion women finish fourth in the nation with a program record 39 points. The women’s team also won its first Big Ten team title in school history with a school record 151 team points. On the men’s side, Gondak mentored Samuel Borchers to the first Big Ten 1500-meter crown in Pen State history.
2006-07 SEASON – FIRST YEAR AT PENN STATE
· In Gondak’s first year with the Nittany Lions, he mentored Dan Mazzocco to his second-straight All-America finish at the 2006 NCAA Cross Country Championships. In 2006, the women’s and men’s teams finished eighth and ninth, respectively, at the Big Ten Championships. Just two seasons later, the men’s group placed fourth in the conference, then one year after, the women’s team won the first Big Ten XC title in school history. Gondak’s instant improvement of the cross country programs is evidenced by the turnaround of success by both teams in a short timeframe.
· Briene Simmons became the first All-American on the track under Gondak’s coaching at Penn State, as she finished seventh in the country in the 800-meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
INTERNATIONAL COACHING EXPERIENCE
· During the summer of 2014, Gondak coached the U.S. men’s distance squad at the North America, Central America and Caribbean (NACAC) U-23 Championships. Under Gondak’s guidance, the U.S. men’s distance team won two gold, four silver, and three bronze medals.
· Gondak has also continued the tradition of hosting international coaches as a part of the International Coaching Enrichment Certificate Program (ICECP) that provides national level coaches a practical program orientated towards developing proficiency in the technical, theoretical, conceptual, managerial, and ethical aspects of coaching track & field at all levels of competition.
PROGRAM SUCCESS
Big Ten Team Titles
· (5) Women’s Outdoor Track & Field: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014
· (3) Women’s Indoor Track & Field: 2010, 2014, 2017
· (2) Women’s Cross Country: 2009, 2015
· Men’s Outdoor Track & Field: 2018
Cross Country Team Titles
· (4) Women’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships: 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019
COACHING HONORS
· 2024 Mid-Atlantic Region Indoor Men’s Head Coach of the Year
· 2019 Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Women’s Head Coach of the Year
· 2017 Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Women’s Head Coach of the Year
· 2017 Big Ten Men’s Outdoor Head Coach of the Year
· 2017 Mid-Atlantic Region Indoor Women’s Head Coach of the Year
· 2017 Big Ten Women’s Indoor Head Coach of the Year
· 2016 Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Women’s Head Coach of the Year
· 2015 Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Women’s Head Coach of the Year
· 2015 Big Ten Women’s Cross Country Head Coach of the Year
· 2015 Mid-Atlantic Region Indoor Men’s Head Coach of the Year
· 2014 Mid-Atlantic Region Indoor Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year
· 2013 Mid-Atlantic Region Indoor Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year
· 2013 Mid-Atlantic Region Outdoor Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year
· 2010 Mid-Atlantic Region Outdoor Assistant Coach of the Year
· 2009 Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Assistant Coach of the Year
PROMINENT ATHLETES COACHED
· Handal Roban (Penn State)
o 1x World Championships Qualifier (’23 - St. Vincent & the Grenadines - 800)
o 2x NCAA Bronze Medalist (’23 i/o 800)
o 3x First Team All-American (’23 i/o 800, ’24 indoor 800)
o 1x Second Team All-American (’24 outdoor 800)
o 1x Big Ten Champion (’24 indoor 600)
o 1x Big Ten Silver Medalist (’23 indoor 800)
o 3x Big Ten Bronze Medalist (’23 outdoor 800, ’24 i/o 800)
o 2x Big Ten Freshman of the Year (’23 i/o)
o 2x Mid-Atlantic Men’s Track Athlete of the Year (’23 i/o)
o No. 2 in Penn State history in the indoor 800 (1:46.81)
o No. 3 in Penn State history in the outdoor 800 (1:45.36)
o 4x St. Vincent & the Grenadines national record holder (i/o 800m, indoor 1000m, U20 800m)
· Hayley Kitching (Penn State)
o 2x First Team All-American (’24 i/o 800)
o 3x Big Ten Champion (indoor 600, i/o 800)
o 1x Mid-Atlantic Region Women’s Track Athlete of the Year (’24 indoor)
o 1x Big Ten Women’s Track Athlete of the Year (’24 indoor)
o 1x Big Ten Women’s Track Athlete of the Championships (’24 indoor)
o 2x Big Ten Women’s Freshman of the Year (’23 i/o)
o 7x Penn State school record holder
§ Indoor 600 (1:26.97)
§ Indoor 800 (2:01.77 – NCAA No. 21 all-time)
§ Indoor DMR – 800m leg (10:49.05 – NCAA No. 7 all-time)
§ Outdoor 800 (2:00.70)
§ Outdoor 4x1500 (17:09.59 – NCAA No. 5 all-time)
§ Outdoor SMR – 800m leg (3:44.66 – NCAA No. 18 all-time)
§ Outdoor 4x800 (8:23.81 – NCAA No. 8 all-time)
· Danae Rivers
o 1x NCAA Champion (’19 indoor 800)
o 9x USTFCCCA First Team All-American
o 10x Big Ten Champion
o 3x Mid-Atlantic Region Women’s Track Athlete of the Year
o 2x Big Ten Freshman of the Year
o Penn State school record holder in the 1500m (4:10.47) and sprint medley relay (3:45.25)
· Isaiah Harris
o 1x NCAA Champion (’18 outdoor 800)
o 1x NCAA Silver Medalist (’17 indoor 800)
o 2x World Championships Qualifier (’17, ’23 - Team U.S.A. – 800)
o 1x NACAC U23 Champion (’16 - 800)
o 5x NCAA First Team All-American (’16 outdoor 800, ’17 i/o 800, ’18 i/o 800)
o 8x Big Ten Champion
o 1x Big Ten Men’s Track Athlete of the Year (’18 outdoor)
o 2x Big Ten Championships record holder
§ Indoor 800 (1:46.24)
§ Outdoor 800 (1:45.31)
o 4x Penn State School record holder
§ Indoor 800 (1:46.08 – NCAA No. 19 all-time)
§ Outdoor 800 (1:44.42 – NCAA No. 23 all-dates)
§ Indoor 600 (1:14.96 – NCAA No. 3 all-time)
§ Indoor 4x400 relay (3:04.80)
· Tessa Barrett
o 2x USTFCCCA First Team All-American
o 1x Big Ten Silver Medalist (’17 indoor 5K)
o 3x Big Ten Bronze Medalist (’16 outdoor 10K, ’16 indoor 3K, 5K)
o 1x Penn State school record holder
§ Indoor 5K (15:29.99)
· Bridget Franek
o 1x NCAA Champion (’10 steeplechase)
o 1x NCAA Bronze Medalist (’08 steeplechase)
o 10x USTFCCCA All-American
o 3x Big Ten Champion (’08, ’10 steeplechase, ’10 mile)
o 5x First Team All-Big Ten
o 1x Big Ten Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Year (’09)
o 2x Big Ten Track Athlete of the Championships (’10 i/o)
o 1x Big Ten Freshman of the Year (’07 indoor)
o 1x Penn State school record holder
§ Steeplechase (9:32.35)
· Brannon Kidder
o 3x NCAA Silver Medalist (’13, ’14 indoor DMR, ’15 outdoor 800)
o 7x USTFCCCA First Team All-American
o 9x Big Ten Champion
o 1x Big Ten Freshman of the Year (’13 indoor)
o 1x Mid-Atlantic Region Track Athlete of the Year (’14 indoor)
o 1x Penn State school record holder
§ 1500m (3:38.82)
· Robby Creese
o 2x NCAA Silver Medalist (’13 ’14 indoor DMR)
o 3x USTFCCCA First Team All-American
o 4x Big Ten Champion
o 2x Big Ten Freshman of the Year
· Casimir Loxsom
o 6x NCAA All-American
o 6x Big Ten Champion
o 1x Big Ten Track Athlete of the Year (‘13 indoor)
o 1x Big Ten Freshman of the Year (2010)
o 4x USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Region Men’s Track Athlete of the Year
o No. 14 collegiate 600m of all time (1:15.79)
o Penn State school record holder in the indoor 500m (1:01.28)
o No. 2 in Penn State history outdoor (1:45.28) 800m, as well as the indoor 600m (1:15.42)
THE GONDAK FILE
Personal
Year at Penn State: 19th (11th as Head Coach/Program Director)
Hometown: Doylestown, Pa.
Education: Syracuse, 1995 - Bachelor’s B.S. in Civil Engineering (Summa Cum Laude, Valedictorian)
Family: Wife: Lori; Daughter: Jessica; Sons: Jeff and Jackson
Coaching Career
2006-Present – Penn State
· ’14-Present – Program Director and Head Coach
· ’06-’14 – Assistant Cross Country/Track & Field Coach
1998-2006 – Kentucky (Cross Country/Track & Field Coach)
1996-98 – Toledo (Cross Country/Assistant Track & Field Coach)
1995-96 – Georgia Tech (Graduate Assistant – Cross Country/Track & Field)