Coach Artie Gilkes Gets A Double

The State College Boys team won the PIAA Class 3A team title yesterday at Seth Grove Stadium in Shippensburg.  They exceeded their expected point total with 47 overall points.

That makes Coach Artie Gilkes the State Champion Indoor and Outdoor Coach of 2019!  Needless to say, Artie has the team believing and performing at their optimum level.  Those of us who know him best, saw this coming.  Having a mentor like Coach Groves and the support of the "soon-to-be largest and most active track alumni group in the world" gives great dividends.  Artie is aided by several other PSU Track Alumni (Golfers) including Chris Cipro, Tom Kleban, Matt Groves and Nick K.

The story of the 41st and title-clinching point shows what Artie brings to the table for the athletes he is charged with mentoring.  There are numerous future Nittany Lions coming through his tutelage. Congrats Artie.

Each Point Counts

PSU Is 800U: Generations

Penn State Track Alumni (Golfers) are excelling in coaching all over the United States!  And although high school and College coaching keep some of them from coming to our Reunion and Golf Tourney, we sure like to include them in our ranks as often as possible.

And all of them showed up at the PIAA Championships with some 800M runners worthy of 800U interest.

It was a battle for all 4 legs, but Central Bucks West nipped State College for the victory in the 4 X 800M Relay!

That's John Mahoney, coach of the middle distance crew of Brian Baker, Luke Fehrman, Alec Hofer and Jake Claricurzio.  (7:40.14)

State College (7:41.42) anchor Nick Feffer duals Central Bucks West's Jake Claricurzio.

State College is coached by Steve Shisler and Chris Cipro.  Other State College runners were Owen Wing, Chris Di Perna and Joey Feffer.

Diamonds (are a) Girls, Best Friend(s)

Joe Kovacs added to his haul of awards this year with the Diamond League Championship in the Shot Put Competition.  "Hey Joe, where are you going with that trophy in your hand..."

The Womens Team won the Coach Harry Groves Spiked Shoe Invitational in State College against some higher ranked competition.   They were paced by race winner, Tori Gerlach.

The Mens Team performed well, placing third behind Syracuse and Michigan. Ean DiSilvio placed 7th to lead the Lions.

The PSU Alumni Team placed 5th in the team competition with Brian Fuller leading the way in 22nd place.  Others on the team were Joey Walls, Mark Fuller, Kevin Fuller, Chris Cipro and co-blogger Matt Groves.  Casimir Loxsom acted as coach, trainer and captain for the squad.  Thanks for representing the rest of us sloths!

Cas Loxsom, Kevin Fuller, Mark Fuller, Brian Fuller, Chris Cipro, Matt Groves and Joey Walls.

I missed the meet as I was in Pittsburgh for my daughter's PSUAC race in McKeesport.  It turns out 2 of her best friends and high school teammates were also there.  ( running for University of Pitt Johnstown, Mt. Aloysius College and Penn State Mont Alto.)

Marta, Lauren and Daughter the Elder representing York Suburban High.

Nittany Lions return to the Sunshine State, and Alumni unite at the Carlsbad 5000

I was thrilled to see some great results from this weekend's Florida Relays for the Nittany Lions.  It's actually been four years since the team made the trek down to Gainesville for this meet, and so to put that time elapse in perspective, I'll recall a few quick memories from that meet in 2011...

1) Chris Cipro, Sam Borchers, Tyler Corkedale, Connor Revord and I almost got eaten alive by an alligator.

2) Cipro ("Kipro" as announced by Flotrack's play-by-play broadcasters), Corkedale and I all toed the line for the men's 5K at about 11pm (delayed by five hours after the race was scheduled to start) Actually the cool air of the late evening probably benefited the whole field quite a bit.  That weekend was scorching hot I recall.  Race vid here:  http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/238228-2011-Florida-Relays/video/481893-M-5k-H01-1403-Winning-Time#.VSDB8vnF9u4

3) Cip ran an inspiring anchor leg of the DMR in his first (and maybe his only ever?) collegiate 1600m/mile.  But the MVP was the lead off, Connor Revord, returning to his home state, for his first ever collegiate track race, running a solid 1200 leg, then letting BBG and Borch the Torch handle the middle stages of the race.  Vid here:  http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/238228-2011-Florida-Relays/video/482142-M-dmr-H01#.VSDCcPnF9u4

Lo and behold, four years later, I'm sharpening up for a 5K once again, only this time it will be Mt. SAC.  The alumni singlet has been getting some love over here in San Diego, by the way.  This past weekend at the Carlsbad 5000 I had the pleasure of meeting the 2006 PSU grad, and 3:38 1500m man, Matt Lincoln, who picked me out from the crowd as I was sporting the singlet on my cooldown.  Small world, eh?

Classic Scarp tactics- hanging back early.  The neon green singlets are my track club buddies.  I go rogue w/ the white jersey.

Penn State National Preview

Here are your Penn State Alumni runners who will be towing the line tomorrow on the Blue/White Golf Course at the Penn State National.

Sam Masters - Says he if he "holds 5 minute pace it will be a really really good day." On October 5 he won the Nittany Lion Invitational hosted by the Club XC team in 25:29.79. Which is 5:08 pace.

Kyle Dawson - Recently mixing it up in the Downingtown road running scene with a 2nd place finish at Teri's Run 5K (14:26) on September 6 and a victory the following day at the Quad X Invitational open 5K (15:40).

Owen Dawson - Back to back 3rd place finishes at Teri's Run in 14:28 and 15:57 at Quad X in early September. 

Vince McNally - Finally back in shape after a long layoff with a 3rd place showing at the City of Pittsburgh Great Race 10K in 30:29 on September 29. Also came in 5th behind Kyle and Owen at Teri's Run with a time of 14:34. Despite that defeat McNally is confident the longer distance and terrain will be in his favor. "I'll beat Owen on Friday," said Vince "I should be slightly fitter than I was (on September 6) and 5.2 (miles) should wear down the sub-four minute miler."

Brain Fuller - The older of the Fuller brothers claimed first place on the runways at Washington-Dulles International Airport with a 15:16 at the Dulles Day 5K on September 14. Two weeks later he posted a 30:52 at Penns Woods Trail 10K.

Kevin Fuller - Better known for his middle-distance prowess and rabbiting world class times. The younger Fuller took 7th at the Dulles Day 5K in 16:59.

Matt Groves - Ran 1:16:25 at the ultra fast Rock n Roll Philadelphia Half-Marathon on September 25.

Unfortunately Chris Cipro will not be able to race. Despite being recovered from his marathon last weekend he cannot get out of teaching duties for the day.

In other news it is great to see current varsity team member Matt Fischer keeping the "Rusty Boots" tradition alive. We wish Fsicher and his teammates well as they will be competing at the Pre-National Invitational in Terre-Haute, IN this weekend.

Alums In Action

Former NCAA qualifier Chris Cipro took a stab at the marathon over the weekend placing 12th in the Baltimore Running Festival Marathon. His debut at the distance was clocked in 2:53:57 which is very impressive considering he spends more time teaching 3rd graders and coaching high schoolers in Bellefonte than training these days. It will be a quick turnaround for Cipro as he is expected to race with the Alumni Team this friday at the Penn State National (more to come on that later). Also earning a 12th place finish on Saturday was former Penn Stater Stephanie Pezzullo with a 2:38:04 in the prestigious Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Hell of a run for the girl known as "Pezz". Results here for Chicago,

Looks like it was a painful final 8 miles

As Chris and Stephanie were running the streets of B'more and Chi-Town other PSU Track Alums reunited for a great homecoming tailgate and football game. Steve and Beth Shisler stopped by to stick it to the young guns in a game of stump. Concerns about the weather were unfounded as the day turned out to be gorgeous and good times were had by all. 

"A Very Good First Day"

Here's some updates on the Watch List of PSU entries in the Penn Relays:

1. Mens Championship of America Sprint Medley Relay - Returning Champions!
2. Mens Championship of America 4 x 800 - My favorite event  (Longest standing Event Record at Penn)
3. Mens Championship of America 4 x 400 - The Quintessential Track Event.
4. Womens Championship of America Distance Medley Relay - A School Record Coming? Update:  3rd Place and a School Record! 

   11:08.41

   Rebekka Simko (3:23.0), Ijeoma Iheoma (52.8), Marta Klebe (2:09.8), Kara Millhouse (4:42.8)

5. Womens Championship Javelin - PSU is Javelin U. Update: Lauren Kenney First Place

   48.99m (160-8)  And a Watch!  Laura Loht  3rd 46.09m (151-2)

6. Women's Championship Hammer - Leading Thrower in the Big Ten!  Update:  Melissa Kurzdorfer  for the Win! And a Watch!
   

   62.53m (205-1)

7. Mens Champiopnship Shot Put - A strong duo.

And in addition there were plenty of PR's on the track at distance night!

• Womens 3000M SC  -   Emily Giannotti 2nd Place College Division 10:28.82,   Abbie Benson 5th Place College Division 10:35.5,  Natalie Bower 2nd in Championship Heat 10:14.27, Lindsey Graybill 7th in Championship Division 10:29.97.
• Mens 5000M  -  Kyle Dawson 6th in Championship Division 14:04.36, Vince McNally 8th in Championship Division 14:06.94, Chris Cipro 19th in Championship Division 14:30.43, Matt Fischer 24th in Champuionship Division 14:38.42,  Alums: Dennis Pollow Jr 6th in Olympic Development Division 14.26.68.
• Mens 10000M  -  Tom Luff 18th in Championship Division 30:36.77 Alums: Tyler McCandless 10th in Olympic Development Division 30:33.64.

Some Fine First Day Performances

Rebekka Simko stepped up from her usual distance and impressed with a victory in the 1500 M at the Bison Outdoor Classic at Bucknell on Saturday.  Her 4:20.11 is in the top 10 PSU performances all-time.
Robbie Creese continued his impressive Freshman exploits with  his 1500 M in a facility record 3:43.79.

The Lady Lions took the top 4 positions in the 3000 M Steeplechase with Natalie Bower leading them with a 10:25.46.  In the 10,000 M run, Chris Cipro PR'ed with a fine 29:53.07.

The Throwers continued their fine early season with Joe Kovacs and Will Barr going 1-2 in the Discus with throws of 176' 9" and 174' 8".

Events continue today in Lewisburg, PA.

World Record Attempt of 1,000 Mile Relay (Yea, You Read That Right!)

To honor Kevin Dare on the 10th anniversary of his tragic accident in August, ten Penn State Track Alums and friends will attempt to shatter the existing record for a 1,000 Mile Relay.  The 10 runners are a who's who of runners affiliated with Penn State, and I wouldn't bet against them!  Having once run a 24-Hr. Relay, I know that they are in for a wild ride.  This will take significantly longer, and the logistics of the course adds complexity to the equation.  I hope to speak with a few of the runners soon to learn more of the attempt. Teddy Quinn will act as their media consultant. Check out the Web Site for more.

The runners:

1. Luke Watson - PSU grad student and honorary PSU Track Alum Golfer
2. Brian Sell - 2008 Olympic Marathoner
3. Dennis Pollow - veteran Grand Canyon Rim to Rim (twice!)
4. Chris Cipro - Two-Year PSU Captain
5. Vince McNally - 4-time NCAA Cross Country Qualifier
6. Kyle Dawson - Three Year PSU Captain
7. Ryan Foster - Our Group's Singlet Supplier! (More on that to come.)
8. Brian Fuller - Continues his career despite also entering The Real World!
9. Owen Dawson - 800 M All-American (PSU is 800 U)
10. Tyler McCandless - 10K All-American

PSU Track Student/Athletes Excel

We always try to accentuate off-the-field excellence here at The Blog, and there is no better chance than with the past academic year.  Jess Riden brings us the news of the current crop of student/athlete's achievements.

• 51 Track athletes had GPA's higher than 3.0
• Both the Men's and Women's Teams had overall GPA's above 3.0
• 6 athletes had GPA's of 4.0  ( Megan Boyer, Candace Carson, Markea Dickinson, Kalin Fisher, Chris Cipro, Blake Eaton)

*Photos not representative of any current PSU student/athlete.  Glasses optional. Pocket protector required.