Second Generation All-American Resplendent In (Near) Alumni Singlet!

It was a heck of a race last night in the Indoor Facility named after a chicken magnate.  The Penn State Distance Medley team unveiled their old-school singlets, which actually use the same template as our very own Alumni Singlets, minus the word "Alumni" in the bottom bar.

Brannon Kidder, Robby Creese, Za'Von Watkins and Alex Shisler.

Brannon Kidder led off with the 1200M leg and dawdled near the back of the pack throughout the race.  That's because he had narrowly made it into the Mile Final a few hours earlier with the coolest Mile time ever!   4:00.00

When you can answer both of these questions with honesty "No", you are in a special and select group.

"Did you run under 4 minutes for that mile?"

NO

"Did you run over 4 minutes for that mile?"

NO

He ran a spirited last "quarter" to ease into 4th place or so with his split of 2:58.18 and handed off to Alex Shisler for the 400M leg.

Alex made the long trip for his parents worth it and PRed with his split in 46.86!  The hand off was to Za'Von Watkins who has been mired in a season-long rut of 1:50 second 800M races.  But Za'Von broke through with his PR with a 1:47.61 handing it off to Robby Creese in fourth place.

Robby was passed immediately by the eventual winner, Edward Cheserek of Oregon, but then gradually eased himself to the lead pack after the first 1000 meters.  Then "Boom"!  Robby took off, gathering in everyone in the race except Edward. His 3:59.57 gave the PSU quartet second place in the time of 9:32.21 .

Two generation of PSU All-Americans. Alex and Beth (Stever) Shisler!

It's Still Indoor Season Really: Awards And Coveted Entries At Nationals

Coach John Gondak, who I have been fortunate enough to call a friend since his arrival at PSU, was just named the Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year for Mens Indoor Track.  In his first season, John has brought some needed energy into the program, and not just in his natural coaching position of Middle
Distance tutelage.  I spoke with some athletes at the recent Sykes and Sabock Challenge, and across all disciplines of the sport, he was praised by everyone.  There are some exciting times ahead for all of us invested in PSU Track and Field.

And let's not forget about Darrell Hill's Field Athlete of the Year also.  We've kept up with his progress quite well on this blog.  For some reason, I really enjoy his Shot Put event despite it being the farthest from my limited wheel house. Can I call what I did a wheel house?

Entries to the Indoor NCAA Nationals (this year in Fayetteville, Arkansas) are always limited to the top 16 times or distances or performances.  PSU has quite a few entries, however.  The 3rd ranked Shot Put of Darrel Hill, the 2nd place Distance Medley team and the 3rd ranked Mile of Brannon Kidder lead the pack.

• Darrel Hill,   Shot Put    -3rd seed      67' 3.50"  School Record
• Robby Creese,  3000M     -8th seed    7:50.36    School Record
• Brannon Kidder,  Mile     -3rd seed     3:57.13  School Record (3 readers pointed out that Robby Creese's 3:57.11 is the school record.  Thanks to all! You guys are the best.
• Brian Leap,  Triple Jump   -13th sed   52' 6.75"
• Mens Distance Medley Relay -  Brannon Kidder, Robert Rhodes, Za'Von Watkins and Robby Creese   9:28.36   2nd seed
• Rachel Fatherly   Shot Put  -13th seed   55' 5.75"
• Rachel Fatherly   Weight Throw   -14th seed   69' 2"
• Womens 4 x 400M Relay  Megan Osborne, Dynasty McGee, Tichina Rhodes, Kiah Seymour 11th seed   3:34.90
• Kiah Seymour, 400M  14th seed   52.72

And it just doesn't seem like Outdoor Track Season yet.  My high school Freshman daughter has only had 2 practices so far, one of them indoors and the other one on the road doing hills. Here are my Nike snow boots I originally purchased in the early 90's.  I had to dig them out for some shoveling this week.  I hate them a lot.  But I love the throwback Nike Internationalists in the background!

Women Third, Men Fourth At Big Tens

There were some great performances Saturday at the Big Ten Indoor Track Championships at the Spire Institute in Nowhere, Ohio.  And Jim McClelland, father of PSU high jumper Michael McClelland (10th in the high jump) was there apparently clicking his camera every second of the competition.  I haven't met him yet, but he is on record as golfing with us this year at the 14th Annual Coach Harry Golf Tournament and Track Alumni Reunion in May.  Come join us! Maybe we'll get some actual good pictures this year, instead of my blurry unframed ones. Can't wait.

Robby Creese and Brannon Kidder, 1,2 in the Mile. Photo by Jim McClelland.

Darrell Hill, tops in the Shot Put. Photo by Jim McClelland.

Steve Waithe, Brian Leap, #2,#3 in the Triple Jump. Photo by Jim McClelland.

Distance Medley Relay Squad, #1 with Brannon Kidder, Za'Von Walkins, Jordan Makins and Alex Shisler. Photo from Steve Shisler.

Tori Gerlach, #1 in the 5000M. Photo by Jim McClelland.

And there's Alumni action at the USATF Indoor Championships today, as Casimir Loxsom runs the finals of the 600M.  There is no 800M this year!

And last, but not least, Original Alumni Golfer Bill Malchano broke out his Alumni Singlet for a hearty run in The Cardinal 10K in North Carolina.

Bill Malchano unleashes his Alumni Singlet.

Distance Runners Get PSU Off To Good Start At Big Ten Championships

That's a headline I have not been able to use in the 7 or so years of the blog with it all.  I enjoyed writing it today.

The 3000M was a good start for both the Men and Women at the first day of the Big Ten meet at the Spire Institute in Ohio.  With wins in both the Shot Put and the Distance Medley, the Men are in second place entering the penultimate Saturday finish. The Women are tied for fourth.

W 3000 M:      3  Tori Gerlach             9:17.39
                        4  Elizabeth Chikotas   9:21.62

M 3000M:       1  Robby Creese           8:10.75
                        6  Matt Fischer             8:14.13

M Shot Put:     1  Darrell Hill               66'  6"

M Distance Medley: (Jordan Makins, Alex Shisler, Za'Von Watkins, Brannon Kidder) 1  9:40.62

Brannon Kidder, Photo by Jim McClelland.

                         

Three Track Meets And A Renaissance

It was pretty difficult keeping up with the PSU Track Team this week, as they split into 3 squads and headed for the far reaches of the United States.

The closest squad competed at the Spire Institute in Geneva, Ohio. A second set traveled to The Tyson Invite in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The third group traveled to The Husky Classic in Seattle, Washington.  That'a a lot of miles, for sure.

Highlights:

• Spire Institute:    Za'von Watkins  1:50.68  800M, Luke Pease  4,364 points, Heptatlon
• Tyson Invite:  Darrell Hill 67' 2.75" SP, Womens 4 x 400  3:34.90, Brian Leap 51-9.25 TJ, Steve Waithe 51-7.25 TJ
• Husky Classic:  Robby Creese 7:50.36, 3000M (School Record), Brannon Kidder 3:57.13 Mile (0.02 off Robby Creese's School Record)

That makes 2 sub-3:58 milers on the Penn State Squad!  And yet they have plenty of competition.  Yesterday 4 Georgetown runners ran under 4:00 for the mile in the same race in Boston.  And Oklahoma State had 3 runners under the mark yesterday.  It truly is a Renaissance for middle distance running in America. A total of 19 college athletes ran under 4:00 for the mile yesterday across the nation.

At the Valentine's Invitational in Boston, the third heat was rather remarkable!
                                        1 Bartelsmeyer, Amos Georgetown 3:58.45
                                        2 Bile, Ahmed Georgetown 3:58.54
                                        3 Manahan, Ryan Georgetown 3:58.57
                                        4 Lederhouse, Michael Georgetown 3:59.54

Bridget Franek greets Nittany Lions.

Photo by Paul Merca.

In other PSU Alumni action, Cas Loxsom won the 800 M at the Husky Classic with a very fine lean at the tape and a 1:47.81.  And Bridget Franek jumped back into action in the 3000 M with a 9:14.05.

No Time To Rest

Before moving on from the Penn Relays allow me to apologize for neglecting to list Darrell Hill on my list of event winners. Hill won the Championship of America shot put. Thanks to a dedicated reader for pointing out the error.

With Penn in the rearview mirror, the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational and Maryland Twilight are up next. The Payton Jordan meet at Stanford has a stacked 800 meter field, especially for a Penn State fan.

Event 4  Men 800 Meter Run
===============================================================================
     Name                        Year School                               
===============================================================================
  1  Harun Abda                       Oregon Track               
  2  Amos Bartelsmeyer                Georgetown                 
  3  Ahmed Bile                       Georgetown                 
  4  Ryan Brennan                     Penn State                 
  5  Travis Burkstrand                Team Usa Min               
  6  Scott Buttinger                  Stanford                   
  7  Peter Callahan                   New Mexico                 
  8  Connor Claflin                   Columbia                   
  9  Martin Dally                     Virginia Tec               
10  Christian DeLago                 Unattached-I               
11  Will Drinkwater                  Stanford                   
12  Terrance Ellis                   Unattached                 
13  Aaron Evans                      Oregon Track               
14  Brendon Fish                     Columbia                   
15  Grant Grosvenor                  Montana Stat               
16  Eugene Hamilton III              California                 
17  geoff harris                     Halifast                   
18  Gabriel Hilbert                  Unattached                 
19  Mark Husted                      Brooks I.D.                
20  Edward Kemboi                    Iowa State                 
21  Brannon Kidder                   Penn State                 
22  Boaz Lalang                      Unattached                 
23  Billy Ledder                     Georgetown                 
24  Luke Lefebure                    Stanford                   
25  Nathanael Litwiller              Sacramento S               
26  Jordan Locklear                  California                 
27  Casimir Loxsom                   Brooks Beast               
28  Ryan Manahan                     Georgetown                 
29  Harry McFann                     Columbia                   
30  Aduo Omot                        Augustana (S               
31  Patrick Peterson                 Unattached-I               
32  Thomas Rigby                     Unattached                 
33  Anthony Romaniw                  Speed River                
34  Patrick Rono                     Arkansas                   
35  Thomas Roth                      AAM                        
36  Mike Rutt                        New Jersey-N               
37  Eliud Rutto                      Mid. Tenn. S               
38  Elijah Silva                     Tulsa                      
39  Tyler Smith                      U. of Victor               
40  Pablo Solares                    Unattached                 
41  Tomas Squella                    Arkansas                   
42  Nathan Strum                     UC Davis                   
43  Matthew Tex                      Montana Stat               
44  Za'Von Watkins                   Penn State                 
45  Mark Weiczorek                   Brooks Beast               
46  Cole Williams                    Georgetown                 
47  Denzel Woode                     Columbia                   
48  Masato Yokota                    Fujitsu 

Remember what happened the last time Cas and Brannon were in the same race?

 

I hope the four of them end up in the same heat this weekend.

Fifteen Hundred Mania

It seems everybody was placed into the 1500M this week for

the Nittany Lions.With some pretty good results at the 

Bucknell Invitational. 

1 Brannon Kidder SO    3:42.99*

2 Owen Dawson(Alumni)  3:43.61

5 Wade Endress   JR    3:45.33

6 Za'Von Watkins SO    3:45.79

9 Matt Fischer   JR    3:46.95 

22  Nick Scarpello  SR  3:51.79 

And I have received word that Owen Dawson and his brother  

Kyle Dawson will be lining up with the rest of the Alumni 

rabble at the Coach Groves Golf Tourney in May.  Be sure 

to join us for the worm burning and all the other 

festivities!

*4:00.54 Mile by the Reigel method  t2 = t1 * (d2 / d1)1.06

All-American Honors

Congratulations are in order for the All-American honors earned this past weekend at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

          First Team All-American:
          Will Barr                35 lb weight throw 
          Mahagony Jones   200 meter dash       
          Brittney Howell     pentathlon, 4x400 meter relay             
          Steve Waithe          triple jump            
          Kiah Seymour       400 meter dash, 4x400 meter relay  
          Za'von Watkins     800 meter run
          Dynasty McGee     4x400 meter relay
          Tichina Rhodes     4x400 meter relay    

          Second Team All-American:
          Evonne Britton      60 meter hurdles
          Jon Hendershot     high jump
          Wade Endress       distance medley relay
          Za'von Watkins    distance medley relay
          Brannon Kidder   800 meter run, distance medley relay
          Robby Creese        distance medley relay

        

Penn State National Recap

More quality coverage from GoPSUSports and Flotrack. Full results here.

Another Penn State National in the books. Plenty of alums were back in town for the meet. This weekend has become an unofficial reunion of sorts. It was great seeing similar faces returning to the scenes of their youthful glory days.

The performance of the meet goes to what else but the men's DMR on Friday night. The quartet of Brannon Kidder, Brandon Bennett-Green, Za'Von Watkins, and Robby Creese threw down the second fastest time ever in the world by any team on an indoor track. Their 9:26.59 is just .62 seconds shy of the world record held by the 2008 Texas Longhorns 9:25.97. My completely unofficial splits were 2:52.9 for Kidder, 46. 8 for BBG, 1:48.7 for Watkins, and 3:58.0 for Creese. They were running with the lead from the get go but Stanford did kept it interesting and provided the necessary competition for a fast time. Congrats to them as well. Best part is they are just getting started, there will be few more chances for fast DMR's.

Watch more videos on Flotrack

For those who couldn't be there or if you just want verify my splits.

Photos courtesy of Steve Shisler

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday was just as exciting. Besides the podcasting which went extremely well. We all seemed to know what we were talking about (a first for me). I am going give an honorable mention performance of the meet to Wade Endress. The Altoona native won the "slower" heat of the invitational mile in 4:04.51 (a big breakthrough and PR). Brannon Kidder continued the sub 4 tradition in the "fast" heat with 3:59.55. Owen Dawson 4:01.36 for third.

 

The fast times wouldn't have been possible with out the ace rabbiting done by Kevin Fuller, Brian Fuller, and Kyle Dawson. Kevin took the hot heat of the 800 meters through a 52 second 400, Brian the first half of mile in 1:58-1:59, and Kyle paced the 3000 through one mile in a saucy 4:15. No real surprises as they always get the job done when it comes to pacing.

 

P.S. co honorable mention performance of the meet to Ryan Foster. He is filling the big shoes left behind by Jess Riden perfectly. The job of running a big time track meet can be thankless job and Ryan certainly deserves a lot of credit for directing a good show. If you saw him at the meet he was indeed a busy busy man.



 



Weekend Action

Some rugged alumni showed their toughness at the USATF National Club Cross Country Championships. They turned in some nice performances but should be given credit just for lacing them up as the course apparently was to intense for Alberto Salazar and the Nike Oregon Project crew. Guess they never learned cross country is not about perfect conditions and setting personal best.

Men 10K

Place   Name        Team Name                  St Time  Pace 

18    Kyle Dawson   Bryn Mawr Running Club     PA 31:50  5:08

31    Owen Dawson   Bryn Mawr Running Club     PA 32:12  5:11      
35    Tyler McCandless Team Alchemy            CO 32:17  5:12


Women 6K
85    Leah Rosenfeld Team Run Flagstaff         AZ 23:56  6:25 

(Full Results for men and women)

Both Kyle and Owen beat American record holder in the mile Alan Webb. That's certainly something to tell the grand kids someday.

The Blue/White Intersquad was yesterday as well and luckly there is a roof over the Horace Ashenfelt III Indoor Track (it snowed a lot in State College). If I had a vote for performance of the meet it would go to Za'von Watkins with a 2:58.12 victory in the 1200. (recap and results)

I will leave you with a photo from Bear Meadow Road taken this morning. I did not see any Nike Oregon Project runners out there.

Not "Rupp Certified"

More Goodness from Penn Delivered To My Inbox This AM!

No comments necessary.*  I will also convert these to black and white for a neat slideshow comparing the 1985 and 2013 4 x 800 M Relay victories.** All photos by Tim O'Dowd.

*But of course I'll make one.  Notice a slightly worried look on Freshman Brannon Kidder's face at taking the baton and then the less worried look at the finish.  Pure gold.

**When my day job allows me enough time.

Robbie Creese

Za'Von Watkins

Casimir Loxsom

Brannon Kidder

The Finish

Yeah, That's Right. PSU is 800 U

The Quartet of Robbie Creese, Brannon Kidder, Za'Von Watkins and Casimir Loxsom brought another wheel to Happy Valley with its victory in the 4 x 800 M Relay.  They missed the record from 1985, but scared it a little with their 7:14.14.

Victory Lap

Wheel!

 

That's three years in a row with 2 Wheels for the Penn State's Men team, and the good news for alumni golfers doesn't end there.

Owen Dawson 3:59.74! Photo by Matt Groves.

1. Owen Dawson became the first ever to run a sub-4 minute mile wearing a Penn State Track Alumni Singlet.  He will forever be enshrined as a barrier-breaker of the first order.  The latest batch of Singlets will be distributed at the Alumni Weekend in May.  Thanks to Le faucon d'orange for doing the hard work on getting that done.  One recipient will be Sam Masters who is a proud member of our group even before he graduates ends his eligibility. He is currently in the graduate Biomechanics Program.
2. Second generation Nittany Lion Alex Shisler, son of one of the afore-mentioned record holders of the 4 x 800 M Relay record and an All-American, ran a 46.0 relay leg to shatter his PR.  Nothing can be finer in the whole world than hearing the "ooohs and ahhhs" in the closed end of Franklin Field when you are running a good relay leg.  Congrats.

OWEN DAWSON IS A SUB-4 MILER
— Timothy Johnson (@tjj5009) April 27, 2013

Penn State back to back 4x8 COA champs! #rustyboots #PennRelays2013
— Matthew Groves (@Groves10287) April 27, 2013

Official 4x800 Splits - Robby Creese (1:50.53), Za'Von Watkins (1:48.22), Casimir Loxsom (1:46.30), Brannon Kidder (1:49.10)!
— PennStateTFXC (@PennStateTFXC) April 27, 2013

Penn State leaves Penn with some spare wheels for the drive home. #PennRelays2013
— Matthew Groves (@Groves10287) April 27, 2013

Another Penn Relays in the books. #PennRelays2013 twitter.com/Groves10287/st…
— Matthew Groves (@Groves10287) April 27, 2013

 

Wow! RT @thepennrelays: Casimir Loxsom has been named College Men's Athlete of the Meet for Relay Events facebook.com/photo.php?fbid…
— PennStateTFXC (@PennStateTFXC) April 27, 2013

Another Week of 800's and More

Mt. Sac Relays are a good warm up for Penn!

1. Casimir Loxsom   1:46.77

2. Brannon Kidder    1:47.23

3. Ricky West           1:48.49

4. Ryan Brennan       1:49.32

5. Za'Von Watkins    1:50.18

And Sam Masters broke 14:00 in the 5000 M as the first Nittany Lion to do it since Steve Brown in 1989. (13:57.33)

PSU is 800 U : All Levels Edition

PSU athletes had 5 of the top 6 places at the Crimson Tide Invitational  in the 800 M yesterday with Brannon Kidder and several others setting PRs in their first effort of the season.

1.  Brannon Kidder   1:47.71

2.  Robbie Creese      1:48.98

4.  Ricky West           1:49.46

5.  Ryan Brennan       1:49.49

6.  Za'Von Watkins    1:49.50

And in addition to winning the National Championships in the 4 x 800 M, at the Club Championships the Nittany Lions also had 3 of the top 8 in the Open 800 M.  The Mens Team won the National Championship and the Women took Second.  Check it all out here.  

1.  Joey Walls             1:56.54

2.  RC McLaughlin    1:57.96

8.  Matt Doutt             2:00.77

Top Ten Finish For Penn State Men: Six More First Team All-Americans

Congrats to the Mens Team on a very successful season.  It certainly was exciting from start to finish.  The NCAA Indoor Championships ended yesterday with PSU in a three-way tie for Ninth Place with 19 Points.

What happened to the beard?

PSU is 800 U

All-Americans:

1. Brannon Kidder FR  Distance Medley 1200 M  Second Place (2:55.17)
2. Brandon Bennett-Green JR Distance Medley 400 M Second Place (46.55)
3. Za'Von Watkins FR  Distance Medley  800 M Second Place (1:49.54)
4. Robbie Creese SO  Distance Medley  1600 M Second Place (4:02.75)
5. Will Barr JR Weight Throw  Sixth Place (69' 11.75") School Record
6. Casimir Loxsom SR 800 M Second Place (1:47.23)

Flotrack Crashes My Computer

In trying to bring the fabulous Distance Medley Relay from the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame last night to our blog, my computer crashes EVERY SINGLE TIME I try to go to Flotrack to upload the video.  It's more than frustrating.  Otherwise, Blog Central is humming along like a Champion.  I invested in a fine machine just to bring this stuff to the masses, and no other web sites do this.  Anyone else having problems with Flotrack since they decided to be a revenue collecting organization?

I also have trouble whenever viewing LetsRun.com, but that has more to do with the idiots that have overtaken the site.  The troubles with that site are all in my head!

But even without proper video of the effort, the Penn State Distance Medley Relay quartet ran one tremendous time yesterday.  They now have the nation's fastest DMR going into the NCAAs without using the second fastest 800 M runner in the nation.

The time is the second fastest collegiate time ever (kudos to Texas for no. 1.).  Needless to say, it's a School Record.

9:26.60

Brannon Kidder    1200 M  2:53.0

Brandon Bennett-Green  400 M  46.4

Za'Von Watkins  800 M  1:49.3

Robbie Creese  1600 M  3:57.3 

 

PSU is 800 U: 4 of 8 Lanes in the Big Ten Finals

That's without Casimir Loxsom running the 800 M! Top 2 in heats and 2 additional.

1. Za'Von Walkins  1:49.26 Heat win.
2. Ryan Brennan  1:49.42 second.
3. Brannon Kidder  1:49.73 Heat win.
4. Ricky West  1:49.89 by time

Cas will be running the 600 M with Alex Shisler.

PSU is 800 U: Millrose Edition

On an "off week" the Nittany Lion quartet of Brannon Kidder, Casimir Loxsom, Za'Von Watkins and Ricky West (with Ryan Brennan as the alternate) bettered both the Millrose Games and Armory Facility Records in the 4 x 800 M Relay. Their 7:21.37 exactly ties the Indoor Penn State Record of the quartet of Steve Balkey, Dave McMillan, Chris Mills and Ray Levitre set in 1987.

Zavon Watkins 1:51.1
Brannon Kidder 1:51.6
Ricky West 1:50.1
Casimir Loxsom 1:48.8

                        Watch more video of 2013 Millrose Games on flotrack.org
                    

A Long Way to Run: And More Singlets in Action

photo by Mark Hawkins

Dennis Pollow traveled all the way from Arizona, where he goes to Grad School to compete in the Invitational heat of the Mile at the Penn State National.  Looking good the whole time in his Alumni Singlet.  (Orders will begin for the next shipment of Alumni Singlets next week.)

And here's the promised photos of the Fuller Bros. rabbiting the big races!

  photo by Mark Hawkins. 

Brian Fuller! With Owen Dawson in close pursuit.

photo by Mark Hawkins.

Kevin Fuller!  That's Ricky West in third and Za'Von Watkins in 4th. PSU is 800 U.

PSU is 800 U

As I'm still trapped like a rat in Or-Line-do, our intrepid documentarian Larry Mangan had the opportunity to watch the Nittany Lion Challenge meet with Coach Groves. He brings us this exclusive photo of the finish of the 800 M with Casimir Loxsom running the fastest collegiate Indoor race in nearly 6 years (1:46.98) followed closely by Freshman Brannon Kidder (1:48.17).

Nearly as impressive was the 1000M race with Ricky West winning in 2:21.95 followed by Freshman Za'Von Watkins in 2:22.02 and Ryan Brennan in 2:23.14.  Let's face it, the 1000M is just an 800M where they forget to stop in time!

PSU is 800 U. Spread the word.