Trackmen win with ease at Army

By MATT WONG
Collegian Staff Writer

The Penn State men's indoor track team had no trouble fighting off competition at Army this weekend despite new NCAA rules intended to keep meets closer.

"We went into the meet pretty fired up," co-captain John Gorham said. "We were coming off two really good meets and we feel we're rolling right along."

The Nittany Lions raised their record to 8-0 by rolling over their competitors with a combined meet score of 275, beating Army (240), Maryland (161), Manhattan (131) and Lafayette (57).

Coach Harry Groves was very pleased with the team's performance, despite having to adjust to the NCAA's new scoring system in which only two individuals from each team can place scores in each event.

"We were very consistent. We didn't place badly in any event," he said. "The team thing was outstanding."

Three Lions placed scores good enough to qualify for nationals, and junior George Audu helped by capturing wins in two events.

Audu and Gorham dominated the long jump, placing first and second, respectively. Already having qualified for nationals in the long jump, Audu continued to impress in the event with another qualifying jump of 25 1/2. Gorham's leap of 24-10 3/4 also qualified him for nationals.

In addition, Audu took first in the 55-meter dash with a time of 6.4 seconds and second in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.32.

The surprise qualifier for nationals was freshman Ryan Olkowski, who won the high jump by clearing the bar at 7-2 3/4.

After not impressing with initial leaps at lower heights, Olkowski seemed to raise his intensity for the taller heights, Groves said.

"He took off his shirt and turned into Superman," Groves said.

The Lions also flexed their muscles by placing first in several other events. Ben Karcz took the 500-meter race with a time of 1:04.2, Joe Hubbard won the 800-meter run with a mark of 1:55.22, and Bradd DelMuto won the 1,000-meter run with a time of 2:30.85.

They impressed by taking first in the relays, too. The 4x400 relay team of Steve Janci, Munyaradzi Maraire, Duane Reeves and Karcz placed first with a time of 3:19.3 and the 4x800 relay team of Steve Walsh, Johan Sandquist, Joe Hubbard and DelMuto clocked in with a winning time of 7:48.8.

Not only is Penn State hitting individual marks, but the team also has made great strides in becoming more connected as a cohesive unit, Gorham said.

"The team is really close. We're sticking together and everyone is competing really well," he said. "Nobody minds being beat by their own teammates."

Even though the Lions came out victorious, Groves said it will still take a little more time to adjust to the new scoring system.

"It's a different rhythm," he said. "And it's going to take a while for me to get used to it."

Next Saturday the Lions will travel to Kent State in Kent, Ohio, to participate in another five-team meet.