Ice breaker
Trackmen open outdoor season with Jim Thorpe Invitational

By MATT WONG
Collegian Staff Writer

After ending its indoor season on a high, the Penn State men's track and field team is set to head outside to where the sky is bluer, the grass is greener and the track is redder.

The Nittany Lions will begin their outdoor season tomorrow by hosting the Jim Thorpe Invitational, competing on their own turf for the first time this season. The invitational is an open meet, meaning any individual competitors are welcome.

The Lions ended the indoor season impressively by placing fourth amongst approximately 100 teams at the IC4A (Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America) Championships, helping to earn them a top-30 finish in the power rankings.

Now the Lions hope to carry their success to where the air is colder and the spring winds are not so calm.

With the recent snow and the unpredictability of the weather conditions in Penn State, Penn State coach Harry Groves says the competition may literally turn out to be an "icebreaker."

But the Lions are hopeful that the instability of the weather will not foreshadow their performance this outdoor season.

"It's hard to talk about expectations after Big Ten Championships," Groves said of his team, which finished a disappointing last in the Big Ten Indoor Championships this season. "We're a pretty good team, but then the Big Tens happened."

Groves looks to use this non-scored meet to guard against similar happenings down the road and to make adjustments for the outdoor transition.

The outdoor season will add several events such as the hammer throw, javelin and the discus. But more importantly, the team will have to cope with the initial cold temperatures that bring stiffness, and adjust to the wind, which affects pacing and timing.

In addition to this preparation, the team will also use the experience gained from the indoor season to develop as a unit.

"If we learn from indoors, we'll do much better," long jumper/sprinter George Audu said. "We're more mature now that we have more experience as a team."

Co-captain Joe Hubbard also feels the experience from the indoor season will help tremendously.

"We're still a solid, young and talented team," he said. "Now we have to try to maintain high spirits and don't let it slip away."