It was not a question of if they would win, but by how much.

In a meet that is consistently competitive, the Penn State men's indoor track team ran away with a 47-point victory Saturday at the Multi-Sport Complex. The Nittany Lions blew away the competition as Princeton took second with 111 points and Connecticut placed third with just 90.

Although the win came easily, the team was happy just to get another victory.

"It's always nice to win, even by one point," coach Harry Groves said. "But I didn't expect this kind of margin."

One-two finishes in four different events helped the team earn first place. Those events gave the Nittany Lions the maximum points they could take in those events.

Individually, the team was led by a few notable performances. Junior Ryan Olkowski took first-place in both the long jump and high jump and senior Steve Walsh won the mile run with a time of 1:52.

Strong finishes were also turned in by Dan Diaz, who threw a personal best while placing fourth in the 35-pound weight throw, and Greg Miller, who narrowly missed provisionally qualifying for NCAAs with his first-place finish in the 200-meter dash.

Diaz's performance illustrated the fact that this win was a team performance. Captain Dorian Lowe was quick to point out the success his fellow thrower had Saturday.

"Dan Diaz had a good performance," Lowe said. "He also posted a personal record. Diaz did excellent."

Last year Penn State came in second in the UConn-Princeton tri-meet, a series that is typically very close. However, the team's victory this year did not surprise many of the team members.

"I don't think it's so much a surprise," Miller said. "We're surprised that it's a bigger margin than usual, but it's a tribute to our talent."

That talent is spread evenly throughout the Nittany Lion roster. The team's depth was a key to Saturday's victory.

"In a team scored event, a complete team effort is necessary," Groves said. "It is the kind of team we have. When we get into the Big Ten competition every team is like us."

The Nittany Lions will get a taste of Big Ten flavor next weekend when they host an array of teams including Indiana, Michigan, Ohio State and Wisconsin.