Forget they won't; but move on, they will try.

This was the general feeling among the Penn State men's track and field team as they prepared for the IC4A track meet at New York, after the tragic death of pole-vaulter Kevin Dare at the Big Ten Championships.

The IC4A meet will take place in New York City, N.Y. and begins at 10 a.m. on both Friday and Saturday.

Dare died in a pole-vaulting accident last Saturday, when he was attempting a 15-feet, seven-inch vault.

Out of respect, the second day of the Big Ten Championships was cancelled after a meeting among the Big Ten coaches.

Even if the meet were to continue, many of the Lion's and other Big Ten athletes were in no mood to perform.

To the Lion's, Kevin was not just a teammate but also a close friend.

This made focusing on the IC4A meet on this Friday and Saturday difficult for the Nittany Lions, as Kevin was a huge presence on both the men's and women's teams.

Practice this week was disjointed and not as focused as normal, with team members coming in at their own times while trying to recover from the tragedy.

"We feel a little distracted," junior Josh Loren said. "Not everyone is focused and emotionally ready, but we will give it our best shot."

Senior Munyaradzi Maraire added that it was hard for the team to focus this week but that counselors, who visited the team over the past week, advised the Lions to try to continue with their normal routine.

Having the meet, Maraire feels, might help to take people's mind of the tragedy.

But it will be a last-minute decision on who will or won't compete at the meet.

Lions Coach Harry Groves said that it would be up to the athletes to decide whether they want to compete or have another week off.

There was a possibility that twenty athletes might compete, and some in multiple events. Apart from Loren and Maraire, others who might be at the meet include triple-jumper Chavous Nichols and Nick Manganiello.

Some of the Lion's will want to use Kevin enthusiasm for athletics as motivation to try and perform their best at the meet.

"I mean, we really want to keep the energy of Kevin," Maraire said. "He was a really competitive person.

They also know that whatever they do, Kevin will always be in the back of their minds. And for those who participate at the meet will be banking on each other for support.

"I don't know," Mariare said. "We are just leaning on each other to get the job done."