At the Penn State National Open, the Penn State women's indoor track team took on 45 teams and the flu. The team dealt with some disappointment but refused to let sickness get the best of it.

Team scores were not calculated at the large invitational, but the Nittany Lions posted some impressive individual scores.

The Lions had some of the top performers along with Georgetown, Tennessee and Pittsburgh.

Over the course of the two-day competition, there were noticeable changes in the performances, but not in the team's morale.

The flu ran rampant throughout the Penn State team between the first and second day, most notably affecting junior Connie Moore and sophomore Kate Johnston.

Penn State women's track and field coach Beth Alford-Sullivan said that setbacks like the flu are to be expected this time of year and dealt with.

"They're training very hard and I think we performed great, regardless," Alford-Sullivan said. "It's just that time of year when people start getting sick here."

Moore met her typically high standards on Friday night by winning the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.36. The mark was good enough for an NCAA provisional qualifying time and was only two hundredths of a second away from her own 60-meter record.

Saturday night, however, was a different story. Moore was upset by Tennessee's De'Haisha Trotter in the 200-meter dash, arguably her best event. Even with a time of 24.39, slower than her usual, Moore still earned a second-place finish in the event.

"The flu went through our entire team," Penn State assistant track and field coach Jeff McAuley said. "[Moore] was ready to run a record time for us and this really hit her on the wrong day. It's hard for the team when your superstar is down ... it just sucks the energy out of everyone."

Thrower Kate Johnston, who placed fourth in the weight throw on Friday night, was also hit by illness, and she missed the shot put competition on Saturday.

The team stepped up in Johnston's absence in the shot put. Senior Deshaya Williams' took first place with a mark of 51feet and was followed by quality performances from juniors Ja'nai O'Connor and Lexi Benamati, who placed fifth and sixth, respectively.

"I feel like I'm on the right track for the season and I like that my performances are consistent," Williams said.

The women's distance medley relay also provisionally qualified with a time of 11:32.99.

Alford-Sullivan was particularly happy with the performance of sophomore Jenny Stevens, who ran the the first leg of the relay.

"[Stevens] ran big," Alford-Sullivan said.

"She ran about a three thirty-two which was a good three seconds better than we thought."

The team's strong performance against national competition over the weekend put Alford-Sullivan in an optimistic mood for upcoming Penn State meets.

"This was a pretty pressured-filled meet with the caliber of athletes that was here," Alford-Sullivan said.

"We kept everything pretty stable."