The phone rings. It's picked up on the other end.

"We're having dinner right now," Penn State runner Colleen Connell says. "No, no it's fine. Sure, you can call back later."

An hour goes by. The phone rings again and Connell answers again.

"Hi. Yeah, Molly had just made us this big dinner so I didn't want to miss out on it." Connell says. "Molly enjoys cooking. We enjoy her cooking too."

Only a few hours earlier, Penn State cross-country and track and field runner Molly Landreth sat in a chair in the HUB and answered questions about her life, trying to sum it up in a half-hour. Easy-going, relaxed, not too concerned about having all the answers to questions, in-depth or otherwise, she kept a smile on her face throughout the entire ordeal. This smile comes easily. Landreth is tough and she won't let on that at times, this same smile has not been so easy to wear.

Landreth has been gradually moving ahead in the running world, emerging this year as one of the cross country team's top dogs. She was named Big Ten Cross Country Athlete of the Week at the beginning of the 2003 cross country season, a first for her. Landreth earned her first sweep of a meet at the Penn State Spiked Shoe Invitational on September 13th. She is an all-American in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and holds the Penn State steeplechase record after last spring's track and field season. These were another set of firsts for Landreth. But there is no arrogance or letting on that she's a team standout.

Her teammates describe her differently, though. They talk about the 60 to 75 miles she runs during the week and the calmness she brings to the team.

"She is so dedicated to improving herself as a runner," Connell says. "Molly is constantly on the go. She really puts forth so much extra effort."

Landreth is balancing a heavier curriculum in kinesiology with all the miles, team activities and competitive events. However, being busy with running has the opposite affect on her than most people. It forces her to manage her time, to stay busy. She admits punctuality is not her strong point.

She laughs.

Landreth is more interested to talk about her love of ultimate Frisbee, cooking for her friends and family, hiking, outdoor stuff, artsy-crafty things. She gets embarrassed admitting the last part. She shows off her two tattoos, one of a forget-me-not flower and one of her brother Travis' initials on her foot.

They serve as a reminder of the person who got her started with running. In the late 90's into early 2001, Travis Landreth, like Molly, was a strong competitor and prominent athlete. Through the world of running Travis had become friends with the former coach of the Stanford women's cross-country team. This same coach is presently Penn State's women's cross-country coach Beth Alford-Sullivan. He had told her to watch out for his younger sister, Molly. And with the 2000 Massachusetts' cross-country state championship title under her belt as well as immense talent, Alford-Sullivan took the suggestion to heart.

"I was interested in Molly for several reasons," Alford-Sullivan feels. "She has a quiet intensity and the ability to put herself in a position to exceed. She really represents what hard work will get you. There were a lot of reasons."

A success story is rarely written without adversity. For Landreth the heartbreak of her own story was the tragic death of Travis in January of 2001, only two months after she had signed on to run at Penn State. The cause was an undetected heart problem. And it left her second-guessing the reasons she ran, along with many other things.

Landreth took a break for awhile. With unending support from her family and the Penn State team members and faculty, she eventually found her own way back to the sport.

"A lot of things have changed for me over the past couple of years," Landreth says. "I have my own passion for running now that I didn't really have in high school."

Landreth has many ideas about her future. There are a lot of choices for her to make. She knows. Nothing is set in stone and she is not worried about.

"I might want to go to school some more," Landreth says. "I know it sounds like the typical college thing to tour Europe. I want to, though ... maybe Australia."

Landreth is asked what she will take away with her when the years at Penn State come to an end.

"I'll take away ... a lot of happiness," Landreth says with a smile.

There are many things that are said during the interview. But more important are the things that are not said. She never said that she is strong. She is. Landreth does not talk about her accomplishments necessarily or the fact that she is having a great year competitively. Read the results, ask the team, you'll know. And never once does she gush over her love of running.

But it is understood.