A calm falls over women's track and field practice at the Multi-Sport Facility. The only sounds are some chit-chat from athletes relaxing on the pole vault mats, a few runners' feet shuffling by and the muffled crash of weights and shot puts being thrown in the distance.

This laid-back atmosphere may not be what one would expect from a unique group of seniors training for their final Big Ten Indoor Championships, to be held this weekend at Wisconsin.

But despite their utter silence and unassuming attitudes, make no mistake about it: the veterans know that this is their last shot to give company to their 2004 Big Ten Championship banner, which hangs in solitude from the rafters. A collective effort will be needed to improve on last indoor season's disappointing fourth-place finish.

"It's time. It's do or die," senior All-America thrower Jennifer Leatherman said. "There's a real sense of urgency."

Leatherman and her classmates exude cool confidence. What they lack in showmanship is more than replaced with results. Although sometimes the younger, flashier talent gets the major attention, consistent performances from the upperclassmen has steadied the Nittany Lions ship bound for glory.

"It's a different team than our championship team from two years ago," Penn State women's track and field coach Beth Alford-Sullivan said. "That team was heavily laden with seniors."

Leatherman -- the most outspoken of the group -- has refused to be ignored this season, twice becoming Big Ten Athlete of the Week and breaking her own school record in the 20-pound weight throw multiple times. However, her senior teammates want to prove this weekend that they belong, too.

"This is my last chance to make a name for myself," senior sprinter Cheryl Green said. Green shines in the 500-meter and 600-meter runs, events not part of the outdoor track season. She also is looking to be a force in relay events.

Green's fellow sprinter Sara Shoaff may be the most silent senior assassin on the team. While electric underclassmen Shana Cox, Gayle Hunter and Kamilah Salaam have Penn State records and headlines, Shoaff has quietly garnered great times in a plethora of events. She stars in the 60 and 200-meter dashes, and also filled in for Cox in the 4x400-meter relay at the team's last meet, the Sykes-Sabock Challenge Cup. Shoaff finished in the top 10 in all three of these events at last year's Big Tens, and her flexibility in various races will prove invaluable to the Lions.

And judging by her recent personal record in the 200-meter, she is just now peaking.

"I think Sara Shoaff is a standout," Alford-Sullivan said following the Sykes-Sabock. "She really carries [the team]."

Fifth-year senior All-American Molly Landreth has also reached summit in just the last few weeks. Landreth and fellow senior Kate Curran have fueled a fire in a distance program that Alford-Sullivan admitted wasn't the team's strongest aspect. Landreth's return from a redshirt season has given the Lions the opportunity to put points on the board where they were nowhere to be found last season.

"I'm just happy I can be back and participate," Landreth said. She hopes to improve upon a third-place finish in the 5,000-meter run and a fifth-place finish in the 3,000-meter run, her marks in her last Big Ten Championships in 2004, at which she was an essential piece to the Penn State championship team.

Despite talent from all classes and a pack of hungry seniors, beating defending indoor champion Michigan will not be easy, Alford-Sullivan said. The training will pick up this week, and athletes will need to step up and get pushed from within more than ever before.

No sweat for Green.

Green, an Ann Arbor, Mich., native, would like nothing more than to take her victory laps while her hometown team can only watch.

"When I go home, I hear bad things, like, 'Why didn't you go to Michigan?' " Green said with a mocking voice. "It's a team I grew up loving, now it's the team I most despise."

The seniors are confident their underclassmen will help carry them to the title.

"I don't feel this team needs more motivation, they have it all within themselves," Landreth said.

"Everyone needs to go into this meet wanting to run the fastest they've ever run, throw the farthest they've ever thrown," Leatherman said.

The younger Lions want to reward their elders. Closer relationships on the team help to push everyone across the finish line. Although individual titles are impressive and certainly within reach, Penn State sees them as a stepping stone to the team prize.

"There's a big difference from last year to this year," sophomore Cox said. "This team has fused a little bit more."

"Our goal is to shoot for the title," Alford-Sullivan said.

The next time the Lions are enjoying a breather on the mats during practice, they want to be able to lay back, look to the sky and see another banner staring back at them. Next year, the seniors won't be here to do that, but they know the banner can be their legacy, their permanent mark upon Penn State history.