After years full of disappointing finishes and seasons ending with unsatisfying performances, the Nittany Lions are looking for redemption. Being one of the top 30 teams in the country was an early season goal, and finishing with a ranking is where they want it to end.
With the biggest meet of their season Monday, the Penn State men's cross country team is hoping to make the most of its NCAA Championship appearance. After a long awaited return to the national spotlight, the No. 26 Lions look to build off their previous experiences against some of the nation's elite programs.
When the starting gun sounds at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course in Terre Haute, Ind., the Lions will be one of 31 teams vying for a national title. The defending champion and No. 1 ranked Oregon Ducks are the front runners, but the Lions are looking to knock off whatever teams they can.
"We know some teams are gonna go there and blow up, and not do well," senior Tyler McCandless said. "We're not saying that our season is over just because we made it. We wanna go in there and try and beat some teams."
The Lions aren't strangers to competing against ranked teams. They ran against five other teams that are currently ranked in the top 30 when they competed at the Bill Dellinger Invitational. The meet was held in early October and although the Lions didn't fare well against the national powerhouses, in hindsight coach Beth Alford-Sullivan feels it was one of the better things they did all year.
"We did not race well there," Alford-Sullivan said. "But it gave these guys the exposure to the high-end quality and what it takes to compete. The intimidation factor got broken down there as well."
The Lions also head into the NCAA Championship as a different team than the one that raced in Oregon. Freshman Kyle Dawson was not competing at the time, but since then has been one of the Lions' top two finishers in every meet.
While competing and finishing fourth at the Big Ten Championships, the Lions raced against three other top-tier teams. No. 4 Wisconsin, No. 9 Michigan and No. 12 Minnesota will also be at the NCAA Championship.
They also faced No. 8 Georgetown and Villanova, which enters the meet with an at-large bid, during its Mid-Atlantic Regional meet. Competing in such a competitive conference and strong region allows the Lions to feel at ease on the national stage.
"We're gonna race like we have been all year. Gonna give it 100 percent from the gun and leave it all out on the course," senior Teddy Quinn said.
Alford-Sullivan said the team needs to clarify its goals for the competition, but feels the Lions' familiarity with the teams in the field as well as with the course are advantageous to them.
She said the Lions had an individual qualifier at nationals in 2006 and called the course challenging, but pretty fair. She also said the conditions should not be a factor and feels the course fits her team very well.
With the Lions knowing this will be the end of their season, they know whatever the outcome may be, they are going to bring the same intensity they showed all season.
"This is definitely our last race," senior John Mahoney said. "So we're gonna go out there race hard and walk away saying, 'Hey, that's the best we could have done.' "
