Track: WVU Takes Third Trip to Penn State

By Daniel Whitehead for WVUsports.com
February 03, 2012 11:33 AM

Sean Cleary

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Nearing the BIG EAST Championships, the West Virginia track and field team heads to State College, Pa., for the third time of the indoor season to compete at Saturday’s Sykes and Sabock Challenge Cup.

The meet is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. at the Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Track and will end at approximately 7:30 p.m.

“Going to Penn State is like an extended home meet for us,” says WVU coach Sean Cleary. “We’re very familiar with their track and facilities. This weekend marks the last true test of the indoor season before coming home to prepare for BIG EAST. We will add a few more names at this meet in the hopes to increase our numbers.”

West Virginia will compete with 15 other schools, including Buffalo, Cornell, James Madison, Kent State, Liberty, Princeton, UNC-Wilmington and host Penn State.

A week ago, the Mountaineers competed with 60 programs at the Penn State National and found success as a total of six WVU athletes qualified for the BIG EAST Championships in their respective events. A total of 14 Mountaineers have qualified for BIG EAST, which occurs Feb. 18-19 in New York City.

“We are looking to gain experience for the outdoor season,” Cleary says. “In our sport, having to compete for nine straight months, we must pick our battles. We look to gain the experience needed for a successful outdoor season. I feel that we have a few more that can qualify to compete in New York in three weeks.”

The Sykes and Sabock Challenge Cup will be scored live and can be viewed at gopsusports.com. Full results can be found at MSNsportsNET.com at the conclusion of the meet.