M. Track holds own at nat'l invite

(Penn: 8th at Penn State)

Last weekend at the Penn State Collegiates, it seemed that the Penn men's track team's best competition was itself.

With few exceptions, almost everyone on the team achieved a personal best.

"You can't ask for more than that," Penn junior Brian Abram said.

Perhaps the consummate personal best came for junior Sam Burley who broke the school record of 1:48.88 in the 800m run. Burley, who simultaneously qualified for the NCAA Championships, finished in second place with a time of 1:48.85 -- a time that was also one of the top-10 in the nation.

Burley, however, was not the only one to set a Penn record. In the 400 meters, previous top Penn times were shattered as Abram and sophomore Chris Edmonds now reside fourth and eighth, respectively, on Penn's all-time list.

Senior O'Neil Bryan and freshman Dusty Leib recorded the fifth-best times in Quakers history in the 60-meter hurdles and 5,000-meter run, respectively.

As the secrets to success for Penn's competitors vary, Lieb, who finished in 14:35, employed his own strategy.

"I just went out hard at the start of the race," Lieb said. "And then tried as hard as I could to hold on."

Rookie Oyebode Fajobi also joined the record books, grabbing Penn's eighth best time in the 200 meters.

One of the reasons the Quakers were able to step it up was the formidable competition.

The Quakers went up against some of the Big 10 schools, including Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan.

Despite these daunting opponents, the Red and Blue had some top finishes. Senior Tuan Wreh finished in second place in the triple jump with 15.77m, and freshman Nolan Tully placed fifth in the 3K in 8:25.05, a personal record for him.

With an impressive number of personal records and IC4A qualifying times in hand, the Quakers next shift their focus to the Indoor Heptagonal Championships.

"Now the final step will be to continue to gel all of this together as a team as we go into Heps," Penn captain Burley said.

At Heps in two weeks, Penn will be pitted against some of its biggest rivals -- fellow Ivy competitors and the Naval Academy.

"We've all done really well this season," freshman Stephen Hayes, who finished ninth in the one mile, said. "But we are gearing up for our best performance in Heps."

Last year the Quakers placed second at Heps. This season they look to be on much sturdier footing.

"We have another year under our belt, and this could be the key to our victory," Abram said.

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