Well, THAT was a terrible and/or glorious game, was it not?

It's that time. You know the rules: no slurs, no thread-clogging .gif's, nothing you wouldn't say to your mother, even if your mother is a foul-mouthed, chain-smoking trollop.

Scheduled subsequent threads: 4:15, 5:00, 5:45. Go State. Roll the Tide.

[Hey, Friday Night Open Thread over here.]

The quest for the men's and women's cross-country teams to return to the NCAA Championships will get underway tonight when they pay a visit to nearby Lock Haven for the Dolan Duals. Formerly known as the Lock Haven University Invitational (which, I myself, participated in once as a member of PSU's Club Team), the meet became a simple dual meet between PSU and Lock Haven within the past few years. Not only did PSU come out winners on both the men's and women's side last year, but the individual men's and women's champions Vince McNally and Caitlin Lane, both return to help ensure further PSU dominance in this series. So yeah, good luck with that, Lock Haven. 

Now, this meet will have no actual bearing on whether PSU will make it to the NCAA Championships. Rather, it will depend on how they perform in the Big Ten Championships on October 30th. Meets like tonight's however, and the subsequent meets preceding the Big Ten Championships should be seen as a way for head coach Beth Alford-Sullivan and her staff (Alford-Sullivan coaches both the men's and women's teams) to evaluate the team's progress and adjust workouts accordingly to make sure the runners are all in their peak shape come Big Ten Championships.

Last time, I discussed the sport a bit and the major role players on the Penn State team. This round, I'll finish off the remaining team members and provide some insight as to what you can expect for the NCAA Regionals at Alabama this weekend.

Event Specialists: (Girls who are usually used specifically for one event.)

The third regularly used freshman, Kristin Blades is used only on the vault for now. And so far this season, she has done a great job of putting up good scores consistently. Averaging just over 9.80 this season, Kristin is a big part in making sure Penn State hits their 49.0 on vault. (Also, she looks far too much like Sharaya Musser at times. Seriously, it took way too much time trying to make sure I was picking out the right girl for these pictures.)

On the uneven bars, junior Alex Stine has become a strong scorer on an otherwise difficult apparatus. While not as high-scoring as Natalie Ettl, Alex puts up solid scores consistently to help the team be one of the best bars teams in the nation. Her season average of 9.820 helps the team get to the 49.000 level, and her season high of 9.85 means that she's consistently hitting solid routines.

Continue reading this post »

Now before you read the title of this post, roll your eyes and check out, hear me out for a minute.  While football and basketball (and to a lesser degree wrestling and volleyball) grab the headlines, and rightfully so, Penn State softball is entering a new era for the program.  On Thursday, March 24 PSU softball opens up their brand new stadium, Nittany Lion Softball Park against Buffalo.  The $10.2 million Park has been years in the making and is a great edition to Penn State's stable of facilities (PSU Athletic Communications provided the photo for this article).  Penn State softball has been getting prospects and signees excited about a new stadium as far back as 2001.

To be competitive in collegiate softball, a sport dominated by the Pac 10's Arizona Wildcats and UCLA Bruins, you need to have facilities to attract the top California talent.  Penn State will never be able to replicate the California weather, but they will be able to stand toe to toe with any program in the country with their new 1,084 seat stadium.  In the Big 10, Michigan's stadium, Alumni Field (part of the Wilpon Baseball and Softball Complex), was the class of the Big 10 until Penn State came along and built a state of the art facility. 

Beard Field, named for Lee and William Beard (they donated $500,000) gives the softball team a home to be proud of.  It also allows the team, for the first time in school history, the ability to charge admission to the games (Free to students with ID, $5 for fans).  Penn State can also earn additional revenue by hosting NCAA Regionals, something they weren't able to do before due to the lack of facilities.  You see, before Penn State was graced with this amazing facility, they were stuck playing on field that most high school teams would laugh at.  Seriously, the "stadium" had metal bleachers for an overall capacity of 500.  Most students found it easier to drink Boone's Farm in right field and cheer the girls on.  For years, the biggest cheering section for PSU softball came from the Penn State men's rugby team, but I assume they may have been more interested in the off the field exploits of the players than the on the field ones.  Now?  Well now players can step up to the plate and have a view of Beaver Stadium - pretty awesome if you ask me.  And fans can enjoy a fast paced game in one of the, if not the best stadiums in the country.

We saw first hand what happens when you invest into your non-revenue generating programs.  Cael Sanderson took over the wrestling program last season and in two years Penn State has their first Big 10 title and first team National Championship since the 1950's.  I'm not saying head coach Robin Petrini is going to take this team to the World Series next season, but the stadium is a stepping stone for the program, a giant feather in her cap.  To win big in softball you need to have facilities and an ace pitcher.  Penn State has the facilities and now they have the ability to attract the top talent in the nation.

Penn State is currently 13-11 on the season and begins Big 10 play this Saturday against Wisconsin.  Head out to Beard Field to checkout the girls in action tomorrow or this weekend.

Part One

Part Two

Nebraska is not just a football school.  You have many other outstanding athletic programs.  Which non-revenue generating sport will benefit the most from the move to the Big 10?

HM: You know what, I'm going to go with baseball. I think the Husker program could dominate here.  The Big Ten really hasn’t been very good in baseball, and Nebraska’s been a national contender at times recently. One could argue that a weak conference could hurt the Huskers, but then we’ve seen schools come out of weak conferences and compete nationally. It just means those non-conference games have to be beefed up.

Jon: That is tough, but it has to be baseball if Nebraska can keep a non-conference schedule that maintains a high RPI. Nebraska has one of the best college baseball stadiums in the nation in Haymarket Park - Penn State baseball fans will enjoy making that trip. In fact, I'll go so far as to say it might embarrass some Big Ten teams into improving their baseball experience.

Penn State Women's Volleyball team are the reigning and defending four time National Champions.  Nebraska's women's team is also pretty dominant.  Be honest, are you excited for the annual Penn State vs. Nebraska women's volleyball matches?

HM: Volleyball is big here, and watching the way your fans followed the team to KC this December makes me think this is going to be one heck of a rivalry.

Jon: Yes. Very much so. No sarcasm intended - the Big Ten is going to be one helluva volleyball conference.

Continue reading this post »

The beauty about BSD's Nittany Lion of the Week is that it exposes all of us to some lesser known, yet immensely talented Nittany Lions.  It's easy to forget that football and basketball aren't the only sports on campus.  So hopefully this week's NLOTW will serve as a reminder that Penn State has athletic talent all over campus.

This week's Nittany Lion of the Week is junior track and field star Caitlin Lane.  Lane, from Greenwich, NY set a new school record in the 1,000-meter at the Nittany Lion Challenge this past Saturday.  The Challenge was Caitlin's first meet of the season and she did not disappoint.  Caitlin's time of 2:45:95 bested Nittany Lion sprinting standout Briene Simmons' time of 2:48:07 which has stood since 2007.

Lane is an NCAA Regional finisher and is continuing to improve her resume each season on the track.  In high school Lane was a two time New York Class C cross country champion back in 2006 and 2007.

Overall Penn State's team success at the Nittany Lion Challenge can't be over looked.  Penn State's track and field athletes set multiple personal and school records during the meet.  Other teams participating in the meet were Cornell, Florida, Maryland, and Albany.

Congratulations Caitlin.

Honorable Mention:

Ryan Foster (Track and Field) - The Tasmania, Australia (yes it is a real place) won the 1,000 meters at the Nittany Lion Challenge  and now holds the 2nd and 6th best times in NCAA history.

Maggie Lucas (Women's Basketball) - The freshman dropped 20 points on Minnesota and chipped in with 3 rebounds and 3 assists in route to a 58-54 Penn State win.  Lucas followed that performance up with a 22 point, a career high 8 rebounds, and 1 assist. Lucas broke Kelly Mazzante's freshman 3 point record.  All of this damage has been done without starting one game for the Lady Lions. I have a feeling Lucas will win a couple of these NLOTWs in the near future.