Jan. 17, 2008

PITTSBURGH - Pitt's men's and women's track and field teams will travel to State College, Pa., this weekend for the Penn State Indoor Open.

Last week, the Panthers competed in two meets, the Akron Quad and the Kentucky Invitational and posted solid performances at each venue. At Akron, both the men and women placed third with 92 and 96.50 points, respectively, and each team claimed two event crowns.

The men's team was led by Sam Bair (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shaler/Kent State), who claimed the 3,000 meter crown with a time of 8:19.60, and senior Eric Fleming (West Chester, Pa./Bishop Shanahan), who took first place in the mile run.

For the women, senior Amy Ruffolo (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny/Duquesne) claimed first place in the 3,000 meters and Jenn Seitz (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) was also in the top spot with a 400-meter dash time of 1:00.54.

At the Kentucky Invitational, in Lexington, Ky., several members of both teams recorded strong marks, including freshman Antony Hobwana (Harare, Zimbabwe/Prince Edward School), who placed fourth in the triple jump with a distance of 14.47. Sophomore Kaetlyn Brown (Pittsburgh, Pa./Schenley) placed fifth in the 400-meters and Mycaiah Clemons (New Kensington, Pa./Valley) placed eighth in the women's 60-meter hurdles with a Big East qualifying time of 8.67.

After the Indoor Open, the Panthers will once again travel to State College for the Penn State National Open beginning on Jan. 25.