The University of Pennsylvania track and field team will begin its outdoor season on March 21 at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, hosting the Penn Challenge. The event will feature teams from Columbia, Delaware, LaSalle, Penn State, Princeton, St. Joseph’s, Temple, and Villanova. Field events are scheduled to start at 11:00 a.m., with running events beginning at 1:00 p.m.
The opening of the outdoor season marks an important step for the team as it builds on recent successes from both indoor and previous outdoor competitions. Athletes who performed strongly during the indoor season are expected to compete.
Freshmen Tiago Socarras and Jessica Oji recently earned First Team All-American honors at the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships. Socarras placed third in the 800m prelims and finished fourth in the finals with a time of 1:46.97. Oji finished seventh in the women’s shot put with a mark of 17.66 meters.
At the Ivy League Championships, Socarras set a school record in the 1000m while Oji won first place in shot put with a mark of 18.50 meters. Fore Abinusawa secured her fourth consecutive indoor title in the 60m dash and also won gold in the 200m event.
Other notable performances included Thomas Bucks winning gold in pole vault, Kampton Kam defending his high jump title, Yuliya Maslouskaya placing first in pentathlon, Amelia Kristen earning silver and previously breaking a school record in pentathlon, and Nayyir Newash-Campbell setting a school record in the 400m dash.
Looking back at last year’s outdoor season, Kampton Kam earned First Team All-American honors by placing eighth in high jump at nationals while Ryan Matulonis was named Second Team All-America after finishing fifteenth in the 400m hurdles semifinals. Matulonis also broke an Ivy League record during that season.
The team is scheduled to participate next at meets including Raleigh Relays (March 26-28), Hurricane Invitational (March 27-28), and Sam Howell Invitational (April 4).
