Penn uses Quaker Invite as a season prep

Against a 10-team field at Franklin Field this weekend, Penn runner Dan Nord won the 110-meter hurdles in 15 seconds flat. The Penn men's track team started its season with a strong performance over below-average competition in the Quaker Invitational at Franklin Field on Saturday. The Quakers dominated the 10-team field by capturing most of the events in this unscored meet. Penn received several quality efforts in this otherwise "warm-up" meet for the outdoor season. Although the entire team didn't click and the level of performance did not come close to matching the full potential of the team, the meet was a good start to the season and gave the team a strong platform to build upon. The main point of the Quaker Invitational was to prepare Penn for the outdoor season. Coming off of an impressive indoor season Heptagonal championship, it was necessary to remove the "outdoor jitters" of the team before it takes on some serious opponents in more important meets. Some Quakers not only shed their "outdoor jitters", but they did so with great personal performances. Sophomore Robin Martin led the way when he recorded a personal best of 47.6 seconds in the 400 meters, winning the event. "It was exciting for me to run the 400 because I normally don't get to do it," Martin said. "The fact that I ran well will prove to be a springboard for me for the rest of the season." Others, such as continually improving hurdler and jumper Dan Nord, also turned in a solid individual effort. The sophomore finished first in the 110 meter hurdles in a time of 15 seconds and second in the long jump with a leap of 6.85 meters. Nord, coming off of numerous personal bests to end the indoor season, should be a force to reckon with in the outdoor season, as well. Penn continued their usual onslaught in the jumping events as the triple threat of the Penn triple jump team came through once again to start the outdoor season. The Quakers finished one-two-three, led by Stan Anderson's first-place jump of 15.3 meters. The Quakers' triple jump squad is a constant atop the leader board at track meets, as Penn boasts three of the best eight triple jumpers on the East Coast. The only problem that could be seen with the meet was that the entire team did not come together as it did at the Indoor Heptagonal Championships. This problem, however, has an easy and straightforward remedy -- time. The Quakers just need a few weeks to adjust to each other and the outdoor conditions before they can mesh as a team. Even though the Quaker Invitational was only the first meet of the outdoor season, it did provide a positive outlook for the Penn squad. Many people came through with strong personal performances and in due time the team can click on all cylinders. This puts the team's ultimate goal of an outdoor Heptagonal Championship in close reach. "It's not as though we know we're going to win, but that we know we can win if we work hard," Martin said.