The women of Penn's track team are hoping not only to run fast, but have a good time this weekend at Franklin Field.
The Quakers will host the Penn Invitational and compete against a handful of teams in the area, including Cornell and Penn State.
"Coach [Gwen] Harris keeps telling us to have fun this weekend," freshman Charity Payne said. "That, combined with it being a home meet, should give us more confidence."
At the Quaker Invitational last year, Penn had 12 top-five finishes and two wins, one by then-junior Julie Siebert-Johnson in the javelin throw and the other by Grace Maloney in the high jump. This year, Siebert-Johnson has eclipsed her winning toss of 147 feet, 9 inches and could expect to see success again.
Already with a spot in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships in the shot put, Payne hopes to keep doing as well as she has been doing so far.
"I feel very confident," Payne said. "Still, I want to do the best that I can and hopefully get a personal record."
Payne expects to be challenged by "two or three" athletes from both Penn State and Cornell. But, according to Payne, she and Harris both are confident that she can rise up to this challenge.
"Our coach tells us that she never asks us to do anything that we can't do," Payne said. "If we go out there and do what we know how to do, we'll be fine."
At the meet last year, the longer events did not have as many top finishers as the sprinting and field events. Junior Emily Logan thinks that this year will yield better results.
"Our training has been a lot different," Logan said. "We're practicing harder and racing more consistently."
In the 1500m run, Logan knows that her strength is getting off to a fast start and she hopes to use this to her advantage.
"I always start off really well. I need to make sure I work the third lap harder than usual," she said. "Doing that should lower my time."
Logan will also compete in the 4x400m relay and the 4x800m relay. Unlike the usual beginning-of-the-meet placement of the 4x800, the relay will occur at the end of the meet this weekend. Logan anticipates on this making the event very different and perhaps more difficult.
Like her teammates, Logan plans on enjoying herself this weekend. With athletes trying out different events and the anticipation of nice weather, the Quakers are looking to "have fun with it," according to Logan.
"I'm running the 4x4 and I'm definitely not a 400 runner."
