When Courtney Jaworski graduated last year, the men's distance squad lost its strongest runner as well as a key component in its 4x800-meter relay.
But coach Charlie Powell saw potential in junior Tim Kaijala to step into that type of role this weekend at the Penn State Open.
Kaijala won the 1000-meter run, setting a new personal best time of 2:23.12.
In his second race of the day, he helped lead the 4x800m group to a victory as well.
"He's looking very good," Powell said of him. Kaijala might be "ready to fill in the [shoes] of a Courtney Jaworski-type person,"
Powell had nothing but praise for another member of the relay, freshman Kevin Kiely, whom Powell thought ran his leg calm and tactically.
"A lot of times freshman get a little crazy, a little carried away," Powell said. "Runners in general sometimes don't run to their full potential because they have a little trepidation."
With sophomore Bryan Scotland and junior John Guzman running the other two legs, the 4x800m looks poised to remain one of Powell's strongest relays.
Although Kyle Calvo finished third in the hepthalon, he fell short of the NCAA qualifying mark, racking up only 5153 points.
"It was not a good score for him at all," Powell said. "He needs [time] to get into it; it was his first one of the year."
Another disappointing race for the men came in the 5000m run. While Ian Foley finished in fourth, Reid McEwen, whom Powell thought had a chance to win the race, got tripped up and fell back to tenth place.
On the women's side, Jesse Carlin and Shaunee Morgan set new marks in the record books in the 800m and 200m, respectively.
Morgan's 24.93-second finish put her third in the race and shaved two-hundreths of a second off the mark she set just last year.
Carlin's 2:08.61 not only broke a 23-year old record, but also gave her an NCAA provisional qualification.
This is Penn's second qualification, as Shani Boston also qualified in the pentathlon a little over a week ago. However in College Park, Boston injured her back and did not compete in the last two pentathlon events, the long jump and the 800m.
In the relays, the 4x800m finished in third, while the 4x400m placed sixth.
While Powell and women's coach Gwen Harris were pleased with their team's performance, they both acknowledge that this is just part of their preparation for the Heptagonal championships, which will determine the League winner.
"It's another small step," Powell said. "We're taking them one at a time."
