T-town hosting 2009 US Collegiate Track Nationals

The USA Cycling Collegiate Track National Championships will be held this weekend at Valley Preferred Cycling Center in Trexlertown, Pennsylvania. The event, hosted by Penn State University, will mark the opening of the 2009-2010 USA Cycling Collegiate Cycling season.

More than 100 student-athletes from dozens of schools across the country will vie for national titles in ten different events on the track. The most prestigious of the national titles that will be awarded over the weekend will be the omnium titles given to the top overall male and female individuals in Divisions I and II, as well as the best overall teams in each division.

Several current and former locals will compete throughout the weekend. They include Jeremy Shirock, Lauren Shirock, Morgan Farnsworth, Rodney Santiago and David Espinoza (all for Penn State University); Nik Reinert (University of Pittsburgh); Mary Costelloe and Colleen Hayduk (Kutztown University); Kim Geist (Northeastern University); Matthew Holub (University of New Hampshire); Kyle Wagner (Lehigh University); Ben Barczewski (Columbia University); and Taylor Brown (Marian College).

Racing will begin on Thursday at 9:00 am and will run through Saturday evening. Sunday, September 27 has been designated an official rain day, meaning any competition that is postponed due to weather conditions will take place Sunday morning.