Nicole Blaesser, Jorge Medina Named PSAC Runners of the Week

IUP seniors Nicole Blaesser and Jorge Medina have been selected the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Runners of the Week after their performance at the Daniel Walker Invitational on Saturday.

Blaesser (Oxford/Oxford) and Medina (San Jose, Calif./Silver Creek) both won and set course records at the meet hosted by Buffalo State University.  It was the opening meet of the season for IUP. 

Blaesser (right) bested a group of 139 runners with a time of 17:42 on the 5K course, 28 seconds ahead of the field, to win the first cross country race of her college career.  Medina posted a time of 25:21 over the 8K distance, just edging out reigning PSAC and East Region champion Jeff Weiss of Slippery Rock and outdistancing the rest of the 114-runner field by 16 seconds.

Blaesser assumed the mantle of IUP’s No.1 runner this season with the graduation of three-time All-America Mindy Sawtelle.  Blaesser has been on the all-region team each of her first three seasons at IUP, including a fourth place finish a year ago, and competed twice at the NCAA Division II national meet, placing 49^th last November.

Medina (left) was the runner-up at the 2005 PSAC meet before turning in a ninth place finish at regionals.  He was also an all-conference runner the previous season with a fifth place finish.

IUP takes this weekend off before returning to action at its own invitational on Sept. 16 at Mack Park.  The men’s race begins at 11 a.m. followed by the women at noon.