Brandywine To Add Track & Field To Athletic Offering

MEDIA, Pennsylvania -- Penn State Brandywine will debut men's and women's track and field as varsity sports in 2017-18 announced Director of Athletics Jim Gastner on Tuesday. The program will begin at club status in 2016-17 and could be vaulted to varsity status during the upcoming academic year depending on participation numbers.

With the addition of the track and field teams, the third and fourth programs to be added during the last four years at Brandywine, the athletic department will field a total of 13 varsity sports during the 2017-18 academic year.

"This is an exciting opportunity for our department and campus," said Gastner. "There is a large amount of interest in track and field among current students and from high school programs within our recruiting boundaries. We're looking forward to forming a coaching staff with the end goal of fielding varsity teams during the 2017-18 academic year."

Each of Brandywine's current varsity programs (baseball, softball, men's soccer, women's soccer, volleyball, men's cross country, women's cross country, men's tennis, women's tennis, men's basketball and women's basketball) compete as members of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA).

Track and field has been identified by the USCAA as an emerging sport among its members and for the first time in 2016, the association held a national meet, which featured five schools.

An announcement of the track and field coaching staff is expected in the coming days. For more information on Penn State Brandywine track and field, please contact Athletic Director Jim Gastner at jlg257@psu.edu . Prospective student-athletes can fill out the recruiting questionnaire here: http://psubrandywineathletics.com/information/prospective_athlete