PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania's James P. Tuppeny/Betty J. Costanza Director of Track & Field/Cross Country, Steve Dolan, has officially announced the team captains for the 2020-21 season, naming six seniors across the six teams.
 
On the men's side, seniors Ryan Renken, Marvin Morgan and Jake Kubiatowicz earned the honor, while seniors Melissa Tanaka, Uchechi Nwogwugwu and Camille Dickson lead the women's side.
 
"I have been coaching college track & field and cross country for the last three decades," Dolan said. "Throughout my coaching career, peer leadership has never been more important than it is this year. We are fortunate to have many positive leaders among our teams, but this year's captains are exceptional. I couldn't be more appreciative or proud of the great leadership they are providing for our program."
 
Renken helped the Quakers win the Ivy League championship during the 2019 cross country season, taking 14th place to earn second-team All-Ivy.  He is the current record holder for Penn in the indoor 5,000 with a time of 14:09.30, while ranking eighth all-time in the indoor 3,000 with a time of 8:10.24.
 
Morgan had a successful 2018-19 track slate, capping it off by qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Prelims in the 100-meter dash. He was a two-time Ivy Heps champion that year, winning the outdoor 100 and the indoor 60-meter dash. He competed at the 2018 USATF Junior Nationals and followed it with a second-team All-Ivy recognition in the indoor 60-meter dash. Morgan currently ranks top five in program history in three different events, including the best time in the indoor 60 with a time of 6.75 seconds. He also set a personal best of 10.36 seconds in the 100 at the 2019 Texas Relays.
 
Kubiatowicz looked strong through the indoor season of 2020, taking second-team All-Ivy in the weight throw, an indoor event in which he currently holds the Penn record (19.57m/64 feet 2.5 inches). He also ranks fifth in program history in the outdoor hammer throw, tossing a 59.83m/196-3. For his career, Kubiatowicz has been a Heptagonals scorer in the shot put, discus, weight throw and hammer.
 
Tanaka has had a decorated career with the Quakers, highlighted by five Heps championships and being a member of Penn's historic 2019 Penn Relays Championship of America victory in the Distance Medley Relay. A USTFCCCA All-Academic honoree, she ranks in the top six in program history in five different events including the best time in the outdoor DMR (10:59.44). Tanaka won back-to-back Ivy Indoor championships in the 800 in 2018 and 2019 and her personal best in that event is 2:05.91.
 
Nwogwugwu joined Tanaka on the DMR championship squad in the 2019 Penn Relays Championship of America race, while she has a long list of accomplishments through three years on the track. In 2019, she was an All-America in both the 4x400 relay and the 400, an event in which she was a NCAA finalist with a personal best of 52.27 seconds. It was not Nwogwugwu's first time qualifying for NCAA Outdoors, as she earned spots in the same races in 2018. Also a USTFCCCA All-Academic honoree, she ranks all over the program's record books including four records of her own in the 4x400 relay and 400 between the indoor and outdoor tracks. Nwogwugwu is also a six-time Ivy Heps champion sprinter, and a Nigerian Olympic hopeful in the 4x400m relay.
 
Dickson has been a part of five Ivy League Heps team championships for the Quakers, while earning a Heps title in the 4x100 relay in 2019. She ranks in the top eight in eight different races and jumps, including the second-best time in the outdoor 4x200 relay with a time of 1:38.65. In 2019, Dickson won the College Long Jump with a personal best jump of 19' 6 3/4". She's also a versatile sprinter who has contributed to the team in the 100, 200 and 400 events, setting personal bests of 11.92 seconds in the 100 and 24.38 second in the 200.
 
As leaders of the team, they have accepted their roles quickly during the unfortunate times we are in. They have put together team-wide Zoom events for team bonding opportunities. They have also led their respective event groups in practices this fall, meeting in small groups while advising the freshmen. Nwogwugwu and Dickson have also taken the lead in organizing some fun team-bonding events such as Kahoot games, tie-dyed masks, speed dating, and pumpkin carving.