UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Shippensburg University women's track and field team sent a small contingent Friday evening to compete at the Penn State National Invitational from Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Track and came away with a NCAA provisional mark in the distance-medley relay that should end up qualifying the quartet for nationals.

The DMR squad of junior Katie Spratford, freshman Lauren Ellsworth, senior Amanda Raudabaugh and graduate Lara Crofford posted a time of 11:50.87 to win the event, edging Cal St. LA by nearly two full seconds.

Entering Friday, no Division II school had achieved a NCAA automatic or provisional qualifier in the DMR.

The reported splits were as follows: Spratford ran the 1,200 in 3:36, Ellsworth ran the 400 in 57.8, Raudabaugh ran the 800 in 2:12 and Crofford anchored the 1,600 in 5:04.

Also on Friday, Ellsworth completed the 60-meter dash while junior Caitlin Stuetz ran the prelims of the 60-meter hurdles in 9.14 seconds. Senior Lauren Redington competed in the long jump and posted a mark of 16 feet 4.5 inches.

Shippensburg will compete Saturday at the Bison Open from Bucknell University.

Notes: East Stroudsburg competed in the same race as Shippensburg and finished fifth in 12:15.04, also a NCAA provisional mark.