Ben Shields

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — A St. Clairsville senior will run the race of his life on Friday.

Red Devils distance ace Ben Shields will compete in the 3000-meter run during the 128th annual Penn Relays at Franklin Stadium in Philadelphia, which begins Friday and lasts through Sunday inside the home of the Philadelphia Eagles. The race is set to start at 5:50 p.m.

“It’s the biggest track and field meet in the country for the combination of high school and college athletes,” Shields explained prior to a practice session earlier this week at Red Devil Stadium. “I am really proud and can’t wait to represent my school and community.”

The Duquesne University recruit will become just the fourth Ohio Valley athlete — and first male — to qualify for the prestigious track and field event in recent memory.

The others are Stephanie Morgan and Jenny Morgan from Barnesville, and Teddi Jo Maslowski who represented Steubenville Catholic.

“There are certain times you have to run in order to qualify. I qualified at the New Balance nationals over the summer,” he explained. “I kind of stalked the Penn Relays website to see when the qualifying times came out. I saw where my time qualified, so I was pretty excited.”

Shields runs the 3200 during high school meets, but doesn’t see much of a change in strategy. “A tiny bit. The paces are going to be a little different,” he noted. “Trying to figure out those paces will be the key.”