St. Bonaventure vs. Penn State

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pennsylvania, January 22. THE Penn State men's swimming & diving squad won its third straight dual meet, downing St. Bonaventure, 141-96, at McCoy Natatorium Saturday afternoon. The Nittany Lions clinched the meet with three events to go, winning 10 of 13 events on the day.

Penn State (3-4) kicked off the dual meet in impressive fashion, taking the first three places in the 200 medley relay. The C team of Jeff Gomez (Morristown, N.J.), Mitch Scherer (Pottstown, Pa.), Scott Marino (Scotch Plains, N.J.) and Rob Iosue (Lancaster, Pa.) won in a time of 1:33.42. The B team touched the wall .15 of a second later led by Graham Risley (Riverside, Ill.), Brent Sanderson (Chadds Ford, Pa.), Pierre Keune (Johannesburg, South Africa) and Shane Austin (Kennett Square, Pa.).

The Nittany Lions took second through fourth in the 1,000 freestyle led by Matt Salig (Downingtown, Pa.) in a time of 9:42.67. John Austin (Kennett Square, Pa.) won the 200 freestyle in a time of 1:44.57, edging St. Bonaventure's Kevin Murphy by .05.

Risley took top honors in the 50 free (21.60), while Gomez won the 400 IM (4:09.80) giving Penn State four wins in five events. The Nittany Lions won their fifth event when Jordan Harris (Philipsburg, Pa.) won the 1-meter springboard with a personal best score of 294.98.

Risley captured his second individual win in as many tries when he won the 100 fly in a time of 50.52 with Marino in second (51.72). James Wilson (Sarasota, Fla.) won his first collegiate event, the 100 freestyle with a time of 46.19.

Freestyle specialist Brian Alden (Lansdale, Pa.) made a rare appearance in the 100 backstroke, winning the competition in a time of 51.29. Josh Wakeley (Egg Harbor, N.J.) posted a win in the 500 freestyle for Penn State's ninth win in 10 events before Harris took second in the 3-meter springboard, notching yet another personal best with a score of 300.45. Through 11 men's events, Penn State locked up the dual meet win, but the strong showings continued in the pool.

Alden won another non-freestyle event with a 56.49-second showing in the 100 breaststroke. James Capparell (Bridgewater, N.J.) was second in a time of 59.75. Penn State capped the day with its B team finishing second in the 200 free relay in a time of 1:27.22. Salig led off in a time of 21.52, giving way to a 21.84 leg by Dustin Folio (Selinsgrove, Pa.), a 21.00 showing by Alden and a 22.86 anchor leg by Jack Zierenberg (Allison Park, Pa.)

Penn State, which is 3-0 in the 2011 season, won its 27th straight dual meet against St. Bonaventure. The Nittany Lions are a perfect 27-0 since the teams first met in 1977.

The Penn State men return to action next week at a quad meet in Ann Arbor, Mich. The Nittany Lions will square off against Big Ten powers Michigan, Ohio State and Northwestern beginning Friday and competing the two-day meet on Saturday.

The Penn State women's swimming & diving team dominated from beginning to end as the Nittany Lions cruised to a decisive 156-73 victory over St. Bonaventure during a non-conference dual meet at the McCoy Natatorium on Saturday afternoon.

With the victory, Penn State moves to 6-2 on the season, including 4-0 in 2011. In meets with St. Bonaventure, the Lions have been even more impressive as the squad now stands 14-0 all-time against the Bonnies.

Right from the start, Penn State took control as the team swept the top-three spots in the 200-medley relay. The foursome of Becky Yokosh, Merritt Krawczyk, Chelsea Howard, and Sam Palser led the way with a time of 1:43.98. The Lions' second unit, anchored by Lauren Smart, Rachel Butler, Alexandra Young, and Paige Whitmire, was right behind after touching the wall in 1:45.10.

That effort set the tone for the meet as the Nittany Lions continued to stand alone on the podium. In the 1000-freestyle, Alexa Hetzel, known for her strong performances in the breaststroke, converted perfectly to the distance event as she won with a time of 10:29.17. Teammates Erika Rodman and Emily Wolfarth rounded out the top performers in the discipline.

In the 200-freestyle, Katie Pulos posted one of her top times of the season after capturing the victory in 1:51.61. Alexandra Young was just a second behind, while Rose Snyder placed third. One event later, Erin Thomas paced the field in the 50-free after clocking in at 24.00, while Monika Mialka and Heather Brady also finished in the top-three.

In the 200-individual medley, Diana Greco recorded her second victory in as many weeks. After winning the 1,650-freestyle at Maryland, she showed her versatility by winning the IM in 2:07.48. Lauren Smart and Mackenzie Powers also looked strong in the event as they finished second and third, respectively.

Not to be outdone, the divers looked just as dominant as Penn State excelled in the 1-meter board. Megan Marco recorded the team's top score of the season with a mark of 272.33. Katie O'Connell placed second at 237.53, while Ilana Zeises posted a personal-best this year with a score of 236.25.

After a break in action, the swimmers went right back to work. Chelsea Weedman paced the field with a time of 55.44 in the 100-butterfly, marking the third different event she's won during her outstanding freshman campaign. Merritt Krawczyk and Paige Whitmire followed close behind to give Penn State its seventh consecutive sweep.

During her first time competing in the 100-freestyle this season, Amy Modglin pieced together an outstanding performance as she took the top spot with a time of 52.26. Later, Sam Palser eased into her second victory of the day with a time of 57.88 in the 100-backstroke. One event later, Penn State rounded out its exceptional showing with one last sweep in the 500-freestyle. Monika Mialka won the event after clocking in at 5:05.61, while Hailey Campbell and Leah Davis finished close behind.

With the victory in-hand, Penn State switched to exhibition scoring over the final three events but continued to post outstanding performances. Following her title in the 1-meter dive, Marco recorded the top score in the 3-meter event with a mark of 260.85, which was her finest showing of the season.

Shortly thereafter, Weedman wrapped up the individual events with the top time in the 100-breaststroke after hitting the wall in 1:04.28. The team of Hailey Campbell, Lauren Barnes, Kristen Rodman, and Sam Palser concluded the meet one event later after pacing the field in the 200-freestyle relay with a time of 1:36.25.

The Penn State women will return to action next week when the squad heads out to Ann Arbor for a meet with Michigan on Saturday at 11 a.m.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

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