Feb. 28, 2009
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The men's swimming and diving team peaked in Saturday's preliminaries as nine earned spots in tonight's finals and three will compete for individual championships.
Defending national champion Patrick Schirk led the way for the Nittany Lions in the 200 backstroke getting the third fastest time in 1:42.63 to qualify for the championship finals. Joining him will be Dan Fimbianti in the consolation finals clocking in at 1:46.32. Jon Cochrane earned a spot in the C final touching the wall in 1:47.03.
Penn State had an impressive showing in the 100 freestyle as Vincent Reydams swam the event in an NCAA "B" time of 43.05 to earn a spot in the championship finals. Representing Penn State in the consolation final are Brian Alden clocking in at 43.75 and Jason Goldner with a time of 43.98.
Scott Marino shaved four seconds off his personal best in the 200 breaststroke earning a spot in the C final with a time of 2:00.99.
Current school record holder Tim Williams will compete in the championship final fo the 200 butterfly tonight as he got the fourth fastest time of 1:44.98 in the preliminaries. He was only .3 seconds off the top time and is in good position to add lots of points to the Nittany Lion total. Matt Cox swam the event in 1:48.21 to earn a spot in the C final.
The Men's Swimming and Diving Championships will conclude this evening at 7 p.m. The 1650 freestyle and the 400 freestyle relay will also be included in tonight's events. Fans can follow the action live by clicking .