Jan. 29, 2011
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - In a meet that featured two of the top teams in the nation, the No. 25 ranked Penn State women's swimming & diving team captured seven victories, including a pair of individual titles by both Chelsea Weedman and Amy Modglin, as the squad edged past No. 15 Michigan, 123-120, at the Canham Natatorium on Saturday afternoon.
With the victory, Penn State improves to 7-2 on the season, including 1-1 in the Big Ten. The Lions also move to a pristine 5-0 in the New Year and snapped Michigan's four-meet winning streak. Overall, the Wolverines now stand at 6-6 with a 4-3 mark in conference action.
Penn State's finest performance of the day came in the 200-IM as the squad swept the top three spots. Weedman led the way, clocking in at 2:01.33. Merritt Krawczyk followed close behind, touching the wall in 2:02.58 before Modglin rounded out the group in third place.
Weedman returned to the pool and pieced together another outstanding effort to win the 200-fly, which featured some of the finest competitors in the Big Ten. During the event, she edged out Michigan's Adrienne Bicek after posting a time of 2:00.28. Alexandra Young was in the mix as well, placing third in the accomplished field after clocking in at 2:00.59.
In addition to her third-place showing in the 200-IM, Modglin dominated the field in a pair of events as she captured the top spot in both the 200-freestyle and 200-backstroke. In the free, she led all entrants with a time of 1:49.69, which marked her finest performance of the season. Later, she snagged the backstroke after touching the wall in 1:57.71. She has now eclipsed the NCAA `B' standard in that event during 16 consecutive meets dating back to her second collegiate appearance last season.
Along with Modglin, Hailey Campbell also placed third in the 200-back with a time of 2:02.53, while teammates Becky Yokosh and Lauren Smart rounded out an excellent performance by the Lions as they placed fourth and fifth, respectively.
Krawczyk continued Penn State's strong showing as she blazed to the title in the 200-breaststroke with a time of 2:14.88, which marked her top clocking of the season. Weedman, who was competing in the event for the first time this year, touched the wall in second with a time of 2:16.21.
Fittingly, Penn State kicked off and capped the meet in the same fashion with victories in relay events. At the start, the squad's 200-medley relay unit, anchored by Campbell, Krawczyk, Mackenzie Powers, and Paige Whitmire, cruised to the victory with a time of 1:42.17. Later, Whitmire teamed with Palser, Katie Pulos, and Erin Thomas to win the 400-freestyle relay in 3:22.63.
In other disciplines, Diana Greco was the top finisher in both distance events after placing in the top-three in the 500- and 1000-freestyles. In the former, she finished third after touching the wall in 5:00.64, while she was the runner-up in the latter after clocking in at 10:10.98. In those events, freshman Claire Singley also fared well as she placed fourth in both.
Penn State also looked strong in the sprint freestyles as the squad captured a pair of podium finishes. Samantha Palser was the runner-up in the 100-freestyle with a time of 50.75, while Whitmire ranked third in the 50-free after tapping in at 23.26.
In diving action, Megan Marco led the squad with a third-place finish in the 3-meter board after posting a score of 252.14. She also placed fourth in the 1-meter event after tallying a 260.40 mark. Fellow senior Ilana Zeises also did well, finishing fourth in the 3-meter and fifth in the 1-meter.
Penn State will return home next weekend to wrap up the regular season with a showdown against Lehigh on Saturday at 11 a.m.