Jan. 4, 2011
PARK RIDGE, Ill. - Senior standout Ilana Zeises has been named the Big Ten women's diver of the week after a strong performance during Penn State's winter training competition against Wyoming and Arkansas at the US National Diving Training Center in Indianapolis on Sunday.
During the meet, Zeises led a strong showing by Penn State. While headlining the Nittany Lions' effort, she recorded her highest score of the season in the 3-meter board and also performed well in the 1-meter event.
In the 3-meter dive, Zeises tallied a score of 244.95, which placed her second among the accomplished field. It also was the highest mark by a Nittany Lion during the 2010-11 campaign, topping Megan Marco's score of 241.42 against Virginia Tech.
Along with her second-place showing, she also posted a 231.40 mark in the 1-meter board, which was second among Nittany Lions and sixth overall.
Her performance continues a strong senior campaign, which was highlighted by a pair of top-three finishes in the team's season opener against West Virginia on October 16. Overall, she has finished in the top-10 seven times this year.
Zeises is the first Nittany Lion to earn the honor since Kimberlee Peifer was named the Big Ten Diver of the Week on January 30, 2007. Zeises is also the second Lion to earn a conference honor this year after Amy Modglin received the top swimming award on October 26.
The Nittany Lion swimming team will hit the pool on Tuesday with a meet against North Carolina in Naples, Florida. The squad will be back together in full-force next weekend when Penn State travels to College Park for a two-day meet against Maryland, Pittsburgh, and Villanova beginning on January 14 at 5 p.m.