Jan. 27, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The 20th-ranked Penn State women's swimming and diving team (5-3) turned in a stellar performance Friday afternoon, as it downed the Villanova Wildcats, 148-95. The Nittany Lions won nine events on the day, including Katie O'Connell winning both diving events.
The meet started with the 200 medley relay, where senior Sam Palser (Chester Springs, Pa.), junior Paige Whitmire (Lederach, Pa.), sophomore Mackenzie Powers (Sycamore, Ill.) and junior Merrit Krawczyk (Kingwood, Texas) took first place, earning a time of 1:44.28, to earn 11 points for the Nittany Lions.
Over in the 200 freestyle, Penn State earned a total of 13 team points. Junior Amy Modglin (Fort Myers, Fla.) led the way in that event, earning a first place finish time of 1:50.44. Sophomore Chelsea Weedman (Poway, Calif.) took third place.
The Nittany Lions were a dominant force in the 50 freestyle, as Whitmire (23.52), senior Katie Pulos (Rosemont, Pa.) (23.89) and senior Erin Thomas (Bangor, Maine) (24.34) earned a one-two-three finish, earning Penn State 16 total points for the event. Penn State continued its success in the freestyle events, as senior Kristen Rodman swam her way to a 51.87 first place finish in the 100 freestyle. Thomas finished behind her in second place.
Krawczyk led the way for the Nittany Lions in the 200 butterfly with her first place time of 2:02.56. Penn State had another winner in the 200 breaststroke, as Weedman clocked in at 2:17.68.
Whitmire, Thomas, Pulos and Millers ended the day with a victory in the 200 freestyle relay, posting a time of 1:34.25.
Penn State hosts Lehigh on Feb. 4 before heading to the Big Ten Championships, beginning on Feb. 15.
Check back to GoPSUsports.com for continued updates throughout the 2011 season.