March 29, 2013
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The Penn State men's swimming team continued to post All-America performances in the second day of the NCAA Championships, with the 200 medley relay squad earning sixth place in the A Finals. The Nittany Lions posted a time of 1:25.52 to earn honors for the second straight day, and remain in 14th place overall with 51 points.
e Lions' sixth-place showing in the 200 medley relay was the highest place in the event in school history. Improving on a time of 1:25.76 for eighth place in the preliminaries, the squad of sophomore Nate Savoy (Reading, Pa.), junior James Wilson (Nottingham, Pa.), junior Sean Grier (Hummelstown, Pa.) and junior Shane Austin (Kennett Square, Pa.) touched the wall in 1:25.52 to earn All-America accolades for the second consecutive day. The same 200 medley relay team broke the Penn State school record for the event at the Big Ten Championships, posting a time of 1:25.38. At the 2012 NCAAs, the squad of Savoy, Grier and PSU alums Mitch Scherer and Brian Alden recorded a time of 1:26.15 for eighth place.
Earning Honorable Mention All-America honors, Savoy competed in the 100 back with a 14th-place showing in the B Final. Ranked 13th in the country heading into the competition, the sophomore took 16th in the preliminaries with a time of 46.59 before finishing in the finals with 46.78. Also competing in the 100 back, Grier took 20th in the preliminaries with a time of 46.77. At the 2013 Big Tens, the junior broke his own school record of 45.71 for Penn State's first A Cut of the season. He won the event five times during the regular season, and topped his 2012 NCAA Championships performance of 47.45 for 22nd place.
Grier, ranked 7th in the country heading into the NCAAs, took 23rd in the 100 fly with a time of 46.83. The Hummelstown native also broke his own school record in the event at the Big Ten Championships, posting a time of 46.00 seconds. Between the 100 fly and 100 back, Grier has now broken six Penn State records this year, three of which were his own. Last year, he took 21st in the 100 fly at the NCAAs with a time of 47.06.
The Lions closed out the second day of completion with a 24th-place showing the 800 free relay. The squad of junior John Hauser (Pottstown, Pa.), sophomore Nick Ankosko (East Brunswick, N.J.), junior Seth Wensel (Christiansburg, Va.) and Austin combined for a time of 6:28.99, with Penn State competing in the event for the first time since 2001. Penn State had previously posted a season-best time of 6:28.85 at the Big Ten Championships.
Penn State returns to action tomorrow, March 30, with preliminary events beginning at 11 a.m. and finals beginning at 7 p.m. in Indianapolis. Several Nittany Lions will compete in the 200 back and the 400 free relay. A full schedule of events is listed below, all of which can be followed via Live Results.
Saturday
1,650 Free
200 Back
100 Free
200 Breast
200 Fly
Platform Diving
400 Free Relay
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