Oct. 23, 2014
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. - Improving to a perfect 6-0 in dual meets this season, the Penn State swimming and diving team defeated West Virginia, 144-99, on the road Thursday evening. The Nittany Lions are now 23-0 all-time against the Mountaineers.
Penn State earned wins in seven of 13 events and totaled 23 top-three finishes on the evening. Five different individuals picked up first-place finishes and the Nittany Lions added two relay victories.
The 200-yard medley relay team of junior Allie Pennetti (Wexford, Pa.), junior Melissa Rodriguez (Chihuahua, Mexico), senior Carolyn Fittin (Sea Girt, N.J.) and junior Kaitlin Jones (Midlothian, Va.) opened the event by topping the field with a time of 1:44.69 in the finals, starting off the meet with 11 early points.
Later, the Nittany Lions swept the 400-yard freestyle relay, earning the top two finishes. Fittin, senior Caitlyn Karr (Reading, Pa.), senior Katelyn Miller (Hershey, Pa.) and senior Megan Siverling (Chester Springs, Pa.) combined for a mark of 3:28.56 to take first.
Individually, Siverling started things off for Penn State by touching the wall first in the 200-yard freestyle with a mark of 1:49.52, a pool record. The Nittany Lions posted the top three finishers in the event.
Freshman Niki Price (Manchester, Pa.) earned her first career win, clocking in at 2:07.00 in the 200-yard IM, where the Nittany Lions again tallied the top three times. Fittin, a member of each first-place relay team, snagged individual gold in the 100-yard butterfly (55.98).
In the 100-yard free, sophomore Katie Saloky (Bloomsburg, Pa.) also picked up her first career victory, earning nine points for Penn State with a time of 52.08 in the finals. Miller and Siverling rounded out the top three to pile on some points for the Nittany Lions.
Junior Katie Rowe (Glenville, N.Y.) topped the field on the 100-yard backstroke, clocking in almost two seconds ahead of the second-place finisher with a time of 56.87.
Sophomore Mackenzie Cornell (Germantown, Md.) led the Penn State divers, taking third on the 1-meter board with a six-dive total of 246.98.
The Nittany Lions return home on Oct. 31, hosting Villanova at McCoy Natatorium for a 3 p.m. dual meet.