Jan. 24, 2015
| PENN STATE 173, NAVY 127 | |
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| Saturday., Jan. 24, 2015 | |
McCoy Natatorium | University Park, Pa. | Senior Day Post Meet Interviews (Murphy/Savoy/Miller) | |
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Final Results | Diving Results
Records: Penn State (6-3) | Navy (6-4)
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's swimming and diving team sent its eight seniors out on a high note, as the Nittany Lions handled the Navy Midshipmen 173-127, Saturday at McCoy Natatorium. The seniors did not disappoint in their final home meet as a trio of them earned first place finishes in individual events, including Nate Savoy (Reading, Pa.), who led the way with a pair of golds.
Savoy, the reigning Big Ten men's swimmer of the week finished first in the 200 back (1:47.59) and 200 IM (1:51.00), but also swam for two first place finishing Penn State relay teams. He along with Bob Bantley (Maple Glen, Pa.), Matt Grillo (Montreal, Quebec) and fellow senior Jeff Young (Hershey, Pa) were fastest in the 200 free relay with a time of 1:22.19.
Savoy also teamed up with Andrew Schuehler (Camden, N.J.), fellow senior Kyle Madley (Madison, N.J.) and Shane Ryan (Havertown, Pa.) to win another gold in the 200 yard medley relay with a 1:30.56 time. While Savoy's accomplishments were impressive they did not eclipse those of Ryan, who won a total of three individual events on Saturday.
Ryan touched the wall first in the 100 back (49.10) which was a season best time, he also was fastest in the 50 free (20.41) and the 100 free (44.95).
Other seniors racking up medals on their special day included Nick Ankosko (East Brunswick, N.J.), who was the fastest in the 1,000 free (9:21.34) and third in the 500 free (4:30.08) as well as Young, who finished second in the 50 free (20.65), followed by a third place finish in the 100 free (46.30).
Kyle Madley (Madison, N.J.) earned silver in the 100 fly with his 49.70 performance and then bronze in the 200 fly (1:51.86). Rounding out the senior swimmers medal count was Jonathan Ekstrom (Silver Spring, Md.), who placed third in the 100 breast (56.85) and third in the 200 IM (1:53.23).
Sophomore Matt Stasiunas (Avondale, Pa.) had a solid day, leading the way for the underclassman. The second-year swimmer was second in the 1,000 free with a career best time of 9:22.77. He also earned silver in the 500 free (4:30.02).
During one of the meet's short breaks, three athletes from the Penn State Ability Athletics program took part in a special 200 freestyle exhibition. Current PSU student Shawn Brame, along with alum Ross Hollan and former Navy medic Max Rohn, who lost his leg serving in Iraq jumped into the pool to thunderous applause from the natatorium crowd. All three touched the wall in inspiring fashion, while Brame did so in record time with a lifetime best performance of 3:17.48.
In the diving portion of Saturday's dual, the Penn State men took both the one and three meters. Senior T.J. Schenkel (Richboro, Pa.) earned a career best 322.19 score and finished first, while freshman Travis Wright (Derby, N.Y.) placed second with a season best 306.22 tally.
Schenkel then made it two-for-two on the boards as he took home the gold in the three meter with a season best score of 349.80. PSU swept the event as following Schenkel was Wright with his season best score of 338.85. Fellow freshman Connor Scanlon rounded out the podium with his third place and season best performance of 320.70.
The Nittany Lions improve to 6-3 on the season and finish 2014-15 with a home dual record of 4-1. Although head coach Tim Murphy said so long to eight seniors on Saturday, there is still plenty to be done in the pool as Penn State will next take part in the Virginia Tech Invite (Feb. 7-8) in Blacksburg, Va., before heading to the Big Ten Championships in Iowa City, scheduled for Feb. 25-28.