ROSEMONT, Ill. - Penn State senior Shane Ryan (Havertown, Pa.) was named the Big Ten Men's Swimmer of the Week Wednesday for the third time in as many outings this season.
The recent Olympian had won the honor just twice in his first three years, but has now claimed it following all three times he has swam this season. He was also named the CollegeSwimming.com Big Ten Men's Swimmer of the Week Tuesday for the second time this seasn.
This past weekend. Ryan ultimately won three individual events for the Nittany Lion men over a two-day, double-dual meet against No. 6 Michigan and No. 25 Virginia, which was hosted by the Cavaliers. He swam the fastest 100 free time in the NCAA so far this season winning the event in a pool record 43.09 seconds, and he led off the 400 medley relay with a 100 backstroke in 46.74, good for third in the NCAA so far this seasno. He followed Saturday with a victory in the 50 free in 20.09 seconds, achieving the NCAA 'B' standard and also winning the 100 back in 47.19. Both of his 100 back swims bested the previous facility record set by Ryan Lochte in 2005 (47.24).
Ryan returned to Penn State after spending the 2015-16 season across the pond in Ireland. Ryan competed for Ireland at the 2016 Rio Olympics, posting a top finish of 16th in the 100-meter backstroke.
He and women's teammates Casey Francis (East Meadow, N.Y.) and Katelyn Sowinski (Severna Park, Md.) will be competing against this weekend in the USA College Challenge, presented by arena.
The event is now scheduled to air live on the Big Ten Network. To accommodate the enhanced broadcast plans, Saturday's opening session of the all-star dual meet shifts to a 4:30 p.m. ET start at the Indiana University Natatorium on the campus of IUPUI in Indianapolis.
Sunday's session, which begins at 11:30 a.m., will be televised as scheduled from noon-2 p.m. on the Big Ten Network. Both sessions also will stream live online at USASwimming.org and btn.com, as well as via the BTN2GO app.
Bernie Guenther (play-by-play) and Olympic gold medalist Rowdy Gaines (analyst) will call the action from Indianapolis for the Big Ten Network.
Ten swimmers, including eight medalists, from the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team will be in action in Indianapolis, as members of the USA Swimming National Team square off against stars from the Big Ten Conference. Highlighting the participants are 2016 individual Olympic medalists Lilly King (Evansville, Ind.), Cody Miller (Las Vegas, Nev.) and Leah Smith (Pittsburgh, Pa.).
Full rosters for both teams are available online at usaswimming.org.
The two-day, short-course yards dual meet consists of two sessions - Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET and Sunday at 11:30 a.m. All-session tickets cost $35 for adults and $20 for children 12 and under. Single-day tickets are $20 for adults and $12 for children.
