UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The 2019-20 Penn State swimming & diving season will commence with its season opener Friday at 2:00 p.m in McCoy Natatorium. The men will face off against St. Bonaventure while the women will host both St. Bonaventure and Liberty.
This meet will be the teams' "Throwback Meet" as they welcome returning alumni for the Homecoming weekend meet by donning throwback-themed suits.
Schedule of Events
1-Meter Dive*
100 Medley Relay
200 Free
25 Free
100 IM
50 Back
100 Free
50 Fly
50 Breast
200 Free Relay
3-Meter Dive
200 Medley Relay
500 Free
50 Free
100 Breast
100 Fly
100 Back
200 IM
100 Free Relay
*Will run concurrent with swimming events
The Series
The Penn State women's team is 15-0 all-time against St. Bonaventure since 1986 and 2-0 against Liberty since 2014. The women have not competed against St. Bonaventure since 2014. The Penn State men's team is 28-0 against St. Bonaventure in a series that dates all the way back to 1977. The last time these two teams met was also in 2014.
The Nittany Lions
The Penn State men, captained by seniors Liam Veregin and Austin Wilson, return 21 of its swimmers and divers from last year. The team is coming off a season in which four qualified for the NCAA Championships and two – Michael Daly and Gabe Castano – return this season. Daly broke Penn State records at both the Big Ten Championships and NCAA Championships and posted five Olympic Trials-cut swims at the Phillips 66 National Championships over the summer. Castano earned a bronze medal in the 50 free at the Big Ten Championships, won gold in the 50-meter free and silver in the 100 free at the Mexican National Championships and bronze in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay and fourth individually in the 50m free at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru this summer. The team is welcoming seven freshmen to the squad.
The Penn State women, captained by seniors Christina Crowell and Heather MacDougall, return 24 swimmers and three divers from last year's roster. The 2019-20 roster includes 10 freshman additions to the team and one sophomore transfer, with nine new swimmers and two new divers. Crowell continued to show improvement last season and is coming off a strong performance at the NCAA Zone A Regionals in which she came just short of advancing to the finals. Senior Maddie Hart returns after earning her first NCAA Championships berth in the 100 butterfly and placing in the top five at Big Tens. Over the summer, Hart placed 15th in the 100-meter fly at the 2019 Phillips 66 National Championships with an Olympic Trials cut time of 59.09 seconds. Sophomores Brooke Mathias and Madison Murtagh also return after reaching B-Finals at Big Tens.
The Opponents
The St. Bonaventure men's team was picked to finish fourth the 2019-20 Atlantic 10 preseason poll after finishing third at last year's championships. The Bonnies have been one of the A-10's dominant teams, placing in the top three at the A-10 Championships in 24 out of the last 27 years with five championships. The women's team is coming off a ninth-place finish at last year's A-10 Championships.
Liberty's women's team is riding a 23-meet winning streak, the second-longest active dual meet winning streak in NCAA Division I women's swimming & diving, and won its second Coastal Collegiate Sports Association conference championship last season.
Next Up
The Penn State men's team will host West Virginia in McCoy Natatorium Friday, Oct. 11 at 4 p.m. and the women's team will host West Virginia Saturday, Oct. 12 at 9 a.m.
Check GoPSUSports.com for coverage of the Penn State swimming and diving teams during the season. Follow the team on Twitter at @PennStateSWIM, on Instagram at @pennstateswimdive, and on Facebook at facebook.com/pennstateswimminganddiving.