UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's swimming & diving team defeated Virginia Tech, 216.50- 136.50, but fell to No. 24 Ohio State, 198-155 for their "Military Appreciation" meet on Saturday at home. This was the team's first meet against a ranked opponent this season.
Despite the narrow loss, the women stole the show in day two with four event winners on top of one Friday event winner, two event sweeps in the 200 freestyle and 200 backstroke, in addition to two pool records in the 200 and 400 medley relays. The atmosphere was energetic with fans and the Nittany Lion mascot in attendance.
Top Swims
Junior Carly Hart, junior Maddie Cooke, senior Maddie Hart, junior Stephanie Szekely, and freshman Abbie Amdor all secured event wins throughout the meet, with Carly Hart winning the 200 breaststroke (2:14.30) for the second meet in a row on day one and Cooke winning the 50 free (22.81) on day two. Carly Hart also placed second in the 100 breast (1:01.84) while Cooke placed third (1:02.64) in the same race. Carly Hart has yet to lose the 200 breast this season and Cooke swam the ninth-fastest time in Penn State history in the 50 free and missed the NCAA B-Cut time by only 5 one-hundredths of a second.
Maddie Hart also had some great swims in day two, winning the 100 butterfly (54.47), placing second in the 100 back (55.22) and third in the 200 fly (2:01.30). Szekely won the 200 back (1:59.18) and placed third in the 400 IM (4:24.98). Amdor continued to show her dominance in free sprint events, touching first in the 200 (1:49.94) and second in the 100 (50.36).
Two more swimmers that placed second were Madison Murtagh in the 1000 free (10:08.34) and Camryn Barry in the 200 free (1:50.55). Marie Schobel continued swimming well in back, placing second in the 200 (1:59.52) and third in the 100 (55.29).
In addition, freshman Margaret Markvardt had her first third place finish in the 200 IM (2:05.00), which was also her season best in the race.
Top Dives
On the boards, senior Christina Crowell got a personal best in the 3-meter dive on day one with a score of 299.35. She also participated in the 1-meter dive on Saturday.
Nittany Lion Relays
The women had a record-breaking meet for relays. To open the meet on day two, the women won the 400 medley relay with a pool record time of 3:40.79, building off their 200 medley relay (1:40.42) win and pool record time on day one. The 400 medley winning team consisted of Marie Schobel, Carly Hart, Maddie Hart, and Amdor, and the 200 medley winning team also had Schobel, Carly Hart, Maddie Hart and Maddie Cooke. The women also placed third in the 400 free relay on day two (3:32.31) with Olivia Jack, Cooke, Elizabeth Gaspari, and Amdor.
Event Winners
200 Breast – Carly Hart (2:14.30)
50 Free – Maddie Cooke (22.81)
200 Back – Stephanie Szekely (1:59.18)
200 Free – Abbie Amdor (1:49.94)
100 Fly – Maddie Hart (54.47)
Next Up
Penn State Swimming & Diving will travel to Princeton, N.J. for the Princeton Invitational meet from Friday, December 6 to Sunday, December 8 in the DeNunzio Pool.
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.
Senior backstroke and butterfly swimmer Maddie Hart