UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- The Penn State swimming and diving team is set to open the 2023-24 campaign against St. Bonaventure at McCoy Natatorium Saturday at noon (ET). Live streaming of the meet is available via B1G+.
The Nittany Lions:
The men enter the season following a solid 2022-23 campaign in which many Nittany Lions were able to score points at the Big Ten Championship. The team is led by junior Victor Baganha who sprinted to several fast times last season and an NCAA Championship appearance. He comes into the season following a productive offseason having success at the Brazilian Nationals.
Junior Sam Folger and sophomores Erik Bolang, Mariano Lazzerini, Andrew Christensen and Eduardo Cisternas all look to build upon impressive showings last season.
Divers senior+ Kevin Sullivan and sophomore Hayden Elliott both enjoyed strong 2022-23 campaigns and look to make a splash in the early season for the Nittany Lions.
After placing sixth last season in the Big Ten Championship, the 400 free relay of Baganha, Tommy Hurley, Lazzerini, and Lachlan Byrne look to continue their wave of momentum into this season.
On the women's side, graduate student diver Daphne Wils looks to capitalize on an outstanding 2022-23 campaign where she placed 24th in the one meter dive at the NCAA Championships.
A squad of swimmers aim to begin a successful season in 2023-24 after they progressed through the season last year. In the Blue and White scrimmage just a week ago, junior Molly Carson and senior+ Emma Harvey shined. Harvey won several events including the 50 free and 100 butterfly.
Sophomore Morgan Moore and Seniors Abby Henderson, Cat Stanford, Ellie Brandbergh, and Kylie Rydland all intend to play a big role for the Nittany Lions in the upcoming season.
The Bonnies:
St. Bonaventure is led by junior Alexander Behr and senior Maxwell Murray, who each earned medals at last season's A-10 Championship. Behr set a new A-10 conference meet record in the 200 butterfly.
Sophomore diver Ben Giera finished with the top score in the 3-meter dive and gathered a third place finish in the 1-meter dive.
The Bonnies as a whole finished sixth at the A-10 championships last year.
For the women, standout sophomore Silvana Cabreera leads the team following a fourth place finish in the 200 butterfly at the A-10 Championship last season. Several other Bonnie swimmers set fast times at the end of last season and look to continue their fast pace into 2023-24.
This is the fourth all-time meeting between the Nittany Lions and the Bonnies. Penn State holds a 4-0 record after beating St. Bonaventure 192-145 in their last matchup during the 2019-20 season.
The Nittany Lions will stay in Happy Valley next weekend for a matchup against Navy.
For updates on Penn State swimming and diving, follow the team on Instagram (@pennstateswimdive), Twitter (@PennStateSwim) and Facebook (Penn State Swimming & Diving).