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#13/21 Ohio State Wraps Up Winter Invite

The No. 13 Ohio State men’s swimming team closed out the 2013 regular season with seven Top 5 finishes in the finals of day two at the 2013 Winter Invitational.  Ohio State will now have two weeks off to prepare for the 2013 Big Ten Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships Feb. 27-March 2 in Bloomington, Ind.
 
“The focus this weekend was to give a lot of the guys who didn't get to travel last weekend to Michigan the chance to compete for a full weekend and a full schedule of events,” said head men’s swimming coach Bill Wadley.

“We had some swimmers who were maybe in their final meet. Blaine Kincaid ended up doing very well in the breaststroke with lifetime best times. Also, Andrew Slater, who started off as a manager on the team and ended up trying out and making the team, had a nice meet. It's just great to see somebody go from being the manager to having two Top 3 finishes and a win in a meet."
 
The Scarlet and Gray began the finals with three-consecutive wins before the first break. Senior Andrew Slater won the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:39.67, while freshman Dan DiSalle was seventh overall in a time of 1:46.32. Sophomore Dominic Pecze followed with a victory in the 1:50.87 in the 200 backstroke.
 
The Buckeyes then took first and second, respectively, in the 200 breaststroke led by senior Blaine Kincaid who placed first with a time of 2:01.68. Sophomore Andrew Braun touched the wall just after Kincaid with a time of 2:01.72, while sophomore John Zucca was fourth overall in 2:08.43.
 
“The same way with Blaine and Stephen Koch,” Wadley said “They were cut from the team as freshman, but worked hard and made it back on the team by achieving a qualifying time I set for them. Here they are as seniors, Blaine is winning races and Stephen qualified for the Olympic Trials last summer. It's fun to see these guys go out on a fine note.”
 
In the 50 freestyle, Slater claimed his second Top 3 performance when he placed third overall with a time of 20.88. Two Buckeyes went third and fourth, respectively, in the 200 butterfly. Sophomore Nick Wrightson was third overall with a time of 1:52.33, while freshman Peter Lyon finished fourth overall (1:52.68).
 
Freshman David Morgan highlighted the conclusion of the winter invitational, placing first overall with a time of 1:53.61 in the 200 individual medley.




The No. 21 Ohio State women’s swimming team wrapped up the 2013 Winter Invitational with several personal-best times during day two of the finals at McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion. The Buckeyes notched two event wins and four Top 5 finishes Sunday evening.

Ohio State will now have a week off to prepare for the 2013 Big Ten Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships Feb. 20-23 in Minneapolis, Minn. 
 
The team began the night with two Top 5 finishes by a pair of OSU freshmen in the 200-yard freestyle. Camey Rabold highlighted the event with the win, racing her way to a personal-best time of 1:51.49. Classmate Sara Craft placed fourth with a personal-best time of 1:53.39.
 
Mary Sarah Cruzan followed with a runner-up performance in the 200 backstroke, touching the wall at 2:01.04. Freshman Kelly McNulty placed seventh overall with a season-best time of 2:10.80. Next, sophomore Makena Lynch notched a personal-best time of 24.46 in the 50 freestyle.
 
Freshman Nichole Gill had a strong outing in the 200 butterfly, taking two seconds off her prelim time for a first-place mark of 2:05.00 (personal-best) to highlight the conclusion of the Buckeyes’ meet. 



Only two competitors took to the pool on Sunday (Feb. 10) at the Ohio State Invitational for the Penn State women’s swimming and diving program and both captured career-bests in each event they swam . Chelsea Vanderweele (Silver Springs, Md.) won the 200 backstroke and finished second in the 200 IM, while Sierra Scoggin (Reston, Va.) was just behind in each event at the McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion.
 
In the 200 backstroke, the Nittany Lions took second and third place in the event. Vanderweele qualified for the with the second fastest time in the prelims at 2:02.35 and capped off the event by besting the field in a personal record 2:00.77. Scoggin swam a career-best 2:03.15 in the prelims and followed that with a time of 2:03.24 to finish third in the finals.
 
Vanderweele took home a second place showing in the 200 IM with a pair of nearly identical swims in the event. The rookie touched second in the prelims with a mark of 2:08.55 and finished off her afternoon with a time of 2:08.13 in the finals. Scoggin bettered her time of 2:11.11 from the prelims by swimming a career-best time of 2:09.34 in finals.
 
The next action in the pool for the Nittany Lions will take place from Feb. 21-23 when they travel to Minneapolis, Minn. to compete at the Big Ten Swimming and Diving Championships.



The seven Nittany Lions competing at the Ohio State Invitational finished strong Sunday evening, representing the Penn State men’s swimming and diving team (5-2, 0-1 Big Ten) well with two victories and six top-five finishes. Earning their first wins of the season, freshman Chase Schell (Tacoma, Wash.) claimed the 200 fly while sophomore Larry Virgilio (Pine Bush, N.Y.) dominated the 50 free.
 
Schell was the lone Lion to compete in the 200 fly in Columbus, taking home the victory with a new personal best time of 1:50.28. The rookie crushed his previous top time by 6.14 seconds. Also notching a new personal best record, Virgilio took first in the 50 free with a time of 20.77.

Penn State seemingly took over the 50 free, with junior Peter Fittin (Sea Girt, N.J.) following Virgilio in second place with a personal best time of 20.81 seconds and sophomore Emre Acar (Istanbul, Turkey) taking fourth with a season best 21.30. Freshman Alex High (Reading, Pa.) rounded out the A Final with a 10th-place finish and personal best time of 22.00 seconds.
 
The Lions were led by Acar in the 200 free, finishing second with a season best time of 1:41.81. The sophomore was just .69 seconds from meeting his personal best time. Fellow sophomore Nathan Reed (Berwyn, Pa.) also recorded a season best time, finishing in 1:42.92 for third place. Freshman Matthew Drohan (Kennett Square, Pa.) followed in ninth place with a personal best time of 1:50.02. The rookie went on to make is collegiate debut in the 1,650 free with a sixth-place showing of 16.25.60.
 
Penn State will begin the hunt for conference bragging rights in two weeks, with the Lions heading to Bloomington, Ind. on Feb. 27-March 2 for the Big Ten Championships.

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