Securing a first-place finish in the 400 medley relay to start the meet and a 1-2-3 showing in the 3-meter dive, the Rutgers women’s swimming and diving team opened its inaugural Big Ten meet against Penn State on Friday night at the RU Aquatics Center.
Despite RU’s four first-place finishes, the Nittany Lions hold a 111-74 edge over the Scarlet Knights heading into tomorrow’s session.
Rutgers kicked off the night with a huge victory in the 400 medley relay. The quartet of Joanna Wu (Kent, Wash.), Greta Leberfinger (Chatham, N.J.), Morgan Pfaff (Red Lion, Pa.), and Sarah Coyne (Osceola, Ind.) hit the wall at 3:44.84 to top the field, holding off Penn State’s group with its touch at 3:45.31.
Penn State responded by claiming the top-three finishes of the 200 freestyle, but Wu returned the momentum to RU, placing first in the 100 backstroke(55.80).
The Scarlet Knights’ showed its strength in the 100 breaststroke event as Leberfinger placed first with a season-high time of 1:03.41. Sophomore Rachel Stoddard (Hillsborough, N.J.) followed in second, registering a season-high of her own at 1:03.94.
On the boards, the Big Ten Freshman of the Week and ECAC Co-Diver of the Week, Addison Walkowiak (Ballston Spa, N.Y.), registered a career-best 321.50 to notch first in the event. Sophomore Alyssa Black (Middletown, N.Y.) followed in second with a season-high score of 263.70, while freshman Morgan Engel (Mound, Minn.) rounded out the leaderboard for RU with a third-place mark of 229.15.
Penn State went on to capture the top-three spots in the 50 free and the 1000 free to gain the edge over Rutgers heading into day two of competition.
RU and PSU return to the pool tomorrow at 11 a.m.
The No. 17 Penn State women’s swimming and diving team earned maximum points in three events against Rutgers Friday evening, allowing the Nittany Lions to build a 111-74 lead over the Scarlet Knights after 10 events. Competition will resume Saturday morning at 11 a.m.
The Blue and White swept the top three scoring positions in the 200, 50 and 1000-freestyle events. All four Lion swimmers touched in order in the 200 free, led by sophomore Alyson Ackman (Montreal, Quebec) in 1:49.30. Caitlyn Karr (Reading, Pa.) followed in 1:50.14, while Megan Wujciak (Livingstone, N.J.) placed third (1:50.21) less than a tenth of a second behind her.
Katelyn Miller (Hershey, Pa., 23.40), Carolyn Fittin (Sea Girt, N.J., 23.54) and Kaitlin Jones (Midlothian, Va., 23.78) claimed the top spots in the 50 free, while Megan Siverling (Chester Springs, Pa., 9:58.76), Katelyn Sowinski (Severna Park, Md., 10:04.20) and Casey Francis (East Meadow, N.Y., 10:05.10) did the same by a large margin in the 1000 free.
Sowinski’s 1000 free effort came after she led a 1-2 sweep in the 200 butterfly in 1:59.86. Katie Rowe (Glenville, N.Y.) touched second (2:01.08).
Haley Sinatro (West Harford, Conn.) was also an event winner, claiming the 200 individual medley in 2:04.26. Ackman, Wujciak, Jones and Miller capped the evening by leading a 1-2 finish in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:33.30.
Aided by senior Nate Savoy’s two first place finishes, the Penn State men’s swimming and diving team leads Yale 94-92 after day one of the two day meet, which is being hosted by Rutgers. Savoy (Reading, Pa.) touched the wall first in the 100 back with a 48.65 time and then was fastest in the 200 IM with a 1:50.51 performance.
As a whole the Lions had a half dozen top finishes in their first ever meeting with the Bulldogs, including freshman Bob Bantley (Maple Glen, Pa.) who was fastest in the 200 free with a season best time of 1:40.04. Junior Shane Ryan (Havertown, Pa.) added to his team’s first place tally with a 20.49 swim in the 50 yard free. The 200 free relay team compired of Savoy, Jeff Young (Hershey, Pa.), Bantley and Ryan also struck gold with a 1:21.66 time.
In the diving portion of the program, the Nittany Lions swept the top three spots in the one meter with freshman Travis Wright (Derby, N.Y.) earning a season best 288.70 score. Connor Scanlon (Laurel, Md.) and T.J. Schenkel (Richboro, Pa.) placed second and third with 272.70 and 268.30 scores respectively.
Additionally, PSU two more second place finishes on Friday as freshman Matt Stasiunas (Avondale, Pa.) was less than a second off his teammate’s pace in the 200 free at 1:40.56. Sophomore Andrew Schuehler (Camden, N.J.) was runner up in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 57.18.
The Penn State 400 yard medley relay team also placed second Friday night at Rutgers’ Werblin Recreation Center with their time of 3:19.88. That team was comprised of Ryan, Schuehler, Kyle Madley (Madison, N.J.) and Young. Madley also had another strong performance, this time in the 200 fly with his 1:52.10 performance, which was good enough for third place, Penn State’s fastest finisher in the event.
Head coach Tim Murphy’s squad will be back in action Saturday morning as they try to finish off the Bulldogs with a total of nine events on tap. Competition starts at 11:00, with the 200 yard medley relay.
