The Penn State men's swimming team fell to 0-2 after a 132-106 loss to the University of Virginia on Friday at McCoy Natatorium.

Nittany Lions junior Todd Minnier came up big for the Lions placing first in both the 200 freestyle, with a time of 1:38.82, and the 100 freestyle, with a time of :45.13.

Senior Academic All-American Eugene Botes swam hard for the Lions, placing first in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of :20.73.

Botes also went on to help Minnier, sophomore Matt Haupt and sophomore John Lutz win the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 3:03.10.

"I'm proud of the effort today," Penn State men's swimming coach Bill Dorenkott said. "Right now we are in a transition phase, we are not near where we want to be as a team, but we are going to be a good team. We are a young and we are still growing . All the swimmers have a good, positive attitude and they need to bring that day in and day out."

Freshman Dan Valez won the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:06.91. Valez also placed first in the 200 breaststroke in last meet against Florida State.

"We swam with heart today, there are some swimmers who are really going to surprise some people," Dorenkott said. "The work ethic is there."

The Lions looked poor in the 200 backstroke, 200 butterfly and the 400 individual medley, with no swimmers placing above third place.

The Lions looked strong in the one-meter and three-meter diving. Sophomore Marc Gastaldo won the three-meter dive with a score of 310.8. Mike Alderman placed fourth for the Lions with a score of 254.2.

"Marc Gastaldo did outstanding in the 3 meter event. He has made the national cuts for diving. He is one to watch," said Penn State diving coach Craig Brown. "Our underclassmen divers are still really learning, but we're coming along well."

The Lions finished the 2001-02 season third in the Big Ten and 15th in the NCAA rankings. They are gearing up for this weekend's Big Cat Invitational.