Undefeated, yet undeterred.
Penn State swimming coach Bill Dorenkott admitted earlier in the week that on paper the No.14 Indiana Hoosiers seemed to be the team to beat heading into Big Ten conference meets and ultimately the Big Ten Championships. All Dorenkott wanted was for his team to put up a fight.
The No. 20 Penn State women's swimming and diving team put up more than enough fight on Friday and Saturday at Charles McCaffree Pool on the Michigan State campus, as the defending Big Ten champs defeated previously unbeaten Indiana and struggling Michigan State in a double dual meet, 195.50-173.50 and 275-94, respectively.
While Dorenkott's prophecy still may come true, the Nittany Lions showed Saturday why they were champions last year, coming up with some key relay victories late to secure the victories, though the outcome over Michigan State was never really in doubt.
"This was one of the biggest dual meet wins in school history," Dorenkott said. "This was what we needed when we needed it."
The victories in the 200-yard medley relay and 400- and 800-yard freestyle relays were keyed by freshman Amberle Biedermann and sophomore Deidre Dlugonski, who each had a helping hand in all three events. Biedermann also took first in the 100- and 200-yard butterfly, while Dlugonski placed second in the 100-yard freestyle.
While Biedermann and Dlugonski may have stolen the show individually, the Lions used superior depth to lock down the wins. The Lions had five different individual winners to go along with the relay victories, and the team won 10 out of the 13 events on Saturday. Coach Dorenkott said that the depth of the team is a credit to the hard working nature of his team.
"In the past we have had real dominant athletes that have carried the team," Dorenkott said. "This year, we don't have that one person, we have a lot of blue-collar workers."
The hard work paid off for the Lions, as they gathered their second win against a top-25 opponent and its third and fourth victories of the season. Biedermann said that the success of the team was contagious, and it made everyone's job easier.
"When you know that the team is swimming well, it makes it easier to go out and do the job that is needed," Biedermann said.
The divers made a splash of their own, holding their own against a tough Indiana team and a dominating Michigan State squad. The meet marked the first time that the Lion divers were able to split with the Hoosier divers, taking second and fourth on the one-meter board and third and fourth on the three-meter board. They also took first on both the one- and three-meter boards against Michigan State.
On Feb. 20 the Lions will once again meet up again with Indiana at the Big Ten Championships in West Lafayette, Ind., and diving coach Craig Brown said that these wins give the Lions confidence that they can beat the best.
"Going into the Big Tens, psychologically it's good to know that Indiana can slip up and that on a good day we can compete head to head with anybody," Brown said.
