If most paths to the top of a steep mountain included a number of switchbacks, the Penn State women's swimming team took a convincing step around another Friday afternoon by defeating St. Bonaventure 172-90.

"It's time to show everyone what we can do," said Sara Shepherd, who won the 100-yard backstroke in 59.30.

The team won 10 of 14 events in a meet that not only brought its record to 2-1, but also got it back into a racing mindset that is essential for the team to be competitive over the next two weeks.

"It was nice to get some racing in there," Shepherd said.

Coming into the meet, Penn State coach Bill Dorenkott planned to use swimmers in "off" events -- an event that a swimmer might not normally swim in competition. In doing so, the team proved its versatility.

Sophomore Erin Morris led the way with a pair of victories in the 1,000-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly with times of 10:03.40 and 58.84, respectively.

But the entire team was contributive, as 12 different swimmers had a hand in victories. Seniors Larissa Kavchok and Kerry Smith won the 100-freestyle and 500-freestyle, respectively. Junior Sarah Haupt; sophomores Chelsea Frank and Megan Palera, and freshman Lauren Preyss all won individual events.

The team of seniors Deidre Dlugonski, Jennifer Eberst, and sophomores Rachel Ahrenhold and Nikki Collins won the 200-yard freestyle relay in the time of 1:39.24.

"Everybody was expected to have good swims, go after it," Shepherd said.

The team's next opponent is West Chester, against whom the Nittany Lions will swim at 3 p.m. tomorrow in McCoy Natatorium.

The meet will be a prelude to the Auburn Invitational, which will most likely be a major indicator of where swimmers are in terms of training and event times.

There is little doubt that it is the Lions' first major test, as Auburn is ranked No. 2 in the latest College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) poll and has a team that features several Olympians. Kirsty Coventry, a senior for the Tigers, won three medals (gold in the 200 backstroke, silver in the 100 backstroke, bronze in the 200 individual medley) at the Summer Games.

Because it will feature the same format as Big Ten championships, swimmers will be competing in their primary events.

"We're going to be swimming tired," Shepherd said. "But we're used to that. We'll have a chance to come back and race at night [and] see some faster swimmers."

Ultimately, all switchbacks lead to the NCAA championships in March, at which the team hopes to make an impact, if only for itself.

"We've been in the top three [teams] with one of the worst facilities," Dorenkott said.

"We don't need to be validated with more coverage," he said, adding that he looks for respect from other programs.