After more than a two-week absence, the Penn State swimming and diving teams will be back in action this weekend, scheduled to compete in two matchups.

The Nittany Lions will face Big Ten rival Ohio State at 4 p.m. today at McCoy Natatorium in a meet that swimmingworldmagazine.com declared the dual meet of the week. The Lions will then face Rutgers tomorrow at noon.

It was a busy week for the Lions, who will compete in back-to-back matches for the first time this season. The swimmers are coming off of an intense two-week training program in Naples, Fla., where they spent time preparing for the Big Ten Championships to be held in February.

While the swimmers were training, the diving team took part in the Georgia Diving Invitational, where several divers achieved outstanding scores.

Senior Kimberlee Peifer and sophomore Courtney Adlam had impressive showings for the women, both achieving scores high enough to qualify for the finals. The two were also able to earn NCAA Zone Qualifying times.

The men also sent three divers to the Invitational. Senior Mike Alderman led the way, earning two top-10 finishes in the one- and three-meter springboard events. Sophomore Josh Myers and junior Pat Bukowski also finished in the top 20 with Myers placing 15th in the three-meter event. Bukowski finished 20th.

The Buckeyes come into State College with the hot hand. The women have won two of their last three matches, including wins against Marshall and Ohio. They are led by sophomore diver Chelsea Davis, who has claimed two or more first place finishes in each of her last three meets, and was also named Big Ten Diver of the Week for Jan 8.

The Scarlet Knights are having one of their best seasons in recent memory, posting a perfect 6-0 record, including a win against Harvard, which ended the Crimson's 29-dual meet winning streak.

With two outstanding programs set to face the Lions this weekend, each swimmer and diver knows to bring out his or her best effort. For senior captains Claire Hawley, Jessica Barnes, and Megan Palera, and also junior captain Molly Crispell, this is their time to make the most of the "dual meet of the week" and try to get a victory on a national stage.