On the road for the first time in 2013, Penn State’s swim teams started the new year on the right foot.
The No. 20 men’s swim team (3-2, 0-1) defeated Missouri State 171-124, claiming victory in 11 of 16 events while swimming the top time in 13 of the 16.
Sophomore Nick Ankosko was one of three Nittany Lions to earn two individual victories during the timed events. Ankosko led the Nittany Lions in sweeps of the 1000-yard and 500-yard free style, posting times of 9:34.77 and 4:34.80, respectively.
The Lions sweep of the freestyle races set the tone for the meet. Junior Sean Grier earned two victories for the Lions in the 100-yard backstroke and the 100-yard butterfly. The 100-yard fly was particularly notable, as Grier posted a dominant time of 49.29 seconds.
Junior John Hauser rounded out the Lions’ afternoon by winning both the 200-yard and 100-yard freestyle. His 200-yard victory was his third in that event of the season.
The No. 12 women’s swim team (4-2, 1-0) had a different matchup, participating against both Missouri State and Arkansas in a tri-team meet. The Lions defeated Mizzou State, 235-59, but were narrowly defeated by Arkansas, 151.5-146.5.
Despite winning eight of the 16 events, the crucial difference was in the bookend relays. The Lions lost both the 200-yard relay and the 400-yard relay to the Razerbacks.
Despite the defeat, there were some standouts for Penn State in the water. Senior Amy Modglin displayed strong swimming all day, winning both the 200 yard backstroke and 400 individual medley while also leading a trio of Lions to second, third, and fourth place finishes in the 200 freestyle.
Senior Paige Whitmire also had a strong day, winning both the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle, the latter by more than a second. Her 50-yard freestyle victory was also her third of the season.
With both teams coming away with at least one victory, the 2013 calendar year has started off well for Penn State swimming. The teams will return to Happy Valley two weekends from now to take on Navy.
