UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa - Following a 1-1 start to the new year, Penn State returns home to host the Princeton Tigers and Virginia Tech Hokies at McCoy Natatorium on Saturday, Jan. 18.
The Nittany Lions kicked off their 2025 slate in the windy city, where they faced off against conference opponents the Northwestern Wildcats, as well as local competitor the University of Chicago Maroons.
In a valiant effort, both Penn State rosters earned victories over the Maroons, but fell to the Wildcats on their home turf. This marked Penn State’s first meeting and win against the Maroons, and drops to a 7-4 all-time matchup record with the Wildcats.
Penn State enters the weekend with a 2-4 record, looking to return to a .500 average on home turf. In the thick of a major program rebrand, the Nittany Lions have shown immense development under the leadership of head coach Hollie Bonewit-Cron in her first year.
With a wide variety of competitors shaving time from their previous best swims and comfortably finding ways to podium finishes, Bonewit-Cron has emphasized her pride and excitement towards seeing this group continue to develop through the remainder of the season.
Penn State matched up with each of these teams on separate occasions in the 2023-24 season, falling to the Hokies in Blacksburg, and meeting with Princeton at their ‘Big Al Invitational’, where the Nittany Lions earned 2nd place finishes as a team on each of the three days.
Performers to Watch
Former Big Ten champion Mariano Lazzerini dominated his two breast events in the Nittany Lions’ trip to Chicago, taking first in the 200 Breast with a 1:55.63, and the 100 Breast with a 53.06. Lazzerini also plays a major role in the wildly successful 200 Medley relay team.
Eduardo Cisternas added two wins to his name against Northwestern and Chicago in both the 200 and 500 Free events. His victorious 500 Free extended his undefeated streak in the event this season, and he recorded a new personal best in the 50 Free.
Junior Cooper Morley added two second place finishes in both the 100 Fly and 100 Back, while helping the 200 Medley to a first place finish and 400 Freestyle relay to a silver.
Sophomore Hayden Elliott has made a splash at the diving platform this season with NCAA Diving Zone qualifying scores, and two individual event victories. Elliott is a consistent podium finisher, with top scores of 392.83 on the 1 Meter, and 380.85 on the 3 Meter.
Event coverage will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday, January 18th. For live updates, tune into @PennStateSwimDive on Instagram and @PennStateSWIM on X!