Feb. 26, 2010
Results
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Penn State men's swimming & diving team bounced back from a tough second day at the Big Ten Championships with a solid outing on Day Three, moving from ninth to seventh in the overall team standings after Friday's competition. The Nittany Lions were led by Dan Fimbianti's (Mahwah, N.J.) "A" Finals appearance in the 100 back and a fifth-place showing by the 200 free relay at McCorkle Pavilion.
Senior backstroker Fimbianti, who made an NCAA "B" cut time of 48.58 in the prelims of the 100 backstroke, swam a nearly identical time in the finals en route to eighth place and the lone Nittany Lion "A" Finals appearance.
Fellow senior, Basil Kaaki (Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia) turned in an all-around performance for Penn State (125 points) as he made it to the "B" Final of the 100 butterfly, swimming an NCAA "B" cut time of 48.02 there for 12th place. Moreover, his time was also the fourth fastest time in Penn State history for the 100 fly. He also led off the 200 freestyle relay with a 19.92 leg before sophomore Brian Alden (Lansdale, Pa.) turned in a 19.43 on the second leg. John Austin (Kennett Square, Pa.) and Jamie Grennan (Milford, Pa.) swam third and anchor legs on the relay that finished in a time of 1:19.42, another NCAA "B" cut time. In all, PSU swam 10 "B" cut times on Friday.
Scott Marino (Scotch Plains, N.J.) had yet another record-breaking day in the pool as he swam 3:49.22 in the 400 IM "B" Final, breaking Joe Peresan's (3:50.24) nine-year old record. In the process, Marino won the final, garnering ninth place in the event, swimming two seconds faster in the evening from his afternoon prelim time.
Other finalists on Friday included
Jon Cochrane (Boalsburg, Pa.) in the 200 freestyle, finishing 14th in a time of 1:37.92.
James Capparell (Bridgewater, N.J.) was also a finalist in the 400 IM, gathering 22nd place in a time of 3:57.74.
The Nittany Lions conclude action at the 2010 Big Ten Championships on Saturday at McCorkle Pavilion on the campus of Ohio State Univeristy. Action starts at Noon with the 200 backstroke prelims. Other events will be the 100 free, 200 breast and 200 fly preliminaries before the subsequent finals for those events take place at night. The 1,650 freestyle and 400 freestyle relay will also be part of the program.
Key
q = Qualified for finals
B = NCAA "B" Standard
( ) = Points Scored
* -- School Record
100 Backstroke "A" Final
8. Dan Fimbianti 48.57 (11) B
100 Breaststroke "B" Final
10. Mitch Scherer 54.56 (7) B
100 Butterfly "B" Final
12. Basil Kaaki 48.02 (5) B
200 Freestyle "B" Final
14. Jon Cochrane 1:37.92 (3) B
400 IM "B" Final
9. Scott Marino 3:49.22* (9) B
400 IM "C" Final
22. James Capparell 3:57.74
200 Freestyle Relay
5. Kaaki (19.92), Alden, Austin, Grennan 1:19.42 (28) B
100 Backstroke Preliminaries
7. Dan Fimbianti 48.58 qB
26. Graham Risley 49.85
28. Jeff Gomez 49.96
100 Breaststroke Preliminaries
10. Mitch Scherer 54.82 qB
21. Brent Sanderson 55.80 q
100 Butterfly Preliminaries
15. Basil Kaaki 49.24 q
30. Graham Risley 50.07
31. Greg Daniele 50.19
43. Jamie Grennan 51.33
200 Freestyle Preliminaries
14. Jon Cochrane 1:37.77 qB
18. Ben Ryan 1:38.30 q
42. John Austin 1:40.88
50. Ted Walker 1:42.38
53. Max Ettore 1:42.93
57. Ben Hengels 1:43.45
400 IM Preliminaries
11. Scott Marino 3:51.49 qB
26. Luke Bushman 3:58.18
28. James Capparell 3:59.02
34. Matt Cox 4:01.41
35. Wade Satanik 4:01.61
37. Colin Quirk 4:03.78
STANDINGS
1. Ohio State 552.5
2. Michigan 480.5
3. Minnesota 287
4. Purdue 240
5. Indiana 169
6. Michigan St. 137
7. Penn State 125
8. Wisconsin 124
9. Iowa 119
10. Northwestern 106
--NITTANY LIONS--
