State College, Pa-- The No. 20 Penn State men's swimming and diving team currently stands in first place of the 2000 Nittany Lion Invitational. Penn State is looking for their fourth consecutive Nittany Lion Invite title. Penn State accumulated 327 points through the first six events. The University of Maryland-Baltimore County stands in second with 296. The Lions' team has split for the weekend with half of the swimmers participating in the Princeton Invitational in Princeton, N.J., and the rest of the swimmers as well as the full compliment of divers hosting the Nittany Lion Invitation at the McCoy Natatorium.

Penn State grabbed the top three spots in the 500 freestyle. Martin Schierhorn (Zappendorf, Germany) took first place with a time of 4:31.82. Todd Minnier (Avon Lake, Ohio) finished second with a time of 4:33.33. Steve Hodgins (Holmdel, N.J.) touched just behind Minnier to grab third at 4:32.37. The Nittany Lions also grabbed the top three spots in the 1 meter diving competition. Junior Steve Bohner (Lansdale, Pa.) placed first with a score of 356.70. Senior Chris Alderman (Arlington, Va.) took second with a score of 323.00. Rounding out the trio for the Lions was senior Jeff Harrison (Baltimore, Md.) with a score of 264.35

The three day competition will continue on Saturday Dec. 2 and Sunday December 3, with prelims set to start at 9:00 a.m. and finals scheduled for 6:00 p.m. For complete results, please visit www.GoPSUSports.com.

 Results Through Friday (6 events) 1. Penn State 327 2. UMBC 296 3. St. Bonaventure 268.50 4. University of Buffalo 163.50