STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - The #18 Penn State women's swim team (4-3, 1-1 Big Ten) lost a heartbreaker to #16 Northwestern 151.50-148.50. A win would have been Penn State's second win in two days over a higher ranked opponent.

The exciting meet came down to the final event to decide the outcome. Penn State had a lead of four points entering the 200-yard freestyle relay. Despite swimming a NCAA provisional time of 1:33.54, the Nittany Lions lost to Northwestern by under a five tenths of a second, which propelled the Wildcats to victory. The Lions perhaps showed some lag as they competed in Ann Arbor, Michigan the night before and then had to travel to Northwestern for today's meet.

The meet was filled with exceptional action throughout the competition. The Lions won seven events and earned five NCAA provisional marks. Deirdre Dlugonski (Washington, Pa.) won two events for the second straight day. She won the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 23.55 and the 100-yard freestyle in a time of 51.11, which was a provisional mark.

Erin Mulshenock (New Castle, Del.) also had a fine day of swimming. She won the 200-yard individual medley in a provisional mark of 2:03.61. She also placed second in the 200-yard backstroke despite swimming a provisional mark of 2:00.98.

Penn State started the meet in winning style when the team of Jen Eberst (Clifton Park, N.Y.), Kristen Woodring (Sinking Spring, Pa.), Corrie Clark (Malvern, Pa.) and Piper Chamberlin (Grand Junction, Colo.)combined to win the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:44.30. Woodring also won the 100-yard breaststroke in a provisional time of 1:02.64. Sally Anderson (Somerset, N.J.) led a one-two Penn State finish in the 500-yard freestyle with a winning time of 4:56.90.

The Nittany Lions will return to action next weekend when they travel to Bloomington, Indiana to take on #19 Indiana and Michigan State in a double dual. The meet will take place on Friday, Jan. 19 at 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, Jan. 19 at 1:00 p.m.

For full results click here.