West Lafayette, Ind., February 20, 2003 - After the first full day of competition, the #14 ranked Penn State Women¡¯s Swimming and Diving team stands in fourth place at the Big Ten Championships being held at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.

Head Coach Bill Dorenkott stated "We are doing our best swimming of the year and are looking to use this as a spring board as we head into the NCAA meet. Based on our training and team strengths, I believe our best swimming will happen in the next 2 days. The Big Ten Conference is going to be well represented at the NCAA¡¯s."

Junior Sally Anderson (Somerset, N.J.) and sophomore Courtney Stanchock (Bloomsburg, Pa.) took fourth place in their respective events of the 500 Freestyle and the 200 IM with times of 4:45.49 and 2:01.32 respectively. Freshman diver Lisa Silvestri (Huntingdon Valley, Pa.) placed sixth overall in the 1 meter with a final score of 281.65.

Diving Coach Craig Brown added "Lisa Silvestri did a great job staying focused the entire contest. She was the only freshman to make it to the finals and competed like a veteran."

Tomorrow¡¯s preliminary heats will begin at 11:00 a.m. while the finals will start at 7:00 p.m. Live results will be available on www.GOPSUsports.com throughout the competition.