Lions Open Season at Pitt-Bradford Relays

BRADFORD, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's and women's swimming and diving team opened up the 2015-16 season at the Pitt-Bradford relays on Saturday afternoon.

The Lions posted a combined team score of 248 for placing first in 11 out of 16 events to finish first at the relays. The hosts were second with a 160 total and Penn State Altoona was third with 102.

Behrend had four mixed relays (two men, two females) earn first place, starting with the 200 medley relay. Allie Schneider (Erie, PA/McDowell), Victor Nguyen (San Jose, CA/Evergreen Valley), Kelsey Urban (Harborcreek, PA/Harbor Creek) and Ryan Siggins (Erie, PA/Iroquois) combined for a winning time of 1:50.72.

The next two relays, the Lions had a 1-2 finish. In the mixed 200 freestyle relay, Blake Bachner (Freeport, PA/Kiski), Urban, Maryn Horn (Houston, TX/Jersey Village) and Nick Snyder (Murrysville, PA/Franklin Regional) won in 1:41.21. A second Behrend group consisting of Matt Myers (Cranberry Township, PA/Seneca Valley), Claire Mallick (Pittsburgh, PA/Woodland Hills), Jessica Wyckoff (Elma, NY/Iroquois) and Ty Elder (Brentwood, CA/Heritage) were less than two seconds behind in 1:42.97.

In the 400 medley reverse relay, the Lions were led by Gwendolyn Lowery (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte), Nick Roth (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin), Blair Carson (Wellsboro, PA/Wellsboro) and Schneider with a first-place time of 4:12.14. The second group of Mallick, Jeremy Brosius (Hatboro, PA/Hatboro-Horsham), Scott Romanko (Plum, PA/Plum) and Horn was runner up in 4:20.92.

The final mixed 400 freestyle relay, the winning foursome of Snyder, Lowery, Ubran and Mark Patterson (North Hungtindon, PA/Norwin) clocked in with a time of 3:37.95.

Only the men competed in the 300 yard butterfly relay (50-50-100-100), the 300 breaststroke relay and 4x100 IM relay. Romanko, Snyder, Brosius and Roth came in second (2:43.77) in the first event of the day in the butterfly. The breaststroke team of Romanko, Ryan Elsey (Hermitage, PA/Hickory), Nick Kost (Ashburn, VA/Stone Bridge) and Carson took first in 3:11.64.

In the 4x100 IM relay, Kost, Borsius, Elsey and Carson earned second in 4:01.61.

Both the men and women competed in the 300 backstroke, 800 free and 500 yard freestyle relays.  Nikos Koufos (Gettysburg, PA/Gettysburg), Manny Meinen (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte), Patterson and Kost paced the team for first in 2:47.61. For the women, Wyckoff, Horn, Lowery and Schneider won with a time of 3:12.96.

The men and women also came in first in the final two relays. In the 800 freestyle, Lowery, Urban, Anna Rose Watterson (Baldwin, PA/Seton-La Salle) and Wyckoff had the best time of 8:39.45. Roth, Snyder, Kost and Patterson followed with a winning time of 7:31.59.

The 500 yard freestyle relay was swam in 50-100-150-200 lengths. Lorson, Rettger, Mallick and Watterson posted the fastest time of 5:35.04 and Bachner, Siggins, Roth and Patterson also won in 4:37.57.

Behrend returns to action on Saturday against Westminster. Meet begins at 1 p.m.