Lions Fall to Behrend in Final Regular Season Meet
by Joel Nelson
ALTOONA, Pa. – Penn State Altoona men's swimming returned to action on Saturday afternoon, but the Lions lost 150-75 to Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Penn State Behrend in the first meet in the newly-renovated Adler Natatorium.
Penn State Altoona took home a second place finish in the 200-yard Medley Relay when Dominic Woods (Pittsburgh, PA/Brentwood), Tom Weir (Greensburg, PA/Hempfield), Tanner Yaw (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra), and Caleb Marasco (Altoona, PA/Altoona) combined for a 1:47.95 time.
Weir and Greg Landis (York, PA/West York) claimed second and third places, respectively, in the 100-yard Breaststroke. Later in the meet, Landis took first place in the 500-yard Freestyle with a time of 5:46.13.
Yaw edged his way for second place in the 100-yard Freestyle, notching a time of 53.11. He also got the win in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 57.94, as Gino Cercone (Allison Park, PA/Shaler) came right behind, posting a 1:00.67 time for second place.
In the 200-yard I.M., Cheongjae Lee (Gwacheon-si Gyeonggi-do, South Korea/St. John's) earned first place, while Songyang Mao (Dix Hills, NY/St. Anthony's) followed behind in second, with times of 2:36.16 and 2:55.07, respectively.
Lee, Mao, Woods, and Cercone triumphed in the meet's final event, when they posted a winning time of 1:54.71 in the 200-yard Freestyle Relay.
Cercone thought the team did "really well" and that their season is "only going to get better from here come championship time."
With today's regular season finale behind them, the Lions will cool off before looking to get hot again at the four-day AMCC Championships, which begin Wednesday, February 14 and will be hosted by Penn State Behrend in Erie, Pa.
Notes: Penn State Altoona senior Justin Bannister (Willow Hill, PA/Fannett-Metal) was recognized during today's meet as part of the swimming program's Senior Day recognitions.
