Women swimmers suffer loss to Lions

In swimming, first place finishes do not ensure victory. Depth is a very important element of a team's success. The swimmers who finish second through sixth score valuable points that usually dictate the victor at the end of the meet. \nPenn State displayed such depth this weekend beating IU 207-163. The Hoosiers did beat Michigan State in the three-way meet, 251-118.\nThe Hoosiers (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) hung tough with the Lady Lions Friday. \nSenior Jenn Cristy won the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 23.48 seconds, topping her previous season best by one tenth of a second. Cristy also took part in the 400-yard medley relay winning team of Cristy, sophomore Megan Geers, sophomore Tina Gretlund and junior Susan Woessner, capping off the evening with a win. \nAt the beginning of Saturday's competition, IU was trailing Penn State by a mere ten points and was leading Michigan State 74-36.\nThe Hoosiers struggled early Saturday, placing third in the 200-yard medley relay. Gretlund reacted by taking first in the 400 individual medley in 4:26.53, but Penn State's ability to consistently place a number of swimmers in the top six proved too much for IU. \nFollowing Gretlund's win, the Nittany Lions answered with first through fourth place finishes in the 100-yard butterfly. This lopsided race gave Penn State a larger lead margin, making it more difficult for the Hoosiers to catch-up.\nCristy and freshman Sarah Fiden made up some ground when they finished first and third respectively in the 200-yard freestyle. But Penn State again dipped into its talent pool and pulled out another first through fourth place to blow the Hoosiers comeback hopes in the 100-yard breaststroke.\nWoessner came through with big wins in the 100- and 200-yard backstrokes, but Penn State took places three through five in the 100, which supplied them with more of the all important lower place points.\nIU then took second to Penn State in the 800-yard freestyle relay with a time of 7:39.83 and the window of opportunity to claim the lead began to shrink. \nCristy again came through with a win in the 100-yard freestyle and sophomore Anne Williams' third place finish in the event gained some ground in the pursuit of the lead. But the Hoosiers only placed one person in the following two events, making a comeback run less probable. \nGretlund swam a season best 2:02.51 in her winning 200-yard butterfly, and the Hoosiers were able to end the meet on a high note with a win in the 400-yard freestyle relay. \nBut that victory wasn't enough, and Penn State handed the Hoosiers their first loss of the season.The Hoosiers were victorious against Michigan State, and the confidence on the team is still very high.\n"It was a really good meet," Woessner said. "We wanted a win, but we just didn't have the depth that Penn State did. We put forth a great effort, and I don't think this is going to bring us down."\nGretlund agreed and explained that now the Hoosiers are focusing on the Big Ten Championships.\n"I think we did pretty well (this weekend)," Gretlund said. "We have a really good feeling going into Big Ten's, which has been the focus all season."\nCristy said that although they lost during the weekend she has a lot of faith in the team and what they are capable of doing in the postseason.\n"This is the best team I have ever been on," she said. "It would have been nice to beat Penn State, but that doesn't say anything about what will happen in the Big Ten Championships"