Swimming & Diving

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Senn Closes Out Swimming Career in Record-Setting 400 Free Relay
Sunday, February 24 2008

Akron, Ohio -- Senior Brittany Senn helped break a 25-year-old school record in her final collegiate event to cap off a superior effort for Youngstown State at the 2008 Horizon League Swimming and Diving Championships.

Senn swam the third leg of the 400-yard freestyle relay that posted a third-place time of 3:31.73. That time shattered the old mark of 3:35.41 set on March 10, 1984, and it was YSU's fastest time in the event this season by almost eight seconds.

Alana Kane posted a personal-best split to start the race, and Ashley Williamson, Senn and Megan Rupe finished it.

The third-place finish was also the school's best-ever placing in a relay event at the Horizon League meet.
The Penguins finished fifth overall at the four-day meet, and they finished ahead of three teams at the championships for the first time.

The relay record was one of three to fall on the final day and one of nine set overall at the meet.

Junior Olivia Arnold set the school mark in the 1,650 free with a sixth-place time of 17:33.69. Williamson also broke her third individual record at the meet, clocking in with a time of 2:06.01 in the 200 back.

Rupe finished sixth in the 100 free with a personal-best time of 52.46, and Senn was 14th (53.35).

Natasha Bray added a 12th-place finish in the 1,650 (17:56.64), and Julia Darling and Laura Hanley finished 15th and 16th in the 200 breast.

The meet was also the final collegiate competition for Darling and Amanda Ladd. They and Senn comprised coach Matt Anderson's first recruiting class at YSU.

Swimming & Diving

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Horizon League Championships - Day 2
Friday, February 22 2008

Cleveland -- Ashley Williamson's school-record split in the 100-yard backstroke helped Youngstown State break the school mark in the 400 medley relay on the second day of the Horizon League Championships.

Williamson led off the relay with a 100 back time of 59.41, which topped her old record by 0.17 seconds. She posted the event's third-fastest split, and Julia Darling, Brittany Senn and Megan Rupe took over to finish in 4:01.08.

That time shattered the previous record of 4:03.12 that was set at the league championship meet three years ago.

Williamson will have another shot to break the 100 back record on Friday.

The Penguins currently sit in fifth place with 120 points. They lead Valparaiso (108), Cleveland State (90) and Butler (68). Green Bay is in first place through the first two days with 320 points while Wright State (292), Milwaukee (292) and UIC (171) are second through fourth.

Individually on Thursday, Rupe finished ninth in the 50 free with a personal-best time of 24.56, which ranks her fourth in school history. Senn added an 11th-place time of 24.84.

Olivia Arnold posted a personal-best 500 free time of 5:12.87 to finish 13th, and Amanda Carpin's score of 196.20 on the 1-meter board placed her 13th.

Also posting personal-best times were Jessica Front in the 50 free (25.58), Jennifer Johnstone in the 200 IM (2:21.30), Alana Kane in the 50 free (25.34) and Leah Krout in the 500 free (5:23.00).

Swimming & Diving

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Three School Records Fall in First Three Events at League Meet
Friday, February 22 2008

Cleveland -- Junior Olivia Arnold broke her own school record in the 1,000 freestyle and two Youngstown State relays also eclipsed school marks in the first day of the 2008 Horizon League Swimming and Diving Championships on Wednesday.

Arnold posted a time of 10:33.14 to finish eighth and beat her old record by five seconds.

Arnold's record was the second of three to fall for the Penguins in the first day, which only consisted of three events in the women's competition.

The 200 freestyle relay of Brittany Senn, Megan Rupe, Ashley Williamson and Alana Kane finished fourth with a record time of 1:37.18 in the championship's first event. Williamson, Senn, Rupe and Julia Darling then teamed for a record time of 1:49.00 in the 200 medley relay. The time 200 medley relay time was 2.57 seconds faster than the previous record while the 200 free relay time was 1.33 seconds faster.

Leah Krout and Amanda Ladd also established personal-best times in the 1,000 free. Krout placed 21st with a time of 10:53.98, which ranks fifth in school history, and Ladd's time of 11:30.04 ranks her 10th on the YSU charts.
The Penguins will compete in preliminary heats of the 500 free, 200 IM, 50 free and 1-meter diving today starting at 10:30 a.m. Finals start at 6 p.m.

Swimming & Diving

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Arnold Collects Two Wins, Sets 1,000 Free Record Against Akron
Sunday, January 27 2008

Youngstown -- Junior Olivia Arnold won two events and broke her own school record in the 1,000-yard freestyle in Youngstown State's final home meet of year against Akron on Saturday.

Arnold topped her previous record by four seconds, posting a second-place time of 10:38.91. She later just missed her personal-best time to win the 200 IM in 2:16.89, and her time of 5:16.09 gave her a win in the 500 free.

"We had a great meet led off by our second-fastest time of the season in the 400 medley relay, and Olivia followed that up with the school record," head coach Matt Anderson said.

"It's good to see that we're peaking at the right time. Hopefully this will increase our confidence heading into our final two dual meets and the conference championships."

In addition to Arnold's record-setting time in the 1,000 free, three other entries were made to YSU's top-10 performers list. Natasha Bray set a personal-best (10:43.86) in the 1,000 free by nine seconds and now ranks second in school history. Alana Kane's personal-bests in the 50 free (25.71) and 200 free (2:00.83) rank her eighth and 10th, respectively.

As a team, the Penguins had 19 season-best times and nine personal-best marks.

Ashley Williamson added a victory in the 200 back (2:12.18), and she teamed up with Kane, Brittany Senn and Megan Rupe to win the 400 free relay.

Jessica Front finished second in the 200 free (2:00.54), Williamson was second in the 100 back (1:00.19) and Darling's second-place time of 1:08.85 in the 100 breast was just .39 seconds off her her school record.
Senn added a second-place time in the 50 free (25.02), and Rupe was second in the 100 free (55.25).

The Penguins will compete at the Carnegie Mellon Invitational on Friday at 6 p.m.

Swimming & Diving

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Arnold Collects Three Wins to Lead YSU Past Radford in Double Dual
Tuesday, January 22 2008

Loretto, Pa. -- Junior Olivia Arnold won three individual events to lead the Youngstown State swimming & diving team to a victory over Radford in a double dual on Saturday afternoon.

Arnold touched the wall first in the 500- (5:21.91) and 1,000-yard (10:53.97) freestyles and added a win in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:33.85). Her efforts paced YSU to a 142-58 victory over the Highlanders, but Saint Francis (Pa.) defeated the Penguins 115.5 to 83.5.

Freshman Ashley Williamson was the top finisher in the 200 back (2:11.79), and she teamed up with Alana Kane, Brittany Senn and Megan Rupe to win the 200 free relay (1:42.17).

Natasha Bray finished second behind Arnold in both freestyles, clocking in with a time of 5:21.91 in the 500 and 10:58.26 in the 1,000. Senn tied for second place in the 50 free (25.57).

Rupe was third in the 100 and 200 free, and Julia Darling placed third in the 200 breast.

The Penguins will have their second home meet of the season on Saturday when they host Akron at 1 p.m. Seniors Amanda Ladd, Darling and Senn will be honored prior to the first event in what will be their final home meet.

Swimming & Diving

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Penguins Open Up Spring Portion of Schedule at Ohio
Monday, January 14 2008

Athens, Ohio -- The Youngstown State swimming and diving team began the spring portion of its schedule on Saturday afternoon with a dual at Ohio.

Coming off a 10-day training trip to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., YSU was led by Megan Rupe with two second-place individual finishes and a victory in the 400 freestyle relay.

The Bobcats, however, claimed wins in the first 10 events en route to the meet victory, 134-87.

Rupe finished second in the 200 free (1:59.58) and the 500 free (5:19.56), and she joined Alana Kane, Jessica Front and Brittany Senn in the 400 free relay.

Olivia Arnold added a second-place finish in the 1,000 free (10:44.12), and Ashley Williamson was second in the 200 backstroke.

The Penguins will take on St. Francis (Pa.) and Radford in a double dual on Saturday in Loretto, Pa.

Swimming & Diving

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Arnold Sets 1,650 Freestyle Record at Crimson Hawk Invite
Monday, November 19 2007

Indiana, Pa. -- Junior Olivia Arnold broke the school record in the 1,650-yard freestyle on the final day of the Crimson Hawk Invitational to cap a solid three-day meet for Youngstown State.

Arnold swam a first-place time of 17:48.69 to break Jordan Dunn's previous record by just under eight seconds. Arnold's win was one of three individual wins for YSU at the invitational.

Ashley Williamson won the 200 back (2:08.58) and Brittany Senn added a win in the 50 free (24.67). The pair also teamed up with Julia Darling and Megan Rupe to win the 400 medley relay with a time of 4:05.13, which is the third-fastest in school history.

Senn's winning time in the 50 free was a personal-best and ranks her third in school history.

Arnold added second-place finishes in the 500 free (5:16.33) and the 400 IM (4:46.39) and a third-place showing in the 200 breast (2:35.14).

Williamson had a team-high four top-three individual finishes. She placed second in the 100 back (1:00.49) and the 100 fly (59.74), and she added a third-place effort in the 200 IM (2:14.51). The freshman now ranks second in school history in the 200 IM and third in the 100 fly.
Rupe was third in the 200 free (1:57.22) and the 500 free (5:17.96), and Senn turned in a fourth-place finish in the 100 free (55.51). Rupe's 200 and 500 free times were collegiate-bests, and she now ranks fourth all-time in both events. It was the first time she swam the 500 free competitively in her collegiate career.

Natasha Bray added a fourth-place finish in the 400 IM (4:52.53).

As a group, the team posted 15 new entries to the school's top-10 all-time performers list.

The Penguins finished third behind IUP and Saint Francis with 613.5 points. Lock Haven placed fourth, Mount St. Mary's was fifth and Slippery Rock was sixth.

YSU will not compete for the rest of the fall semester. The team's next meet will be during its winter training trip in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., from Jan. 1 to Jan. 10.

Swimming & Diving

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Arnold Lifts Penguins to 163-135 Victory Over Niagara
Monday, November 12 2007

Niagara University, N.Y. -- Olivia Arnold won three individual events and Brittany Senn earned a total of four wins to lead Youngstown State to a 163-135 over Niagara on Friday evening at the Oxy Aquatic Center.

Brittany Senn and Ashley Williamson also won two individual events apiece and were part of two winning relays. Caitlin Davis added two more victories by sweeping the diving events.

The Penguins won 11 of the meet's 16 events, including the final five to pull away.

Arnold took first in the 1,000 free (10:48.99), the 500 free (5:20.99) and the 200 IM (2:18.98) to earn 27 points. Senn won the 100 fly (1:02.37) and the 50 free (25.40) while Williamson took the top spot in the 100 back (1:00.05) and the 200 back (2:11.49).

Davis posted collegiate-best scores in both diving events, 194.33 in the 1-meter and 186.38 in the 3-meter, en route to the sweep.

The Penguins will compete at the IUP Invitational from Thursday through Saturday.

Swimming & Diving

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Penguins Notch Victory Over League Foe Butler in Double Dual
Sunday, November 4 2007

Carmel, Ind. -- Youngstown State earned victories in 12 out of 13 events against Butler en route to a 165-60 victory over the Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon.

Freshman Ashley Williamson also picked up an individual win in the 200 backstroke against Illinois State in the double dual. YSU fell to the Redbirds 168-69.

Olivia Arnold picked up three wins against Butler in the 1,650 free, 200 IM and 500 free. She also finished second in the 1,650 free and 200 IM against Illinois State. Also against Butler, Amanda Carpin won both diving events, Amanda Ladd won the 200 fly, and Alana Kane, Brittany Senn and Megan Rupe won freestyle races.

Senn and Rupe added second-place finishes against Illinois State in the 50 free and 100 free, respectively.
The Penguins will compete at Niagara on Friday at 5 p.m.

Swimming & Diving

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Williamson Breaks Another Backstroke Record at Wright State
Sunday, November 4 2007

Dayton, Ohio -- Youngstown State freshman Ashley Williamson broke a school record in the backstroke for the second straight meet as the Penguins opened up a busy weekend at Wright State on Friday.

After breaking the 200 back record a week ago, the native of Scotland took the top spot in YSU history in the 100 back by leading off the 400 medley relay with a time of 59.58.

Freshman Caitlin Davis also earned her first career victory by placing first in 1-meter diving.
Olivia Arnold earned second-place finishes in the 1,000 and 500 freestyles and added a third-place finish in the 200 IM. Megan Rupe was second in the 100 free, Williamson was second in the 100 back, Julia Darling was second in the 100 breast and Sara Weigel was second in the 3-meter.
The Penguins will compete in a double dual tomorrow against Butler and Illinois State.