ANNAPOLIS, Md. –– The Navy swimming and diving teams will begin their respective 2021-22 season Saturday when the Mids travel to University Park, Pa., for a dual meet against Penn State. The meet between the teams will start at noon in the school's McCoy Natatorium.
An online video stream of the meet can be viewed through
Big Ten Network Plus (subscription required) and live results can be accessed through the Meet Mobile app.
Navy Men
The Mids return 32 letter winners from last year's team that posted a 4-1 record during the abbreviated campaign. With no Patriot League Championship contested last season, the Mids return only two swimmers who have won an event title at the league meet in their careers and five who have earned all-league accolades.
Caleb Mauldin (Sr., Chesapeake, Va.) has totaled four individual event titles and swam on two victorious relay teams, and
Matthew Fadel (Sr., Columbia, S.C.) swam on the winning 200 freestyle relay team in 2020.
Additionally, Mauldin and
Garrett McGovern (So., Nashville, Tenn.) each competed in individual events at the 2021 NCAA Championship, with McGovern also qualifying for the meet as part of Navy's 800 freestyle relay team.
Navy Women
Back from the 2020-21 season are 34 letter winners who were part of the team that ended the year with a 4-1 record. Navy returns seven swimmers and divers who have won a league event title in their careers and 10 who have garnered all-league honors. Headlining that list are
Martina Thomas (Sr., Fayetteville, Ark.), who has totaled six individual event titles and 13 first-place finishes in all,
Sydney Harrington (Sr., Fairfax, Va.), who won three individual event and four races overall at the 2020 meet, and
Hannah Montau (Sr., Germantown, Md.), who was named the 2019 league diver of the year.
Thomas, Harrington and Montau have each also qualified for the NCAA Championship. Thomas and Montau have qualified for the national championship three times in their respective careers, and Harrington earned Honorable Mention All-America laurels in 2021 after she qualified for the 2020 meet that was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Penn State
Penn State's men's team placed seventh at the 2021 Big Ten Championship and the school's women's team placed 10th at the meet.
Saturday's meet will be the first between the teams in nearly three years. When the teams last met in Annapolis in January 2019, Navy won the men's meet (163.5-131.5) and Penn State narrowly won the women's meet (156-144).
