Athletics

Murtagh claims Big Ten freshman honor for third time

Penn State women's swimmer Madison Murtagh claimed the Big Ten's Freshman of the Week honor for the third time this season, the conference office announced Wednesday afternoon.

The honor comes after a winning performance against Villanova over the weekend. The Nittany Lion women defeated the Wildcats 159-139 winning nine of the 16 events.

Murtagh led the women taking home first place in two events. She completed the 1000 freestyle in 10:11.95 and recorded a time of 4:55.64 for the 500 free.

The freshman is the first Penn Stater to earn the honor three times in one season. She first took home the title on Oct. 10 for her performance against Virginia where she earned a pair of top-three finishes. Her most recent honor came back on Jan. 16 after a double-dual meet at Navy where she took home a first-place finish in the 1000 free.

Murtagh is also one of only five Nittany Lions to have claimed the honor since it began in 2011. Current teammates Maddie Hart (2016-17), Jane Donahue (2017-18) and Marie Schobel (2018-19) are also previous Freshman of the Week honorees.

Last Updated February 8, 2019