LEWISBURG — As the quiet began to engulf Bucknell University’s Kinney Natatorium, Michael Strucko walked out onto the bulkhead, stood next to a group of photographers and waited for the medal ceremony to begin.

Three hours earlier, the Marian senior swimming standout was the one walking across the pool deck to have a PIAA silver medal placed around his neck by Marian athletic director Billy O’Gurek.

Now, it was his sister Lydia’s turn.

“She swam great,” Michael said in conversation. “It was a good day.”

The Strucko siblings were the headliners Friday at the PIAA Swimming and Diving Championships.

Michael was second in the boys’ 200-yard freestyle, while Lydia took second in the girls’ 100 butterfly. Northwestern diver Hayden Slaski also medaled, gaining a fifth place in diving on the opening day of the two-day competition.

“It’s always super excited to see the improvement from last year,” Lydia Strucko said. “Especially to be able to do it with my brother, it’s an awesome experience. I’m super glad we’re both doing well.”

Michael Strucko entered states as the third seed in the 200 freestyle after winning the District 11 title in 1:43.28. He looked strong in both of his races, going 1:41.56 and winning his heat in the preliminaries, then being clocked in a personal-best 1:40.56 in the finals.

Strucko’s preliminary time was second-fastest behind Schuylkill Valley’s Owen Eisenhofer’s 1:40.99. Eisenhofer went even faster in the evening session, winning gold in 1:37.20.

“When I got up today, I felt a lot better, a little more juice,” Michael Strucko said. “I had a feeling that something special was going to happen and I was going to go a little faster.

“Overall, I was just feeling a lot more positive and excited. The finals energy is amazing here. Going in to race really fast guys really got me going. The result we dropped a second, went 1:40. I’m really happy with that. I think that’s great success for Day 1.”

Lydia Strucko followed a similar path. Seeded second in the 100 fly after winning District 11 gold in 57.49, she was second in the morning preliminaries after winning her heat in 56.63.

In the finals, Strucko was clocked in 56.01, taking second behind Hampton’s Lainey Sheets, who won gold in 54.00.

It was the first time Lydia Strucko competed in the 100 butterfly in the postseason. The past two years she’s qualified for states in the 200 IM.

“I’m super excited,” Lydia Strucko said. “Obviously, I didn’t know what this year would bring trying something new. It was more of a fun race and something I’m excited to swim, so I’m happy with how I did.”

Diving Dandy

The Strucko siblings weren’t the only area athlete to leave Bucknell on Friday with a medal.

Northwestern Lehigh’s Hayden Slaski earned a medal for the second straight season, placing fifth with 399.65 points.

Slaski was ninth after the first five dives but had dives of 35.70, 38.85 and 30.75 to climb into fifth by the end of Round 8. His best dive came in Round 10, scoring 51.6 points on an inward 1.5 somersault that carried a degree of difficulty of 2.4.

“The start of the meet, definitely had some difficulties,” Slaski said. “Diving is all about mindset. You come back. I did what I could, I salvaged the meet and had a great time.”

The junior, making his third appearance at states, has climbed from 15th to seventh to fifth over those three years.

Bishop Shanahan’s Landyn Snook won the title with 490.20 points, knocking off three-time defending state champion Ky Arnot of Interboro, who was second at 477.90.

Pottsville’s Adam Klinger was third at 466.15, while Bishop McDevitt’s Cayden McDonnell took fourth at 425.50.

Slaski’s younger brother, Harper, placed 12th with 309.55 points.

“It’s extremely exciting,” Hayden Slaski said. “Being seeded fourth, I’m extremely pleased to hover around my seeding place. It’s an improvement from last year.

“I couldn’t be more happy for me and my brother diving here. He did amazing.”

Tamaqua Troubles

It wasn’t a great day for the state qualifiers from Tamaqua.

The Blue Raiders placed 30th in the 200 medley relay, as the quartet of Kate Behun, Savannah Wilson, Audrey Nattress and Ava Jones placed 26th in 1:56.23, 1.57 seconds slower than their District 11-winning time of 1:54.68.

Tamaqua’s Shaylee Gormley placed 24th in the 50 freestyle preliminaries in 25.42, but was disqualified after the race for a false start.

Day 2 Saturday

Action continues today at the PIAA Swimming Championships with competition in the 100 freestyle, 500 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 100 breaststroke and 400 freestyle relay.

Michael and Lydia Strucko should be contenders for medals in the 100 backstroke, while Tamaqua’s Wilson is seeded third in the 100 breaststroke.