The women’s battle went back-and-forth throughout the meet and was never decided until the final two events. The Lady Knights won seven of the 13 events, recorded 19 top-three finishes and posted five Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) qualifying times.
Gannon won both relay events, opening the meet with a victory in the 200-yard medley relay. The team of Sarah Lawton (Franklin, Pa./Franklin), Katie Vincent (Emmaus, Pa./Emmaus), Steph Graham (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) and Jackie Rzymek (Erie, Pa./McDowell) touched the wall first in one minute and 54.36 seconds. The time was 0.64 second faster than Fredonia State’s relay team.
Kaitlyn Bosy (Courtice, Ontario/Holy Trinity Catholic Secondary) was a double winner, taking home top honors in the 200-yard IM (2:17.02, season-best) and the 100-yard freestyle (54.82). Both times met conference-qualifying standards.
Christina Ruggiero (Williamsville, N.Y./Buffalo Academy of the Sacred Heart) placed in the top three during three events. The sophomore captured first place in the 1,000-yard freestyle (11:07.70, season-best), before finishing second in the 200-yard freestyle (2:02.52) and the 500-yard freestyle (5:25.72).
Rachel King (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena) added another first-place finish in the 200-yard backstroke, beating the next swimmer by 3.42 seconds with a PSAC-qualifying time of two minutes and 14.60 seconds.
After all the shouting was done, it was the final two events that decided the women’s competition. Gannon entered the 200-yard breaststroke with a slim 104-103 lead, but picked up 11 important points with first and fourth-place finishes.
Vincent led the charge with a conference-qualifying time of 2:29.14, swimming 6.28 seconds quicker than the next competitor to capture nine team points. Colleen Harriger’s (Erie, Pa./McDowell) fourth-place and season-best time of 2:38.69 earned two team points.
The Gannon lead was still marginal at 115-111 heading into the final 200-yard medley relay event. But the team of Rzymek, Sarah Anderson (Erie, Pa./McDowell), Ellie Hess (Lower Burrell, Pa./Burrell) and Bosy came through with flying colors. The foursome hit the wall in one minute and 41.40 seconds, earning the gold. The 11 points that came with it, along with two points for a third-place finish, helped the Lady Knights post a 128-115 victory.
Rzymek completed the women’s group of PSAC-qualifying times in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of two minutes and 19.15 seconds.
Vincent picked up her second top-three individual finish with a bronze medal in the 50-yard freestyle (26.62, season-best). Hess, Lawton and Megan Beresford (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area) also recorded a pair of top-three finishes. Hess was second in the 50-yard freestyle (25.89) and third in the 100-yard freestyle (56.69). Lawton took second in the 200-yard backstroke (2:18.02) and third in the 200-yard IM (2:21.27, season-best). Beresford placed second in the one-meter dive (210.80) and third in the three-meter dive (231.35).
Other third-place finishes included Harriger in the 200-yard butterfly (2:21.10, season-best) and Diana Rocco (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley) in the one-meter dive (204.45).
The men’s competition did not have the same suspense as Gannon rolled to an easy 59-point victory. The Golden Knights won nine of the 13 events, recorded 20 top-three finishes and posted seven PSAC-qualifying times.
Terrance Coughran (Atwater, Calif./Atwater) and Alex Dovale (Cape Town, South Africa/South African Collage) headlined the blitz as double winners. Coughran won the 200-yard freestyle with a conference-qualifying time of 1:47.90 and the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:58.79. Dovale took home top honors in the 200-yard butterfly with a PSAC-qualifying time of 2:04.04 and the 200-yard IM with a season-best mark of 2:03.65.
Other individual winners included Greg Nelson (Homewood, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor) in the 50-yard freestyle (22.69, season-best), Luke Curtis (Adelaide, South Australia/Blackfriars Priory) in the 200-yard backstroke (2:01.94) and Jared Griffard (Coeur d’Alene, Idaho/Coeur d’Alene) in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:15.51). The times by Curtis and Griffard met conference standards.
Gannon won both men’s relay events. The 200-yard medley relay team of Curtis, Griffard, Ethan Chase (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) and Daniel Hodson (Orchard Park, N.Y./Orchard Park) opened the evening with a first-place time of one minute and 40.54 seconds.
The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Mike Kneidinger (Erie, Pa./McDowell), Chase, Phil Myrick (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) and Hodson brought Friday’s action to a close with an event-best time of one minute and 29.47 seconds.
Curtis added a second conference-qualifying time with a second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle (1:48.78, season-best). Mitchel Meighen’s (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) second-place time of 2:16.54 in the 200-yard breaststroke met conference standards. James Lilly (Bowie, Md./Bowie) recorded the final PSAC-qualifying time in the 200-yard breaststroke with a third-place mark of 2:18.88.
Griffard, Nelson and Lilly all produced a pair of top-three finishes. Griffard added to his 200-yard breaststroke victory with a second-place finish in the 200-yard IM (2:05.19, season-best). Nelson followed up his 50-yard freestyle win with a silver medal in the 100-yard freestyle (49.38, season-best). Lilly added a second third-place finish in the 1,000-yard freestyle (10:45.20, season-best).
Other second-place finishes included Jason Jamieson (Cape Town, South Africa/Rondebosch) in the 50-yard freestyle (23.12, season-best), Brandon Bricarell (Cypress, Texas/Cypress Woods) in the 200-yard butterfly (2:07.93, season-best) and Hodson in the 200-yard backstroke (2:04.16, season-best).
Third-place finishes included Chase in the 200-yard butterfly (2:08.56) and Kneidinger in the 100-yard freestyle (49.97).
Both Gannon swimming and diving teams will now take 36 days off for the holidays before returning to action Saturday, January 15 against NCAA Division I Canisius at the Carneval Athletic Pavilion. The only home meet of the 2010-11 season begins at 1 p.m.
No comments:
Post a Comment