EMU Women's Swimming and Diving: Women's Swimming and Diving Season Culminates in 2014 MAC Championship

Transcription

1 Eastern Michigan University Sports Scores University Archives Winter EMU Women's Swimming and Diving: Women's Swimming and Diving Season Culminates in 2014 MAC Championship Eastern Michigan University Follow this and additional works at: Recommended Citation Eastern Michigan University, "EMU Women's Swimming and Diving: Women's Swimming and Diving Season Culminates in 2014 MAC Championship" (2014). Eastern Michigan University, Department of Intercollegiate Athletics. EMU Archives, Digital EMU ( This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the University Archives at DigitalCommons@EMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Sports Scores by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@EMU. For more information, please contact lib-ir@emich.edu.

2 Women's Swimming and Diving Season Culminates in 2014 MAC Championship Eagles head to Geneva, Ohio for conference meet 2/25/2014 4:54:00 PM YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) Eastern Michigan University's women's swimming and diving team will head to Geneva, Ohio to take on the Mid-American Conference in the 2014 MAC Swimming and Diving Championships, Feb. 27-March 1 at the SPIRE Institute. Riding an 8-4 dual record (4-2 MAC) heading into the conference meet, the Green and White will aim to improve upon its fourth-place finish from the 2013 MAC Championships. Below, an in-depth look at each team competing in the 2014 MAC Championships can be found, touching on last year's performances and the current frontrunners in the top-10 standings of each events. All information regarding the meet and its results can be accessed through mac-sports.com. EASTERN MICHIGAN: The Eagles return five swimmers and three divers who placed in the top-eight during the 2013 MAC Championship meet, including redshirt-senior Danielle Hulvey (Pickerington, Ohio-Central), who set MAC and meet records in both the 1-meter and 3-meter dives. Hulvey scored on the 1-meter springboard and on the 3-meter board to take both events. The only returning swimming Eagle that had a top-three finish is junior Jessie Godlewski (Apex, N.C.-Apex), who set the MAC and meet record in the 200 fly, touching in at 1: The Green and White will face a substantial setback with the loss of First Team All-American diver Kelly Hendricks and NCAA-qualifying distance specialist Briana Emig. The Eagles placed fourth with 450 points at the MAC meet.

3 EMU stands at the top of the season-best finishes in the MAC in the 800 free relay, placing second with a time of 7: The team's best time in the 800 came by way of Godlewski, junior Monica Dorszewski (Palatine, Ill.- Palatine), sophomore Becca Detro (Carmel, Ind.-Carmel), and freshman Grace Van Allen (Indianapolis, Ind.-North Central). Godlewski has also swum her way into conference standings in the 200 fly with a runner-up time of 2: In the 100 fly, senior Jackie Swartz (Centerville, Ohio-Centerville) holds the seventh-best time of Dorszewski has been consistent as the top breaststroker on the squad, as she has the ninth-fastest time in the 100 breast (1:03.90) and the fourth-best time in the 200 breast (2:18.46). Rookie Sarah Cameron (Brownstone, Mich.- Carlson) edged her way into the standings in the Eagles' final meet at Ohio State, taking the 10 th spot with a time of 2: Joining Cameron as the only other Eagle freshman in top-10 rankings is Van Allen, whose 1:52.13 effort in the 200 free puts her in the eighth spot on the list. One more Eagle passed muster to be in the fastest times, as sophomore Audra Burtch (Goshen, Ind.-Concord) currently holds the 10 th -best time in the 1000 free with a 10:26.86 mark. This season, the Eagles have built up an 8-4 (4-2 MAC) record, picking up wins against Bowling Green, Akron, Oakland, Denison, Buffalo, Michigan State, Wayne State, and Ball State before dropping to the undefeated Miami RedHawks, Feb. 1. AKRON: The Zips lost only two seniors to graduation out of the 11 athletes who placed in the top-eight at the 2013 MAC Championship, but only one swimmer and one diver managed to turn out a top-three finish in their respective events. Senior Cat Carr competed in five events for the University of Akron, the most out of any Zips swimmer, claiming a runner-up finish in the 400 IM and third place in the 200 fly. On the boards, senior Carla McNamara finished behind the EMU duo of Danielle Hulvey and Kelly Hendricks in the 3-meter dive. The Zips finished eighth in the meet with 302 points. Akron's strength currently lies within its 200 medley relay team. While it struggled at the MAC meet, finishing seventh with a time of 1:43.26, the Zips have shaved off nearly a second for their best performance of the season which is leading the MAC for the current campaign at 1: The quartet of junior Kelsey Ferrante, senior Kendra Colby, and sophomores Erin Seiler and Hannah Raspopovich put together the team's top time in the event. Colby and Seiler have done well this season in the 200 IM, holding the fifth and 10 th spots, respectively, on the conference's top-10 times of the season list. Seiler is expected to be the team's top performer in the butterfly events. The sophomore has the third-best mark in the 200 fly (2:02.87) and is in the fifth spot in the 100 fly (55.94). Colby is oneof-three Zips in the top-10 for the 100 breast, leading the way with the fourth spot and a 1:03.21 time. Junior Amanda Lawson and Raspopovich appear in the sixth and seventh spots, separated by a mere.04 seconds. Lawson also stands at fifth in the 200 breast with a 2:18.61 mark. For the backstrokers, Ferrante currently paces sophomore Ashley Niznik in the 100 back, as the duo combine for the third and eighth spots (55.98 and 56.80). Ferrante also makes an appearance on the 200 back list along with rookie Luka Szynal, both of whom notched a season-best of 2:02.17 in the event. Leading the conference in the 50 free is Raspopovich, whose finish is well ahead of other season-bests in the league. The sophomore also holds the fourth spot in the 100 free (50.72). The Zips appear to struggle in the distance events, as only sophomore Ashley Drazkowski mustered a top-10 finish in the 500 free, claiming her season-best mark in 4:58.98 for the ninth-best time in the MAC. Akron holds a dual record of 3-3 (1-3 MAC) going into the MAC meet, and has claimed wins over St. Francis, Youngstown State, and Ohio University. When the Eagles squared off against the Zips, Nov. 2, 2013, the Green and White topped Akron and secured its victory well before the end of the meet, swimming the final five events as exhibitions.

4 BALL STATE: The Cardinals return eight and lose three swimmers who placed in the top-eight at the 2013 MAC Championship, while five returners notched podium finishes in the top-three for their respective events. The winning 400 medley relay team returns three of its members in seniors Bridgette Ruehl and Haley Richter as well as junior Carlena Magley. Ruehl went on to win two individual titles, claiming both the 100 and 200 breast events. The Cardinals enjoyed two more top-three finishes at the conference meet, as then-junior Mallory Miles won the 100 fly and classmate Emily Wisolek took third in the 200 back. The Cardinals finished seventh with 345 points. After losing Katelyn Pratt to graduation, the Cardinals have been looking to fill the backstroke position in the 400 medley relay team. In BSU's best finish of the season, freshman Courtney Mudd stepped in and started off the 3:49.42 effort that currently ranks fourth among MAC season-bests. The Cardinals have struggled this season in the freestyle relays, holding the bottom spots in the 200, 400, and 800 relays. Furthermore, only one Cardinal holds a spot in the top-10 of the conference's best times for the season in any of the freestyle events. Junior Jordan VanWinkle squeezed into the ninth spot in the 200 free after hitting a mark of 1:52.13 to be the only top Ball State freestyler. Ruehl will most likely be the top contender for the Cardinals, topping the charts in both the 100 and 200 breast. The senior leads by a margin of over one second in the 100 breast (1:01.53) and more than two seconds in the 200 breast (2:12.61). Ball State has two more swimmers in the top-10, holding the third and fourth spots in the 100 fly courtesy of Miles and Richter (55.62 and 55.75, respectively). The Cardinals sit at 3-6 (0-5 MAC) going into the conference meet, claiming wins over IUPUI, Xavier, and Eastern Illinois. When the Eagles last faced BSU, Jan. 25, they took a win, only dropping five events to the Cardinals. BOWLING GREEN: The Falcons have lost five swimmers who placed in the top-eight at the 2013 MAC Championship to graduation, but six-of-seven returners turned out performances that placed them in the top-three of their respective fields. Returning from the runner-up 400 medley relay team will be senior Brittany Szekely and sophomore Jordan Bullock. Bullock was also a part of the 200 medley relay team that took home third, but is the sole returner as Emily Bennet, Alexis Kain, and Alexa Harris all completed their careers at BGSU. Expected to be an experienced returner to MAC competition is senior Jo?lle Scheps, who took third in the 200 free and was a part of the third-place 800 free relay team along with classmate Emily Waller and sophomore Hannah Newman. Last season, the Falcons took third at the MAC met with a total 467 points. During the season, multiple Falcons have churned out performances that land them in the top-10 for the season among MAC competitors. The team holds the second-best times in the 200 and 400 free relay, fielded by Scheps, Szekely, sophomore Kayla Effinger,and freshman Victoria Griffin in the 200 and Szekely, Griffin, and rookies Sadie Ahlers and Anna Babinec in the 400. Scheps has wiggled her way into the standings in the 100 fly (56.41) while also taking the fourth spot in the 200 free (1:51.15). Bullock represents the Falcons in the 200 fly, as the sophomore's time of 2:04.08 is good for fourth in the MAC. While there are no BGSU swimmers among the conference's best in the backstroke events, sophomore Daniela Carillo holds the fifth spot in the 100 breast (1:03.48) and the third spot in the 200 breast (2:16.22) and is joined by junior Stephanie Boyle at eighth (2:19.42). Riding a strong freshman campaign is Griffin, who holds the top time in the 100 free at and the third spot in the 200 free at 1: In the distance events, Waller currently holds the eighth spot in the 500 free (4:58.93), while freshman Laura Klein and sophomore Tara Capouch appear on both the 1000 and 1650 free lists. Klein paces her sophomore teammate in both events, standing at seventh in the 1000 free (10:24.96) and ninth in the 1650 free (17:18.43). For the individual medley events, Scheps stands at sixth in the conference in the 200 IM with a 2:05.31 mark while Valedon claimed the ninth spot as well as the eighth-best time in the 400 IM. Bullock leads the team in the 400 with a time of 4:26.37.

5 This season, the Falcons posted a 6-3 (2-2 MAC) record after getting off to a rocky start early in the season, and are currently riding a five-dual meet win streak after topping Michigan State, Toledo, Ohio, Marshall, and Youngstown State. When Bowling Green met with Eastern's team in the first MAC dual of the season, the Eagles handed the Falcons a setback, Oct. 26, BUFFALO: The University at Buffalo currently has nine swimmers and one diver on its roster that placed in the topeight at the 2013 MAC Championship, most notably senior Brittany Kuras, who was named MAC Swimmer of the Year for the second consecutive season. Kuras was a part of the winning 200, 400, and 800 free relay teams, and also won the 100 free, 200 free, and 200 IM, setting a MAC meet and conference record in the IM and an additional meet record in the 100 free. While the Bulls lost two members of the 200 free relay team in Karly Moore and Mallory Morrell to graduation, the team returns the entire 800 free relay team of Kuras, juniors Jessica Powers and Becky Evangelista, and sophomore Paula Stoddard. Powers went on to take runner-up behind Kuras in the 200 free and placed third in both the 500 and 1650 freestyles. Also an integral part of the relay teams that should be expected to make an appearance in Geneva is senior Marissa Murphy, a freestyle sprinter who was part of the winning 200 and 400 free relays. The Bulls took home a fifth-place finish at last year's conference meet with 421 points. Rookie swimmer Brittney Walters should make an impact for the Bulls in the butterfly and freestyle events, as the freshman holds the seventh spot in the conference in the 500 free at 4:57.94, the ninth-best time in the conference in the 200 fly at 2:04.76 and also stepped in for Stoddard in the 800 free relay for the team's best time of the season. Junior Melissa Trail, who has been a part of the 200 and 400 free relays as well as the backstroke leg of the 200 and 400 medley relay teams, also has a top-10 time in the 100 back, sitting at seventh with a mark. Kuras has performed well in breaststroke as well, holding the eighth spot in the 100 breast at 1:03.66, but freshman Cristina Czyrka has done well in the 200 breast with a 2:18.61 mark, good for sixth-best in the conference. However, the Bulls have played around with their medley relay lineups, as both sophomore Alexis Valedon and senior Kelsey Barbour have appeared in the breaststroke spot for the team. Valedon has also performed well in the 400 IM; her mark of 4:28.10 puts her in the eighth spot on the top-10 conference times list. Powers continues to be a threat at the distance events, as she has the top time in the 1000 free (10:13.33), and the fourth times in the 500 and 1650 freestyles (4:56.83 and 16:52.80). Kuras retains the lead in the 200 free (1:48.75), and has the second-fastest time of the season in the 100 free (49.94) and the fifth top time in the 50 free (23.33). Earlier this season, the Eagles took a tight decision over the Bulls, Jan. 18 in Jones Natatorium. The Bulls are 5-3 (1-3 MAC) going into the MAC meet, notching wins over Colgate, Niagara, Michigan State, St. Bonaventure, and Ball State. MIAMI: The RedHawks return eight swimmers and one diver that placed in the top-eight of the field at the 2013 MAC Championship, three of which notched top-three finishes-all in relay events. Junior Courtney Collett returns to defend her runner-up title in the 800 free relay and senior Nicole Wagner is the only returner on the second-place 200 medley relay team. Cynthia Donovan enters her senior conference meet after being a part of the 200 free relay team that took third and the runner-up 400 free relay team. Donovan is the sole returner in both events, as teammates Becca Westrick, Meagan O'Connor, Maddie Kete, and Leah Thorton all expired their swimming eligibility at Miami. The 2013 MAC Championship ended with the RedHawks claiming a victory with 621 points, comfortably over 100 points ahead of runner-up Ohio. Despite the loss of the quartet of seniors, who contributed to five top-three relay finishes and four individual podium finishes, Miami has remained the team to beat for the season.

6 Miami currently leads the conference in season-best times in multiple categories, including every relay except the 200 medley. Banking on a variety of swimmers to lead the team, the RedHawks have their pick of the litter when it comes to putting together a winning relay team, including Donovan, sophomore Sara Krueger, freshmen Elise and Julia Campbell, and sisters Brianna and Caitlin Fujan. Miami boasts three swimmers in the top-10 of the MAC in the 200 fly, led by Emma Szczupakiewicz's time of 2:01.43 for the fastest time in the conference for the season. The sophomore also has the second-fastest time in the 200 back (2:00.64) and the sixth-best 100 back time (56.45). Leading the team in the 100 back is E. Campbell (55.61) at second and B. Fujan (56.22) for the fifth spot. Stephanie Lemire has been the strongest breaststroker for the RedHawks; the rookie swimmer holds the runner-up time in the 100 breast (1:02.77) and is followed closely behind by senior Nicole Wagner (1:03.07), and also has the second-best time in the 200 breast with a 2:14.80 mark. Donovan holds the second spot in the 50 free (23.24) and has a seasonbest time just.03 seconds faster than junior teammate Andrea Marquiss. E. Campbell paces the RedHawks in the 100 and 200 free, holding the third spot in the 100 (50.21) and the runner-up spot in the 200 (1:48.85). Miami also dominates the distance events, claiming five out of the top-10 spots in both the 500 and 1650 free. Junior Stephanie Pearce leads both categories, topping the 500 free list with a 4:54.08 mark and holding the standard in the 1650 free with a time of 16: Pearce also has the second-best time in the 1000 free at 10: Topping the charts in the individual medleys, sophomore Aubrey Kluth's time of 2:03.89 in the 200 IM and 4:21.31 in the 400 IM stand as the best times in the conference for the current season. Miami is currently riding a nine-dual win streak coming into the MAC meet, as they went 9-1 (6-0 MAC), dropping just its first dual to now-no. 18 Purdue, Oct. 18. When the Eagles faced the RedHawks in the Green and White's final dual of the season in Oxford, Ohio, Eastern suffered a setback. OHIO: Out of the 12 athletes that competed at the 2013 MAC Championship and garnered a top-eight finish for the Bobcats, 10 members have returned to the team for the season. Losing just Katey Brooks and Lauren Funk to graduation, Ohio brings back a group that combined for three top-three relay finishes and five top-three individual placements. Looking to defend their titles will be senior Laurin Williams in the 1650 free and sophomore Addison Ferguson in the 100 back, while the winning 200 medley relay team will enjoy the return of Ferguson, sophomore Haley Clark, and junior Tori Bagan. Ohio took home a runner-up finish at the MAC meet with a total of 505 points over the course of the season-capping meet. While Ohio has been somewhat lackluster in the freestyle relays throughout the season, the Bobcats have still been dominant in the medley variants as they boast the second-best times in the conference in both the 200 and 400 medley relays. Replacing Funk in the butterfly leg has been sophomore Casey Papp, resulting in season-best times of 1:42.93 and 3:47.25 in the relays. Despite Papp's input, the top butterflyers on the team have been Clark, Ferguson, and freshman Carrie Dukes in the 100 fly and junior Michelle Gasior in the 200 fly. Ferguson leads the conference's top-10 times in the 100 back, clocking in at to be the only MAC swimmer who has notched a sub- 55 second mark. Bringing strength in the 200 back is senior Rachel Stearns, whose mark of 2:01.93 stands as the third-fastest time in the conference. Bagan has barely inched her way into top-10 standings in the 100 breast, making the cut at 10 th with a time of 1: Clark has been pacing the free sprinters, touching in for a season-best in the 50 free and in the 100 free. Rounding out the team in the distance events is Laurin Williams, who holds the third-best times in the 500 and 1000 free (4:55.81 and 10:17.07), and the second-best time in the 1650 free, finishing less than one second behind Miami's Stephanie Pearce in 16: The pair is well ahead of the rest of the conference, with nearly a 15-second margin between Miami's Courtney Collett in the third-place spot. Williams also holds the second-best spot in the 400 IM at 4:24.50, while senior teammate Rachel Stearns is third in the rankings in the 200 IM (2:04.74).

7 The Bobcats barely notched a winning season after putting out a 6-5 record (2-3 MAC), claiming victories over Ball State, Buffalo, Marshall, Denison, West Virginia, and Xavier. The Eagles did not square off against Ohio this season, but the last time the two teams met, the Green and White clinched a victory, Oct. 27, 2012 in Athens, Ohio. TOLEDO: The Rockets enter the 2014 MAC Championship with seven swimmers who placed in the top-eight at last year's conference meet. Two swimmers, senior Beth Rogers and junior Maria Bargardi, turned out top-three performances for their team. Rogers notched a third-place finish in the 100 fly, and was also an integral part of the Rockets' relay circuit, swimming in the 200 free relay, 200 medley relay, 400 free relay, and 400 medley relay. Bargardi took home runner-up in the 200 back. At the end of the meet, Toledo scored 394 points for sixth place. This season, the Rockets have struggled in their relays with the exception of the 200 free relay. The team of Rogers, seniors Meredith Gibbons and Christina Noens, and sophomore Brooke Edwards put together a 1:35.10 mark which ranks third in the conference's best finishes for the season. Rogers continues to excel in the butterfly events during her final campaign, leading all swimmers in the 100 fly at and sitting at sixth in the 200 fly (2:04.54). Noens tops the charts in the 200 back with a 2:00.27 mark and also holds the ninth-fastest time in the 100 back after churning out a season-best Though lacking a top breaststroker and freestyler, Rogers also holds the seventh spot in the 50 free (23.50), while sophomore Mary Dombkowski has the eighth-best time in the 1000 free thanks to a 10:25.09 finish. In the 400 individual medley, senior Rachel Johnson has claimed the third-highest spot on the list in the event, touching in at 4: The Rockets wrapped up the regular season with a 6-3 (4-1 MAC), claiming wins over Denison, Buffalo, Ball State, Eastern Michigan, Akron, and Michigan State. When Toledo met with EMU, Nov. 16, 2013, the Eagles fell in Toledo, Ohio.