2017 NCAA Division II Women: Day 1 Prelims Live Recap

Division II Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships

• March 8-11, 2017
• Birmingham CrossPlex, Birmingham, Alabama
• Prelims 10:30 AM, Finals 6 PM – U.S. Central Time Zone (GMT -6 currently)
• Event schedule
• Real-time results – diving
• Real-time results – swimming
• Video link (expected to be available when meet starts)
• Championship Central

The NCAA Division II Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships begins this morning with preliminary heats of the 200 IM, 50 free, and 200 medley relay. The 1000 free will be swum as timed finals following the medley relays.

Women’s 200-yard Individual Medley

• Division II: 1:55.63 3/9/2016 Patri Castro Ortega, Queens (NC)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Bailee Nunn, Drury 1:57.24
2. Hannah Kastigar, Northern State 1:59.64
3. Alexis Divelbiss, Wingate 2:00.04
4. Zuzanna Chwadeczko, Drury 2:00.60
5. Georgia DaCruz, Queens (NC) 2:00.82
6. Oksana Marchuk, Bridgeport 2:00.97
7. Josephina Lorda, Queens (NC) 2:01.42
8. Daria Belova, Fresno Pacific 2:02.16

Josephina Lorda of Queens had a terrific back half to win the first circle-seeded heat of 200 IMs with 2:01.42, dropping 1.4 seconds off her seed time. The following heat featured a stroke-for-stroke battle between Hannah Kastigar of Northern State and Alexis Divelbiss of Wingate, with Georgia DaCruz and Oksana Marchuk just behind. Kastigar edged Divelbiss, 1:59.64 to 2:00.04.

Drury freshman Bailee Nunn dominated the final heat from start to finish, already a body length ahead by the fly-to-back turn. She held on through the back, then built her lead with the fastest breast split in the field. Nunn finished 3 body lengths ahead with 1:57.24. Zuzanna Chwadeczko was second in the heat from out in lane 1; Morgan McClure of Cal State East Bay finished third (2:02.53).

Women’s 50-yard Freestyle

• Division II: 22.36 3/9/2016 Wen Xu, Drury

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Theresa Michalak, West Florida 22.54
2. Kyrie Dobson, Queens (NC) 22.98
3. Cecilia Hake, MSU Mankato 23.09
4. Maria Madsen, Wingate 23.25
5. Vera Johansson, Drury 23.29
6. Yekaterina Rudenko, Drury 23.31
7. TIE 7th Lara Marshall, Queens (NC) 23.32
8. TIE 7th Cheyenne Rova, MSU Mankato 23.32

Top-seeded Theresa Michalak of West Florida, the only sprinter seeded with a sub-23, led the qualifiers out of heats with a 22.54, just 1/100 off her seed time. Queens sophomore Kyrie Dobson cracked 23 seconds to qualify second with 22.98.

Queens, Drury, and MSU Mankato all placed a pair of swimmers in the championship final. Laura Bendfeldt of LIU Post and Annie Lindstrom of Saint Leo tied for 16th place and will swim off for the last spot in the consolation final.

Women’s 200-yard Medley Relay

• Division II: 1:39.90 3/9/2016 Wingate (Koryukova, Weiss, Dumur, Fish)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Drury 1:39.40
2. Queens (NC) 1:40.31
3. Wayne State 1:41.37
4. Wingate 1:42.14
5. Fresno Pacific 1:42.31
6. Nova S’eastern 1:42.84
7. Lindenwood 1:43.08
8. Saint Leo 1:43.13

Drury went 1:39.40 and took full half-second off the NCAA Division II record with their win in the final heat of the women’s 200 medley relays. Yekaterina Rudenko (25.19), Chwadeczko (27.20), Abby Lunzmann (25.00), and Nunn (22.01) combined for 1:39.40, beating Queens (1:40.31) in lane 4.

Wayne State had beaten Nova S’eastern to win the previous heat with 1:41.37, while Wingate edged Fresno Pacific to win heat 2 in 1:42.14.

Women’s 1,000-yard Freestyle

• NCAA DII: 9:50.49 3/12/2008 Kristen Frost, Southern Conn St

Anna Bonsanti (10:02.50) of Bridgeport won the first heat from lane 1 over Sarah Reamy of Queens (10:04.85). Both were entered with 10:07.9s. Theresa Hayward of West Chester blasted a 9:54.83 to win heat 2 ahead of Tamara Miler from Azusa Pacific (10:09.95). Lindenwood’s Simone de Rijcke justed eked out a win over teammate Alecia McGillivray, 10:09.84 to 10:09.93 after trading stokes for most of the race. Catalina Galea Berraud of Lynn dropped 6.4 to win heat 4 with 10:12.19 out of lane 1, while at the other end of the pool, Queens’ Kathryn Johnston dropped 4.1 to touch second with 10:15.95. Van Horen of Wingate out-touched Lexy Raybon of Carson-Newman, 10:14.89 to 10:14.96, in the last heat of women’s 1000s prior to tonight’s final.

The top 8 times from the morning heats:

1. Theresa Hayward, West Chester 9:54.83
2. Anna Bonsanti, Bridgeport 10:02.50
3. Sarah Reamy, Queens 10:04.85
4. Melina Goebel, Grand Valley 10:09.06
5. Simone de Rijcke, Lindenwood 10:09.84
6. Alecia McGillivray, Lindenwood 10:09.93
7. Tamara Miler, Azusa Pacific 10:09.95
8. Reagan Eickert, UCSD 10:10.31