The Miami women were victorious at home in the Miami Invitational this weekend, with Emory and Toledo coming in 2nd and 3rd respectively on the women’s side. Denison won the men’s meet ahead of Emory and Miami.
Miami (OH):
Women-
OXFORD, Ohio — Miami University women’s swimming soared to a victory at the Miami Invitational in a crowded field.
The RedHawks finished with 2240.5 total points after three days of competitive swimming. They defeated Emory (1590), Toledo (1571), Denison (1451.5), Ball State (891.5) and Urbana (168.5).
Shay Spelman kicked off the night with a splash, going wire-to-wire with a Denison swimmer in the 1650-yard freestyle. She ended up winning the race with a time of 16:44.81.
The RedHawks swept the 200-yard backstroke. The trio of senior Michele Rielly (1:59.32), junior Brittany Dudzinski (1:59.95) and senior Emma Szczupakiewicz (2:00.44) finished first, second and third, respectively.
Sophomore Stephanie LeMire won the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:13.86, 2.28 seconds in front of the second-place finisher. Sophomore Ana Maria Castellanos finished the event in fifth place (2:19.93) and sophomore Lainey Massaro finished eighth (2:21.66).
Freshman Allison Pierce clocked in fourth in the 200-yard butterfly (2:04.47). Szczupakiewicz placed seventh (2:05.68) and freshman Grace Van Fossenplaced ninth (2:06.67).
Seniors Natalie Rohr and Sara Krueger both placed in the 100-yard freestyle. Rohr placed fifth with a time of 51.16 and Krueger placed seventh with a time of 51.43.
The 22nd annual Miami Invitational ended with the team of senior Natalie Rohr, LeMire, senior Gabby Veri and Krueger taking third in the 400-yard freestyle relay (3:25.05).
The RedHawks have a long break, as they aren’t back in the pool until Wednesday, January 13 at 6 p.m. when they take on Cincinnati in the Nixon Aquatic center.
Standings
1. Miami- 2240.5
2. Emory- 1590
3. Toledo- 1571
4. Denison- 1451.5
5. Ball State- 891.5
6. Urbana- 168.5
Men-
OXFORD, Ohio – In the third and final day of the 22nd Annual Miami Invitational, Miami University’s men’s swimming and diving saw impressive swims across the board. The RedHawks wrapped up the competition in third place with 1736 points.
It was a back and forth race in the 200-yard breaststroke between senior Evan Bader and Ryan Stevenson of Denison University. Bader came out on top, clocking an impressive 2:03.11, beating out the competition by two-tenths of a second. The next nearest RedHawk in that event was sophomore Hutch Blackstone in tenth.
Junior Lucas Brock led Miami in the 100-yard freestyle with a sixth-place finish, touching the wall in 45.71. Junior Jack Strauss also competed in the event finishing tenth followed by sophomore Ross Westrick in 11th.
Senior Davis Staley earned eighth in the 200-yard backstroke with his time of 1:53.71 with freshman Jake Precious, senior Sean Neri and senior Jake Prodehl in tenth, 11th and 12th, respectively.
Freshman Robert Newman clocked a division three qualifying time in the 200-yard butterfly, touching the wall at 1:53.56, earning tenth with sophomoreRoss Rybakowicz right behind in 11th.
It was another race between Miami and Denison in the final event of the evening, the 400-yard freestyle relay. In the first leg of the relay, Denison led Miami by just a few strokes which Straus made up for in the second leg to make it neck and neck. Senior Christopher Dieter swam the third leg to give Miami the edge which Westrick saw through to a third-place finish. The relay squad swam to a D3 qualifying time of 3:04.25.
Miami goes on an extended break until its next meet after the New Year against Cincinnati on Jan. 13, 2016 back in the Nixon Aquatic Center. Until then, the RedHawks will travel to Coronado, Calif. for their annual winter training.
Day Three Standings
1. Denison – 3188.5
2. Emory – 1807
3. Miami – 1736
4. Urbana – 267.5
Denison:
Women-
Denison finished off its annual midseason three-day meet with a fourth-place finish at the Miami Invitational. The Big Red totaled 1,451.5 points and trailed third-place Toledo by only 119.5 points. Defending Division III national champion, Emory University placed second with 1,590 points while the team title went to the host Redhawks with 2,240.5 points.
Denison was led by Carolyn Kane and Halli Garza who posted individual event victories on Saturday night. In the 100 freestyle, Kane was the winner with a season-best time of 50.69. Mary Van Leuven took sixth in 51.28 while Ashley Yearwood took ninth in 51.64 and Kate Wright landed in 14th after a time of 51.97.
Garza’s win came in the 200 butterfly where she trimmed nearly two seconds off her time in prelims with a winning-time of 2:01.35 in the finals. That finish came close to her own varsity record time of 2:01.09 set last year. Emily Eiben would follow with a ‘B’ cut time of 2:06.40 in prelims and a 13th place finish in 2:06.99 in the finals.
In the 200 breaststroke, Marissa Bednarek took fourth place in 2:17.50.
The 1,650 freestyle saw Taylor Johns lead a trio of DU swimmers to ‘B’ cuts. After finishing third at last year’s NCAA Division III Championship, Johns took second with a time of 16:45.75. Fourth place was held down by Campbell Costley in 16:53.21 while ninth place was secured byAlex Elizeus in 17:21.04.
The Invitational was closed out by the 400 freestyle relay team of Kane, Costley, Wright and Van Leuven. The foursome would finish second after hitting the wall in 3:24.66.
Denison’s next intercollegiate competition will be on Jan. 8 when they host Ohio University at 5 p.m.
Men-
For the third consecutive year the Denison University men leave the Miami Invitational as the team champion. This year, the Big Red racked up 3,188.5 points while winning 10 events. Second place Emory Unviersity trailed DU by 1,381.5 points in the team standings. Third-place went to Miami with 1,736 while Urbana checked in fourth at 267.5 points.
Junior Jack Lindell continued his outstanding meet on Saturday when he won two events and broke his second varsity record of the weekend. In the preliminaries of the 200 butterfly, Lindell posted a time of 1:48.59 which broke Jackson Humphrey’s school-record time of 1:49.14 which was set in 2012. Lindell’s other Denison record came on Thursday night when he broke his own standard in the 200 IM.
In tonight’s finals of the 200 fly, Lindell finished first in 1:49.39. Third-place went to Andrew Rich (1:50.81) while Blake Kentfollowed in fourth at 1:51.89. Places 6-8 would go to Aaron Saccurato (1:53.83), Kevin Brinegar (1:55.27) and Mitch Williams (1:56.65).
Lindell’s second win of the night and fifth of the weekend would come in the 200 backstroke after a first-place time of 1:47.02. Jason Wesseling would follow in second with a time of 1:48.36. His season-best time came in prelims in 1:47.87.
Senior Ryan Fleming won the 100 freestyle with a season-best ‘B’ cut time of 44.70. Conrad Wuorinen also logged a provisional cut time of 45.21 that resulted in a third-place finish. Positions 7-9 would go to Max Howes (45.94), Stuart Hohm (46.10) and Wesseling (47.60).
In the first event of the night, Saccurato led the Big Red with a third place finish in the 1,650 freestyle. He covered the mile-long race in 15:49.40. Ben Burdick was fourth in 15:55.13 and Matt Hedman took fifth in 15:58.35. Jackson Berman and PJ Fallon also recorded ‘B’ cut times after their seventh and eighth place finishes, respectively. Berman touched in 16:04.37 while Fallon finished in 16:11.19.
First-year Ryan Stevenson finished second in the 200 breaststroke after a ‘B’ cut time of 2:03.31. Another rookie, Jake Ball, followed in third at 2:04.10. Sophomore Brendan Howley dropped nearly two seconds off his prelim time and finished fifth in 2:04.60 while Joe Brunkfollowed in sixth place at 2:04.81.
The Big Red’s 400 free relay team of Fleming, Wuorinen, Hohm and Howes closed out the meet with a second-place finish and time of 3:00.21.
Denison’s next intercollegiate competition will be on Jan. 9 when they host DePauw.
Emory:
On Saturday, the Emory University swimmers had a huge day as the team posted 27 NCAA “B” Cut times, eight new Division III leading times, two school records and one meet record as the Eagles concluded competition at the Miami Invitational. The women finished second with 1,590 points while the men were also second with 1,681 points.
Junior Christian Baker swam a 15:20.79 in the 1,650 Freestyle to take first place in the event. His time set a new school record in the event, smashing the previous record by over seven seconds (15:27.89) set by Paul Weinstein at the 2009 NCAA Championships. His time is also sets a new Division III top standard, besting the previous time by over 20 seconds. Later in the evening, the 400 Freestyle Relay team of sophomore Alexander Hardwick, freshman Trey Kolleck and sophomores Aaron Schwartz andOliver Smith set a new school record and also a new meet record with their time of 2:59.18. Their mark eclipses the previous Emory of 2:59.88 set in 2009 and the Miami Invitational meet record of 2:59.56 set back in 2008. It is also a new Division III leading time.
Other times that set new nationally leading marks on Saturday came from junior Mitchell Cooper in the 200 Back (3rd, 1:48.64 in prelims), sophomore Rebecca Upton in the 1,650 Free (3rd, 16:49.42), senior Ellie Thompson in the 200 Back (5th, 2:01.04), junior Marissa Bergh in the 100 Free (3rd, 50.22 in prelims), senior Elizabeth Aronoff in the 200 Breast (2nd, 2:16.14) and the women’s 400 Free Relay team of freshman Fiona Muir, sophomore Julia Wawer, freshman Meg Taylor and Bergh (1st, 3:23.47).
On the women’s side, 11 swimmers in addition to those who set new nation leading times recorded NCAA qualifying times in their respective events. In the 1,650 Free, sophomore Shelby Fruge placed seventh with a time of 17:02.66 while senior Carolyn Bonfield came in 10th at 17:21.16. In the 200 Backstroke, sophomore Cindy Chengfinished 8thin the finals and swam a time of 2:02.65 during prelims and Muir came in 11thwith a time of 2:03.49. In the 100 Freestyle event, Wawer posted a time of 51.01 during her 4th place finish while Taylor was 8th(51.88 in prelims) and Liu was 10that 51.75. Two other swimmers recorded NCAA qualifying marks in the 200 Breast behind Aronoff with freshman Ashley Daniels (6th, 2:20.81) and junior Annelise Kowalsky (12th, 2:20.81). And in the 200 Fly, sophomore Phoebe Edwards touched at 2:04.73 to place fifth with sophomore Megan Campbell finishing behind her in 8th while swimming a time of 2:05.07 during preliminaries.
For the men, seven swimmers added NCAA “B” Cut times to the team’s total. In the 1,650 Free, freshman Thomas Gordon placed second behind Baker at 15:35.09 and sophomore Henry Copses finished sixth at 16:00.02. In the 200 Back, senior Jared Scheuer and freshman Matt Rogers finished fourth and fifth in the finals but recorded times of 1:49.23 and 1:51.17 during prelims, respectively. Hardwick and Smith posted qualifying times in the 100 Free as Hardwick placed second at 45.13 and Smith finished fourth and swam a 45.27 in prelims. Sophomore Chandler Lichtefeld was the lone Eagle to notch a NCAA “B” Cut time in the 200 Breast event, finishing fourth with a time of 2:04.51. And finally, in the 200 Fly, senior John Galvin placed second, touching at 1:50.14 while Baker finished in fifth but recorded a time of 1:49.18 during prelims.
One additional Emory relay teams also recorded NCAA “B” Cut times on Saturday with the women’s 400 Free relay “B” team of Marcela Sanchez-Aizcorbe, Liu, Cheng and Kowalsky came in fifth in the event with a time of 3:27.21.
The Eagles will return to action following a month hiatus with a dual meet against Florida Southern on January 8th.
Toledo:
OXFORD, OH – The Toledo women’s swimming and diving finished in third-place on Saturday at the Miami Invitational with 1571 points.
The host RedHawks won the meet with 2240.5 points.
The Rockets recorded 12 top-10 finishes on the final day of competition.
Senior Brooke Edwards and sophomore Katrin Streicher both notched second-place finishes on the night.
Edwards finished the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 50.81 and Streicher finished the 200-yard butterfly with a 2:02.19. Freshman Julie Schmidt followed right behind Streicher in third-place with a time of 2:03.98.
In the 200-yard breaststroke, the Rockets had three swimmers finish in the top nine spots, as senior Sammy Richart, sophomore Brittany Puthoff and junior Rachael Hester placed third, seventh and ninth, respectively.
Hester touched sixth in the 1,650-yard freestyle, while sophomore Maggie Hack finished in eighth.
Senior Lauren Comer added a fourth-place finish in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:00.65 to round out the top scorers.
The Rockets return to action on Saturday, Jan. 9 when they host Oakland at the UT Student Rec Center.
Miami Invitational Final Team Standings
1. Miami – 2240.5 points
2. Emory – 1590 points
3. Toledo – 1571 points
4. Denison – 1451.5 points
5. Ball State – 891.5 points
6. Urbana – 168.5 points
Ball State:
OXFORD, Ohio – The Ball State women’s swimming and diving team completed the third day of split squad competition at the Miami Invitational and the Eastern Michigan Invitational. The swimmers finished fifth overall in Oxford, Ohio with 891.5 points, while the divers excelled in Ypsilanti, Mich. with the Ball State men’s swimming and diving program.
To kick off the third day of action in the Corwin Nixon Natatorium, sophomores Morgan Brebberman and Jenna Zitkus flew in the 200 backstroke with times of 2:10.51 and 2:12.02, respectively. Other Ball State participants in the race included Allie Kolz (2:07.19), Mikayla Dostall (2:07.97), Audrey Mayer (2:08.80), Andrea Richter (2:09.48), Kimberly Scott(2:10.32) and Taylor Miles (2:16.58).
Junior Jessica Extine was then the lone Cardinal to take on the finals of the 100 freestyle, and posted a time of 53.68. The event was followed up by the 200 breaststroke, in which seniorSydney Harris marked a 2:25.16 time for 14th. Harris was narrowly trailed by sophomore Kaiti Sullivan who posted a 2:27.42, and freshman Liz Madison who touched the wall at 2:28.74. Sophomore Amanda Kedzierski (2:28.80) and freshmen Mason Dahman (2:29.67) andMeaghan Mahoney (2:35.78) also took on the race.
Sophomore Traci Muszalski marked Ball State’s highest finish of the day when she touched the wall at 2:06.03 in the 200 butterfly for 10th. Fellow Cardinals in the event were sophomoreHannah Cressman, who earned a 2:07.86 final, junior Katie Horn, who posted a 2:09.61 time, and freshman Maryn Meldrum, who finished in 2:09.11.
To round out the Miami Invitational, the Cardinals swim squad competed in the 400 freestyle relay with times of 3:32.95 for the A relay, and 3:38.00 for the B relay. The A finishers included Kedzierski, freshman Lauren Elston, Madison, and Extine, of which shaved off three whole seconds from its seed time, while the B finishers Mayer, Richter, Scott and Muszalski took off two seconds from its respective seed time.
In diving action at the Eastern Michigan Invitational, junior Quinn Bixler finished third overall in one-meter action with a score of 236.50. Senior Madie Zirzow earned a 226.60 mark on the one-meter board, while she placed high for the Cardinals in one-meter action with a score of 233.95. Taylor Fiew sat closely behind Zirzow after the three-meter with a mark of 233.40, while she earned a 225.30 on Friday in one-meter competition. Brittany Penn was the final Ball State women’s diver to fly into the pool, and earned scores of 205.75 and 215.10 on the one- and three-meter boards, respectively.
The Ball State women’s swimming and diving team will be back in action after the holidays when they participate in a co-ed meet with IUPUI and Xavier on Friday, Jan. 8 in Indianapolis, Ind.
For the most up-to-date information on the Ball State women’s swimming and diving team, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateWSwim on Twitter.
Urbana:
Miami, Ohio (Dec. 5, 2015) – Both Urbana swim teams competed at the Miami Invitational this weekend. The men finished sixth on Thursday, fourth on Friday, and fourth on Saturday. The women took sixth on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
The UU women’s squad earned 168.5 team points on the weekend, while the Blue Knight men racked up 217.5 points over the three-day event.
Aerika Wieser paced the Blue Knight women with an eight-place finish in the 50-yd freestyle with a time of 23.85 on Thursday, 24th overall in the 200-yd freestyle with a time of 1:55.88 on Friday, and 18th in the 100-yd freestyle with a time of 52.92 on Saturday.
Jennifer Schwartz placed 23rd overall in the 100-yd butterfly with a time of 59.16 on Friday. Also, Maggie Carney placed 23rd in the 100-yd butterfly with a time of 2:34.57 on Friday.
On the men’s side, Carl Henriksson was solid as well, placing 13th in the 400-yd IM (4:15.93) on Friday, 15th in the 100-yd breaststroke (59.57) on Friday, and 15th in the 200-yd breaststroke (2:10.03) on Saturday. Also swimming well was Tomos Olivos, 16th in the 100-yd breaststroke (1:00.67) and 20th in the 100-yd butterfly (53.84) on Friday.
Coleston Pope placed 23rd overall in the 500-yd with a time of 4:46.81 on Thursday. Eric Eaton also 18th in the 100-yd breaststroke with a time of 1:01.72 on Friday, and 21st in the 200-yd breaststroke with a time of 2:17.06 on Saturday. Dakota Lewis-Griggs placed 19th in the 100-yd backstroke (55.59) on Friday, and 17th overall in the 200-yd (2:08.61) on Saturday. Also, Randall Ryan placed 20th overall in the 100-yd backstroke with a time of 59.94 on Friday.
Miami University won the women’s competition with 2,240.5 points overall, while Denison University finished atop the final men’s team rankings with 3,072 points.
The final home meet for the Blue Knights is slated after the New Year, January 16 against Alderson Broaddus.
Swimming news courtesy of Miami, Denison, Toledo, Emory, Ball State, and Urbana Swimming & Diving.
