Liberty Invitational
- Results
- Lynchburg, Virginia
- Nov. 16-18
Courtesy: Navy Athletics
The Navy women’s swimming team won the five-team Liberty Invitational in Lynchburg, Va. The Mids accrued over 2,700 points to outdistance the field by 900 points.
Navy totaled 13 event wins, with Lauren Barber (Sr., New Wilmington, Pa.) winning the 200 individual medley and both breaststroke events.
“We were really pleased with the weekend,” said Navy head coach John Morrison. “Our seniors did a great job of leading the team through our first three-day meet of the season, which produced many very good performances for this time of year. We have a lot of work to do, but this was a big step in the right direction.
“Lauren did a real nice job with three wins. We also were excited to see many of our freshmen such as Martina Thomas (Fayetteville, Ark.) and Sarah Sorensen (Kennesaw, Ga.) advance to finals of events.”
Navy will resume its fall season December 1 when it faces Army in the annual Star Meet at West Point.
Courtesy: Liberty Athletics
The Liberty swimming & diving team closed out the fall portion of its competition schedule by placing second at the Liberty Invitational, which wrapped up on Sunday at the Liberty Natatorium.
Navy won the meet with 2,770 points, while Liberty, hosting an in-season invitational for the first time, scored 1,831 points for second place. James Madison (1,650) edged Campbell (1,603.5) for third, while Georgia Southern (1,392.5) finished fifth.
Liberty A Finalists
• R-So. Mikayla Herich – 1,650 freestyle (1st place in 16:50.16)
• So. Arielle Arnett – 1,650 freestyle (4th place in 17:02.20)
• So. Payton Keiner – 200 backstroke (4th place in 2:01.64)
• Fr. Emma Hazel – 200 backstroke (6th place in 2:03.20)
• Fr. Gianni Pitto – 200 breaststroke (2nd place in 2:18.84)
• Sr. Alicia Finnigan – 200 butterfly (1st place in 1:56.33)
• So. Lindsey Cohee – 200 butterfly (3rd place in 2:01.11)
• Fr. Olivia Robinson – Platform diving (1st place in 229.58)
• Fr. Lauren Chennault – Platform diving (2nd place in 223.80)
• Fr. Abigail Egolf-Jensen – Platform diving (3rd place in 216.90)
• Fr. Allison Van Milligan – Platform diving (5th place in 132.68)
• 400 freestyle relay – 7th place in 3:30.00 [Payton Keiner (52.73), Emily Zimcosky (52.82), Brittany Weiss (52.44), Colleen Donlin (52.01)]
Notable
• Olivia Robinson set a new program record in platform diving, scoring an NCAA Zone Qualifying 229.58 to win the final. She is now qualified for the Zone Diving Meet on all three boards, while Lauren Chennault is qualified for Zones in one-meter and three-meter springboard.
• Alicia Finnigan‘s winning time of 1:56.33 in the 200 fly earned her an NCAA Division I B cut. That time currently ranks in the top 20 nationally among NCAA Division I swimmers.
• Mikayla Herich led the 1,650 freestyle from start to finish, and became the fourth Lady Flame in program history to break 17:00 in the 1,650 free.
• Liberty won three events tonight, giving the Lady Flames six individual-event victories on the weekend. Tonight, the Lady Flames received victories from Herich (1,650 free), Finnigan (200 fly) and Robinson (platform diving). On Saturday, Finnigan (100 fly) and Gianni Pitto (400 IM) both turned in winning times. Friday, Lauren Chennault won the one-meter springboard diving.
• The Lady Flames earned a total of 11 A Finals appearances in individual events between swimming and diving tonight.
• Liberty will host the 2019 CCSA Swimming & Diving Championships, Feb. 20-23 at the Liberty Natatorium. This weekend’s invitational gave teams a preview of the championship format.
Historically Speaking
• Robinson (229.58), Chennault (223.80), Egolf-Jensen (216.90) and Van Milligan (132.68) took over first through fourth place, in that order, in program history in platform diving.
• Herich’s 16:50.16 in the 1,650 freestyle ranks fourth in program history, while Arnett’s 17:02.20 ranks fifth. Ashley Sennett is 11th in program history with 18:03.80 in the 1,650 freestyle.
• Pitto moved into sixth place in program history with her 2:18.84 in the 200 breaststroke.
• By swimming 2:03.20 in tonight’s A Final of the 200 backstroke, Emma Hazel now ranks ninth on the program’s all-time top 10 in the event.
Up Next
Lady Flames who have attained qualifying marks will compete in the USA Swimming Winter National Championships, held in Greensboro, N.C. from Nov. 28 through Dec. 1.
Courtesy: James Madison Athletics
LYNCHBURG, Va. – James Madison swimming & diving finished the Liberty Invitational in third with a score of 1,650.
The U.S. Naval Academy stood atop the podium after scoring 2,770 followed by host Liberty’s 1,883. The Dukes were followed by Campbell University (1,603.5) and Georgia Southern (1,432.5).
MEET NOTES
– Madison Oster kicked off the final day with a season-high, third-place finish in the 1650 freestyle with a time of 16:55.73. This is also a top performance for JMU on the season.
– Lauren Soleo also set a season-high in the 1650 freestyle with a time of 17:21.97.
– Clocking in at 2:00.23, Bonnie Zhang recorded a season-high in the 200 backstroke.
– Zhang took the first individual victory of the day in the 100 freestyle with a 49.60 mark – a top performance for the Dukes on the season.
– Also in the 100 freestyle Jillian Breeger swam a 51.00 for a season high to finish in third.
– With a time of 2:20.48, Jessica Pierce set a top JMU on the season in the 200 backstroke.
– Kristie Darmody set a season best with her 2:05.69 in the 200 butterfly.
– In the 400 freestyle relay, the team of MacKenzie Gring, Breeger, Sydney Kirsch and Zhang placed second with a time of 3:25.99.
QUOTING COACH PEDERSEN
“This was an overall good weekend for us. The girls performed really well without any break from their regular training schedule. They were competing tired and performed well. There are a lot of learning points and information for us to debrief and grow from. I’m excited to enter the next phase of our training and continue to build toward our championships in February.”
Courtesy: Campbell Athletics
LYNCHBURG, Va. — For the second time in as many days, a Campbell swimmer broke her own program record at the Liberty Invitational as Madison Scott swam the 200 fly prelims in 2:00.68 to surpass her previous mark of 2:02.28.
Led by Scott’s fourth-place finish in the 200 fly finals, two other Camels – Maddie Baiotto (sixth, 2:05.45) and Ashlyn Palmer (10th, 2:07.95) – finished among the top-10.
Taylor McMinn swam a 2:20.38 in the 200 breast finals to take fourth place, her fastest time of the season. Annie Sanchez also posted a season-best mark, swimming the 100 free in 51.75 seconds for a ninth-place finish in the finals.
In the 200 back finals, Kelsey Tunstall placed 7th (2:04.90), and Megan Everritt finished 8th (2:05.75). Tunstall’s time of 2:03.26 in the prelims was her fastest mark of the season.
In the 1650 free finals, Ema Balcuite finished as Campbell’s lowest placer at 14th (17:41.40).
In the weekend’s final event, the 400 free relay, the team of Annie Sanchez, Neringa Cerniauskaite, Hannah Kendall and Sarah Wilson collectively swam a 3:27.07, earning third place.
Campbell finished fourth overall with 1603.5 points, besting Georgia Southern’s 1432.5. Navy took the team title at 2770, followed by Liberty (1883) and James Madison (1650).
The Camels will take a month-long break from meet action as they prepare for the FAU Fun Invite on Dec. 20 in Boca Raton, Fla.
Courtesy: Georgia Southern Athletics
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Georgia Southern women’s swimming and diving team wrapped up action at the Liberty Invitational on Sunday, completing the three-day event with 1,432.5 points, good for fifth place in the team standings.
The US Naval Academy captured the Invitational title, accumulating 2,770 points over the 21 events. Liberty (1,883) finished second, followed by James Madison (1,650), Campbell (1,603.5) and the Eagles.
Georgia Southern placed swimmers or relay teams in the A Finals of 17 of the 21 competed events.
The best individual finishes came from freshman Melissa Cox, who placed third in the 50 Freestyle in a time of 23.36; senior Bre Stuart, who swam third in the 200 Breaststroke in a time of 2:19.80; sophomore Katie Knight, who placed fourth in the Platform Diving event with a score of 172.58 and fifth in the 1 Meter Diving event with a score of 258.75.
“We did a great job leveling up this weekend,” Georgia Southern Head Coach Amanda Caldwell said.
